One of the biggest complaints I hear from job seekers is the length of time the hiring process sometimes takes. You would think (with the tight labor market) employers would not delay, but that is often not the case. It is also natural for a candidate to be a little impatient, especially if it is a position that they are really excited about or they are in an unemployment situation. It may seem illogical that a job seeker can help accelerate the hiring decision of a prospective employer, but there are definitely some things that you can do.
There are several potential reasons that a company may be delayed in their hiring decision. There is probably little a job seeker can do if the reason is because of interviewer vacation time or if they need to wait for final budget approval. However, if the process is stalled due to scheduling difficulties or the struggle to make a decision, then perhaps you can move the time needle.
As mentioned, there are some tactics you can implement to make sure that the process is moving along as quickly as possible. Let’s now take a look at some of the things that you can do.
• Make Yourself Available: You don’t want to be the reason that there are any scheduling time delays. Try to make yourself as available as possible, especially if you find out that the prospective employer has a narrow timing window due to vacations, etc. Be sure to communicate with the hiring manager that you can interview off normal business hours, both early and late if this becomes necessary.
• Share All Needed Information: Sometimes, all a hiring manager needs is a little more information about you. This could range from some additional detail around some accomplishments you have had, to a listing of references that will speak to your skill set and attitude. This can all start right during the interview process by asking whether or not there is any additional information needed. You can even offer to send it to them post-interview, if necessary.
• Understand the Planned Timing: On some occasions, the frustration felt by a job seeker is because they don’t know the expected timing. If you are “in the know” regarding how long things may take, then the stress of not hearing right away subsides. A company should keep you in the loop regarding how long it may take and provide you with any updates. However, you can certainly take the initiative and ask the recruiter or hiring manager about the next steps and the overall timeline.
• Do a Follow-Up: Rather than driving yourself into exhaustion worrying because you have not heard yet, you can always follow-up. You can start with a simple e-mail to the hiring manager to thank them for the discussion and you look forward to the next steps. From there, you can escalate your messaging to inquire whether more information is needed and whether the timetable is still as discussed. You can even, perhaps, escalate the situation with a direct phone call. There is some finesse that is required to do a follow-up. You do not want to come across either demanding or desperate. The goal is to discover the information you are seeking while sounding helpful. This is an area where having someone inside the company who you network with can really come in handy. This person could help in your follow-up, especially if they formally referred you for the position.
• Communicate That You Are In Demand: A potentially risky, but often effective tactic (especially if you are the leading and much preferred candidate) is to let the prospective employer know that you have others interested in you. This can prompt the hiring manager to make a decision, in particular, if they are in fear of losing you to another company. The challenge with this strategy is that you rarely know if you are the top candidate for a position. The prospective employer is not going to share this information until offer time and, even then, they may make it seem like they have other possible candidates in order to limit any negotiation. It helps, in this situation, to have some inside information from someone you network with that may have heard something.
It is quite understandable how a job seeker can become frustrated by the pace of a company’s hiring process. Rather than sitting helplessly for the hiring manager to make the next move, you can try to use your influence throughout the process in order to accelerate the decision.
As always, best of luck in your job search.
The following has been prepared for the general information of WNYJobs readers. It is not meant to provide advice with respect to any specific legal or policy matter and should not be acted upon without verification by the reader.
Joe Stein
WNY Human Resources Professional
Feel free to contact Joe Stein regarding questions or comments at:
Joe Stein
