The deadline for applications closed at midnight and the hiring manager cleared their calendar, anticipating a morning of working their way through a bucketload of incredible applications from incredible applicants. They didn’t anticipate a grand total of six (6) CVs, the only one of which stood out because it was lovingly crafted in dot matrix as opposed to crayon.

However, there were another ten potential applicants — all of whom would have been perfect for the role. But their applications never reached the manager’s desk. So what happened?

Are You (Too) Experienced?

Candidate #1, at the ripe old age of 41, didn’t get to see the advert. Some employers go further than using phrases such as ‘energetic’, or ‘digital native’ to lure candidates in their desired age groups. Applicant Tracking Systems such as Taleo can be tailored to exclude older applicants. That’s not the worst of it: Facebook has faced legal action over allowing companies such as T-Mobile and Amazon to exclude applicants based on their age, race and gender.

The Antisocial Network

LinkedIn isn’t highly regarded these days, but it’s still the first stop for most candidates. And it was the last stop for Candidate #2. Thanks to LinkedIn’s (ahem) ‘Easy Apply’ feature, they couldn’t attach the portfolio or cover letter that was deemed essential. Still, at least it was better than last time when the job advert was posted after the closing date — an all-too-often occurrence on LinkedIn.

Agents of S.P.A.M.

It’s been said that Hawaiians are the biggest consumers of spam in the world, a point that could be debated by Candidate #3. Clicking ‘Apply’ directed them to the registration portal of a third-party agency and into the jaws of a laborious sign-up process. They gave up at this point, knowing that doing so would result in an onslaught of emails, texts and carrier pigeons packed with irrelevant job ‘opportunities’.

Computer Says D’Oh

It wouldn’t be so bad if the portals in question actually worked properly. Candidate #4’s CV was so brutally mangled on upload that the prospect of manually correcting it was the final straw. But at least there was an uploader of sorts; applying for a role at an academic institution normally involves filling out twenty screens of information about past education and employment history, right down to that first Saturday job in Burger King.

Bring on the dancing workhorses

Recruitment ain’t no circus but employers are increasingly seeing themselves as ringmasters and yes, the applicants are the clowns. This is where Candidate #5 made their excuses and left. The endorphin rush from the email telling them that they’d made the shortlist was instantly quashed by the accompanying work assignment. This equated to about two days of work with no remuneration — meaning you could just have made it onto your prospective employer’s long list of free labour.

You Are The Product

GDPR be damned: some businesses are only in it for the data. Recruitment agencies often ask for references up front, and employers commonly ask for a salary history. This is valuable data — references can be used as sales leads, and salary histories help them research market rates. Candidate #6 bailed out at this point, preferring to hold onto their references until an actual job offer was in the works.

The Bait & Switch

But four candidates struggled through the whole process. Their personal lives were in tatters after spending the weekend writing 2,000 word assignments. Their inboxes were overloaded with job opportunities in the sanitation industry, and they couldn’t sleep due to the incessant cooing of the pigeons. But they were rewarded for their efforts with an (automated) email about the job.

Unfortunately, the salary on offer was about two thirds of what was listed on the original advert. Which had now disappeared.

So what can candidates do?

Georgia White, HR director at a major UK charity, advises candidates to look out for the red flags. “Recruitment should be a two-way investment of time. Work assignments are a huge red flag. If the expectation is that you work on a task whilst they attend to other matters, walk away. It’s the same with asking for references or your salary. You’re essentially providing free content and consultancy for the employer.

“Be wary of job listings with no salary or a salary listed as ‘competitive’. If a salary is posted, take a screen grab. But realistically, there’s not a lot you can do if it changes.”

Putting The ‘Human’ Back Into HR

“It’s a recurring complaint that HR can’t find talent, but it might be because HR isn’t actually looking for talent,” says Daniel Mason of Reed. In the good old days — around five years ago — employers actually read CVs instead of letting an automated ranking system do the grunt work. “Algorithms have turned hiring into a pass-the-buck game, keeping skilled candidates unemployed.”

Equally, paying big money to headhunters or the same services that everyone else uses such as LinkedIn or Monster to find candidates isn’t intelligent recruiting. Daniel added, “Usually, these processes are built into a company’s hiring policy, following an expensive third-party consultation. They won’t change.”

When this is the case, then the ‘talent shortage’ may be a lot closer to home.

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