Candidate experience and engagement

The candidate experience can be improved in many stages of the selection process. A few examples include:

• Eliminate redundant or non-pertinent questions in the application.
• Try to keep the assessment to an acceptable length (30-50 minutes).
• Build in checkpoints to communicate with the candidate throughout the process.
• Provide them feedback as to where they stand in the process, as well as clear expectations of what may be happening next and when.
• Make the experience engaging by having updated technology and interactive steps.
• Have a consistent approach to interviewing, which includes having the interviewer be prepared and well-informed about the candidate.

While these are a few examples, it is clear that candidate experience can be improved across the entirety of the hiring process.

Overall, all generations value fairness and justice, which is key to a great candidate experience. However, our research shows that there may be some generational differences in how individuals may react to various elements of the assessment process. Compared to Millennials (born between 1981-1996), individuals in Generation Z (born in/after 1997) place less value on engaging experiences, are less likely to be positively impacted by tests that include audio/visual components, are more sceptical of game-based assessments and prefer shorter assessments (around 42 minutes compared to 49 minutes). These findings reinforce the notion that we should not sacrifice quality measurement for shiny new tools.