How Personal Websites Can Make Recruiting Human Again

How long did it take you to fill in the last application form for a job opening?

If your experience was anywhere close to the norm, it took you at least half an hour and left you feeling deeply frustrated with the system. In addition, if you were lucky enough to receive any response, it was again an automated message informing you that your application was successfully submitted.

According to a survey of 300 HR professionals we conducted this June, technology and the Internet are the top trends impacting the HR profession. Like everything, that has its good and bad sides.

The Scrooge of Recruiting

The first major shift in recruiting process came with Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) that are in charge of making the hiring process more efficient by weeding out the less qualified candidates in the initial phase of the process.

Big companies, such as Google, Starbucks or Procter & Gamble receive several million resumes per year. Dr. John Sullivan, professor and corporate recruiting strategist says that, on average, 250 resumes are received for each corporate opening.

ATSes scan submitted resumes for keywords, relevant experience, and educational background that indicate candidate’s fit for a particular position. If you give this a thought, you realize that: first, the vetting process is definitely out; second, the system is unable to distinguish between two candidates on different sides of a spectrum as long as they satisfy the form. No ATS inquires about what did you learn or what you accomplished as a person and as a professional. Something, you must agree, should be able to differentiate you from other candidates.

Liz Ryan, CEO and Founder of Human Workspace, challenges the premise that the main problem for recruiters today is weeding out the unqualified candidates. Instead, she says, “the problem in recruiting is that it’s hard to find great people, and we should be selling them throughout the process if we want them to consider joining us.”

But are we going in that direction? The latest invention in recruiting found a way to automatize yet another step in the process – interviews. One-way video assessment tools allow the hiring managers to prerecord questions for candidates, for which candidates then respond via video.

In his recap on one such interview, Scott Brown, human resource professional, in his LinkedIn article shared his experience with one such interview, describing it as a process “where everything, apart from the candidate was automated and impersonal”.

Making Recruiting Human Again

There are many things that need to change in the modern recruiting process.  The most important thing is recognizing that while going digital has its advantages, nothing can replace a human contact, especially in a process that, for many candidates, is very stressful. Starting from filling out the application form, the whole process needs to be simpler, more intuitive and emphatic and that word again, more human.

But there is hope because HR professionals seem to recognize this.

Our survey showed that HR professionals are aware that candidates feel frustrated by the lack of human contact in the job search process. More importantly, they themselves feel the need for a more personal contact, with 70% of them proactively looking to assess personal qualities that aren’t perceptible from a traditional resume.

Learn more about the latest HR Recruiting Habits and Trends in our free ebook!

What can help humanize a candidate from a perspective of a recruiter? Nearly half decision makers believe that personal website is what can add that human and personal note to a candidate’s profile.

While a traditional resume is still regarded as the go-to tool to communicate professional experience, almost 70 percent of HR professionals surveyed say a personal website provides more insight into a candidate than a traditional resume alone. In fact, they believe that a personal website that showcases one’s personal achievements demonstrates:

• Creativity (73%)
• Ambition (72%)
• Innovation (69%)
• Marketing Savvy (68%)
• Visual Thinking (63%)

Where Do We Go From Here?

Complicated application systems that take you more than half an hour to fill out are not good nor for the employer and nor for the candidate. For a candidate, the whole process is more complicated and stressful than it has to be and for an employer it just sends the wrong message about the brand.

Companies need to start treating job applicants like collaborators and potentially valuable members of their teams. Until then, there is another way we as candidates can regain control over the way we are presented – through a personal website that will allow us to define ourselves, in a digital environment we control. Most importantly, in a process that wants to turn us into a number, it gives us a way to fight back.

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