Recruiter Sophie Symonds has clearly touched a nerve.
She wrote a post about losing her job to COVID-19 that has resonated with readers around the world. So far, nearly 8,000 people have commented on it and over 182K people have reacted to it.
In a four-paragraph post on LinkedIn, Sophie explained that she had made it to final-round interviews with two companies, worked hard and long preparing and delivering presentations, and then was informed via email that she would not be moving forward. “No explanation, no feedback,” she wrote, “just ‘we went another way.’”
In that post, Sophie made a simple request: Recruiters, she asked, give candidates some feedback.
Brendan Browne, LinkedIn’s global head of recruiting, says calls to unsuccessful candidates need to be a priority. “Make sure you schedule some time to have a two-, three-, four-, five-minute conversation with your candidate,” he says. “It’s going to make a difference.”
Feedback should be specific and actionable and should be delivered with clarity, compassion, and crispness. It should also recap a candidate’s strengths as well as opportunities for improvement.
Sophie is not alone — LinkedIn research shows that 94% of candidates want to hear feedback after an interview. And candidates are four times more likely to consider a future opportunity with your company if you’ve offered them constructive feedback.
So, the next time you have to deliver bad news to a candidate, do it over the phone or a video conference call. The candidate will thank you — and so will your company.
To receive blog posts like this one straight in your inbox, subscribe to the blog newsletter.
Related articles