The Results Are In: Companies Prefer Scheduled, In-Person Interviews

In February, we asked our readers about their preferred method of interacting with job seekers. And with 29% of the vote, “scheduled, in-person interviews” was the top choice, followed by “email” in second with 17%, and “telephone” in third with 14%. The rest of the results were as follows:

  • Staffing service – 10%
  • Company website/online job portal – 9%
  • Online Job boards – 7%
  • In-person walk-in – 5%
  • Job fairs – 4%
  • Company App – 2%
  • Texting – 1%
  • Video (i.e. Skype) – 1%

Another 1% of respondents selected the “other” option and submitted their own thoughts on the topic, including:

  • Depends on the position
  • Networking events
  • Social media
  • Referrals from current employees

In a complementary poll on Job Journey, the Express Employment Professionals blog for job seekers and people early in their careers, readers were asked how they prefer to interact with companies during their job search. Similar to the Refresh Leadership poll, job seekers ranked “scheduled, in-person interviews” as their top choice, followed by “email” and “telephone.”

Focus on the Applicant Experience
In a job seeker’s market where the competition for top talent between companies has reached a fever pitch, businesses need to reevaluate their applicant process to ensure they are creating a positive experience for potential future employees. In fact, LinkedIn’s 2018 Global Recruiting Trends report found that 56% of businesses say “interviewing innovations are ‘very’ or ‘extremely’ important to the future of hiring.” Additionally, CareerBuilder’s Candidate Experience Study found that 78% of job candidates said “the overall candidate experience they receive is an indicator of how a company values its people.”

How do you prefer to interact with job candidates? What are some ways your company creates a positive applicant experience? Let us know in the comments section below.

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