To better support both candidates and recruiters in this difficult recruitment market, in October 2022 CharityJob surveyed candidates who had used their website to search and apply for jobs in the last six months. They heard back from almost 500 candidates and when asked to select the pain points they face when applying for jobs from a list, 54% selected ‘not hearing back from employers about job applications’.

They also asked candidates for one piece of advice they wanted to give to recruiters, and a large number of them felt very strongly that recruiters should always get back to them. The issue was two-fold: they felt that they should at least always be informed if their application was unsuccessful, and that they should receive proper feedback if they were turned down at interview stage.

Why you should respond to applicants

While we’re in a candidate-driven market, it’s more important than ever for recruiters to focus on your brand, culture and application experience if you want to succeed in the battle for talent. It seems obvious that not hearing back from a recruiter would negatively influence a candidate’s experience, and yet so many recruiters continue not to do this very simple thing, despite the huge impact it can have on perceptions of your brand and organisation.

If you don’t get back to candidates then it will prevent them from applying for other roles with you in the future.

CharityJob's research found that 79% of candidates are less likely to apply to an organisation again if they hadn’t had a response to a previous job application.

We know that our members are short on time to respond to applicants, but this is a simple way to make recruitment more efficient in the long-run.

Read more on CharityJob's website: https://recruiternews.charityjob.co.uk/respond-to-applicants/