Executives share etiquette of responding to job applicants
Are you sending out 20 resumes to 20 different companies? You might be thinking that you’d be happy with one response. As more people apply for fewer jobs in Rhode Island, a side effect of an economy that is leveling off, some companies are struggling to keep up with the paperwork, according to human resource professionals.
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But local employers said they have made responding a priority, even if it’s to say, thanks but no thanks.
“I’ve been in their position; years ago I was applying for jobs and no one got back to me,” said David L. Goldman, director of human resources at the Preservation Society of Newport County and vice president of the Human Resources Management Association of Rhode Island. “I know how awful that felt, so I made a promise to myself” to never do that to someone else.
Goldman handles all the full-time hiring at the Society – individual departments handle their own part-time hires – and he enters each applicant into a spreadsheet. Everyone gets an initial e-mail to let them know their applications were received and are being viewed, and qualified candidates are contacted shortly, he said. People who go in for an interview, but are not hired, get more formal letters thanking them for applying, Goldman said.
“Sure, there must be some etiquette to fall back on, but I think personal experience drives how rigorously any business responds to applicants,” he said. “I hope I’m treated in-kind” for responding. “For applicants, any news they get is appreciated. Sometimes not knowing if anyone’s even looked at your paperwork is infuriating.”
At CranstonArc, a nonprofit for people with disabilities, all applicants get a response, usually in letter form.
“We respond to all applicants, whether they are walk-ins, employee-referred or they come in from one of our job fairs,” said Elissa O’Brien, vice president of human resources. “It builds our credibility with the applicant.
The applicant spent some time to apply, and the worst part for them is not knowing” if anything will come of their query.
CranstonArc enters each applicant into its computerized applicant-tracking system, which in turn generates a personalized letter notifying each one that his or her application is being processed, and that if their skills match with the job, that someone from the organization will be contacting them, O’Brien said. The process lets applicants know they haven’t been forgotten and also saves the human resources staff (comprised of O’Brien, a recruiter and an assistant) from making calls to each applicant.
O’Brien said the organization typically tries to have the first round of letters sent in two weeks. Applicants who are interviewed but are not hired receive a second letter with a rejection, thanking them for applying and saying that the application will remain on file for future jobs, she said. “It gives some closure to the situation,” she said.
Most companies at least make an effort to respond to every applicant, whether it be by e-mail, postcard, phone call or letter, said Lynn Watterson, president of the Human Resources Management Association of Rhode Island.
Responding to applicants is a best business practice, in the least, she said.
“It is common courtesy and you want to show the employer as the company of choice,” she said. “Sometimes the process can be prolonged, but the majority of companies do respond.”
Watterson said while applicants might want to follow up with the potential employer after they send in resumes, it is not necessarily their responsibility to determine if the company is interested; companies are responsible for that, she said.
But one career-management professional said there is, in fact, a lack of response from the business community.
“Based on the experiences of our clients, it appears that the majority of the time they do not hear back and that’s one of the major frustrations,” said Gil Swick, senior vice president and general manager of the Providence office of Lee Hecht Harrison, a global career-management services company. “From the employer’s perspective, they’re inundated with applications, maybe 200 for one job.”
The average client at Lee Hecht Harrison, Swick said, has to be extremely aggressive in filling out applications and following up with potential employers with phone calls, e-mails and thank-you notes.
“It’s to their benefit to be politely aggressive in following up,” he said.
Size of the company often determines how and to what degree they respond to job applications, Watterson said.
Larger companies, like CranstonArc, which has 350 employees, are more likely to have an automated system in place with HR staff to follow up on responding to applicants. Smaller companies, however, may have only one person or even no HR staff to handle employment, so responding to 100 applications might be more difficult.
“If they have a staff devoted to recruitment, it’s easier for them,” she said. “With smaller companies with no staff, it would be much more difficult.”
When O’Brien started at CranstonArc 12 years ago, there was no system in place, so she started postcard mailings.
“It’s (a matter of) how much value you put on the process,” she said. “If you respond to (applicants), you have a better chance of having them apply again. I think it’s more of a philosophical issue. To us, it’s important to keep our sources and applicants flowing.”
