Why Do New Hires Ghost After Receiving Offer Letters and How Can We Fix It?

Friends,

Most of the time, people don't turn up to join the organization after receiving the Offer Letter. During this onboarding process, the organization wastes time without achieving the desired result, ultimately affecting the productivity of the organization. How can this issue be addressed? Please advise.

Thanks,
Chaitanya

Yes, very right, the problem is getting bigger day by day. To convert the selection of the candidate into joining, the practice of not mentioning CTC or salary structure on the offer letter can be followed strictly. Furthermore, the selection of the candidate must be done perfectly by making comparisons between salary, designation, profile, and responsibilities that the new employer offers compared to the old employer, and also considering any relocation benefits. The new employer should always be somewhat on the higher side, resulting in a strong willingness of the candidate to join the organization for his/her betterment. The interview process should thoroughly scan the candidate so that doubts of wrong selection are nullified.

Thanks

The reasons vary from organization to organization and also by the position a person is offered. It's difficult to give a precise answer. The way the question is posed, I wonder whether it is a question set as an assignment on a Master's course!

Please also check whether your offer letter follows some good practices recommended at https://www.go2hr.ca/articles/job-of...-are-important

Regards,

I agree with you that the habit of some candidates retreating at the last moment wastes the effort, time, and money invested by the company in recruiting them. The reasons may be many, and the only way to overcome the problem is to address the causes.

1) The blame for this situation cannot always be entirely placed on the candidates. Employers also contribute to this issue. For example, some companies do not adhere to interviewing etiquette and manners. After the interview, they remain uncommunicative with the candidates for a long time, compelling them to act hastily, making them anxious about their selection, and driving them to look for other options. If the company, after the interview, thanks the candidate for attending and informs them of the probable time by which they will communicate the final result about their selection, it calms their nerves, and they will be willing to wait.

2) HR should be careful in communicating and behaving with the candidates. If their conduct and communication reflect casual, indifferent, and unpleasant behavior, it sends the wrong signal about the organization's culture to the candidates, and they may, in a moment of hesitation, back out at the last moment.

3) As one learned member said, a company sometimes may not be transparent about terms of employment like salary, probation, confirmation, and transfer or prospects of growth, creating confusion in the minds of the candidates, rendering them indecisive.

4) Additionally, there will be fence-sitters who show the offer letters from the companies and bargain for better terms with their existing employers. Such candidates may not join if they get a favorable deal in their existing companies. In another scenario, there may be candidates who target more than one company and then decide on one. HR or the recruiters concerned should be able to distinguish between a candidate who is seriously looking for a job and one who is smartly looking for a job and call only the serious ones for the interview. This is an art and needs to be cultivated.

5) If possible, HR can also maintain a database containing the names of candidates who previously indulged in "NO Shows" so that whenever they undertake an interview process, they can verify the names with their database and avoid calling those whose names appear in the database.

6) HR can also add a sentence in the offer letter stating that candidates shall communicate by a certain date if they are not willing to join the company and that the company respects their decision.

Hope this helps.

Regards,
B. Saikumar

Immediate Joining for Unemployed Candidates

For those without a job, you may ask them to join immediately if someone is found suitable. An Offer Letter is not a mandatory requirement. In due course of time, you can issue an Appointment Letter indicating the terms and conditions of service.

Offer Letter for Candidates in Service

For those already in service and keen to have an Offer Letter to facilitate resigning from their current job, have HR send an email congratulating the candidate for being placed on the approved list. Provide a joining date and list the necessary documents to be carried. Also, mention that the salary will be as mutually agreed upon during the interview (you may introduce the practice of having the candidate sign the terms and conditions of the job offer).

Establishing and Following Processes

Remember, you can establish your own processes, but ensure to follow them meticulously. Be prepared that some individuals may not join, especially those who are only interested in obtaining an offer letter to enhance their market value. In any case, such individuals wouldn't likely stay with your company for long even if they do join.

Dear Chaitanya,

Firstly, we should never forget that we were also candidates for a job and went around looking for one. At times, we did have more than one option and had to decide where to join. We have not sinned. Similarly, a candidate who has an offer from you may have their own compulsions, options, and decision-making process. Let us not classify all the candidates as bad candidates.

Ensuring Candidate Joining

The best method to ensure joining is detailed discussion before issuing the offer letter and also fixing the target date of joining. As rightly advised by a friend member in the forum, do not reflect the package and perks in the offer letter. You can show the package cost to the company at the interview and negotiate if required. You can inform the candidate that it will be included in the appointment order. This will prevent the offer letter from being used as a negotiating tool at other interviews by the candidates. It should also be borne in mind that the reputation of your organization plays a major role. When I read the offer letter that was received by my grandson from VOLTAS, I advised him not to have a rethink and to go and join the organization.

As a standby arrangement, you must keep the second in the order of merit (if you follow the merit system of selection) ready to receive an offer letter at short notice.

Blessings,

Dr. Ram

Friends, thank you very much for your valuable inputs. These inputs will be a great help to me. I hope that others who are facing the same problem will also benefit from these answers.

Regards,
Chaitanya

The possible causes for candidates not joining a company can be many, but I wish to share a few that come to my mind.

Impression During the Interview

The impression that a company creates at the time of conducting the interview is crucial. Fearing a poor show of candidates, many companies slot several candidates at the same time. This leaves candidates waiting for a very long time. During this agonizing wait, in some companies, none of them bother to offer water, let alone refreshments. The embarrassment they face in checking the location of a restroom, etc., creates a poor impression of the company.

The solution to this problem is to spend time speaking to the candidate to check their interest, willingness, and convenient time to attend the interview. Then, send an email seeking their confirmation to attend the interview at the scheduled time slot. Follow up for their confirmation, and speak to them the day before on the pretext of guiding them to your company (only to find out whether they are likely to turn up for the interview). If they are an outstation candidate, you can check if any assistance is needed for their accommodation. Once they arrive, allocate a separate logbook for them to enter their name and contact details at the Security office. This log is useful to analyze the number of candidates called vs. the number of candidates who have attended and the quality of candidates shortlisted, and the source of recruitment, whether it is job portals, newspaper ads, references, or consultants. This information is useful in choosing the right source for the respective position at a later date. Advise a seasoned security person to guide them to the waiting room where HR greets them, offers refreshments, and checks if they wish to use the restroom facility. The candidate is then advised to fill up the application blank and guided on how to fill up the form (the sequence of presenting educational qualifications/experience/the policy of indicating references, not friends or relatives, etc.). If there is a likelihood of a delay, the candidate has to be informed, and if needed, lunch is arranged. Reimbursement of expenses, if applicable, is done.

Thereafter, communicate to the candidate the status of the interview. In case you are unlikely to select them, you may write stating that their profile does not match your current requirement and that you will revert as and when a vacancy suiting their profile arises in the organization. This is because you may find them not suited for the position you are looking for, but a vacancy may arise that matches their skill sets at a later date.

If you do not find them unemployable, you can politely inform them of the skills they lack, and this feedback is given to improve their skills in future interviews. Generally, when we give such feedback, I have observed that candidates take it in the right perspective.

Offer Letter and CTC Negotiation

You can give an offer letter to the candidate, obtain their concurrence on the CTC worksheet, and then hand over the offer letter alone without the CTC. This is to ensure that the offer letter is not used as a bargaining tool by the candidate with the current employer. The entire offer of appointment is handed over at the time of their joining.

We find that some HR professionals tend to push the candidates too hard to accept the salary structure offered by them, and the candidate accepts the offer momentarily. But sooner or later after joining, they start the job hunt again. In some cases, as the employer has a choice, candidates also have a choice, and they select the employer who offers a higher CTC. But I will certainly not subscribe to the view of offering a substantially higher pay package to the prospective candidate by upsetting the current wage structure that exists in the organization. Such a move could bring in discontent amongst existing employees.

Handling Unsolicited Applications

Even when you do not have a vacancy, you may find candidates walking in/sending in profiles to your organization. Do not discourage/trash them. Instead, review these and call them for a discussion if you find the profile interesting. If you find them good, you can inform the candidate that you do not have a vacancy right now, but they will get a call when a vacancy suiting their profile arises in the organization at a later date. By this way, you have created an impression that you have not turned out the candidate when they approached you, and they are more likely to join when you call them when a vacancy matching their profile arises in the organization.

Though there are many other finer aspects like these, I have shared a few of them.

Regards

Recruitment and Selection Process: A Key to Success

We have discussed this subject many times here on CiteHR. Before starting a new thread, please check the previous discussions FIRST. The answers you are looking for are more than likely to be found there. I have posted many times on the subject of Recruitment and Selection. Everything starts with having a robust R & S process in place and ensuring all staff are trained in its application. If you do the Recruitment and Selection correctly, you can avoid most of these problems. You will never eliminate them entirely; no process, no matter how rigorous, will mitigate against perverse human behavior.

I would suggest you carefully examine your process and review the applications, your interview notes, and the referee reports of the no-show candidates. From that, you should start to see where your process is failing and take appropriate action. Without a robust process in place, you are just wasting time, money, and energy to achieve the sum total of nothing.

Yes, as Aussie John said, you can only mitigate the problem but not completely eliminate it, given the inability of human nature to resist the temptation of searching always for pastures looking or appearing greener on the other side.

Approaching the Problem

The best way to approach the problem is to accept it as a professional hazard and gear yourself up to mitigate the chances of putting up 'no-shows' by candidates instead of expecting an ideal situation where every candidate that is selected joins the job.

Regards,
B. Saikumar

Below are critical aspects of an HR Interviewer that are often neglected or missed by many currently.

* Understand why the candidate is moving out from their current organization.
* Understand what drives the candidate to join your company.
* Urgency to close the position and the notice period the candidate needs to serve to join your organization.
* Salary fitment and offer rollout - explaining the offer letter clauses and salary annexure (income/deductions).
* Evaluate the authenticity of the information the candidate shares during the interview.

In addition to this, the recruiter must be in touch with the candidate to sense any drop-out possibilities. In other words, recruitment is not the procurement of people. It involves much more experience and expertise.

Regards,
Shashank

We usually ask the candidate to email their resignation letter as soon as we release the offer letter and then follow up consistently for the same.

Regards,
Sonali

I would like to add the following point:

Offer Letter as a Contract

I believe an offer becomes a contract when the parties of the offer sign the document. Therefore, once the offer letter has been signed by the candidate physically and by the HR, it is a contract as per the law. HR can initiate proceedings against the candidate if they do not join.

Please add to it, if it is feasible.