How to Keep Candidates Involved Between Acceptance of the Offer and the Start Date

It's more vital than ever to keep prospects interested between their acceptance of your offer and their actual start date in this post-Covid talent-short market. Candidates frequently have multiple job offers on the table, and you want to make sure your company is at the top of the list.

As a result, this article explains how to prevent candidate drop-off and offers advice on how to keep your new hire motivated before they start.

Accept That Candidates Will Be Considering Other Options

When a candidate applies for a job at your company, it's normally as part of a bigger job search, and they may be talking to other companies about other opportunities. Many candidates, understandably, keep their options open until they receive a formal offer.

You may do a fantastic job of creating rapport with the candidate, helping them through the interview process, and extending an offer, but the connection can be effectively placed on hold due to a variety of issues. This might take anywhere from a few days to several weeks, depending on how long it takes the HR department to complete the offer, follow up on reference checks, or just failing to prioritise this hire. In the interim, what happens to keep the recruit interested in joining your company? Quite oft6en, nothing.

During this time, the candidate is open to competing company offers and will most likely be winding up the interview process with other firms. Counteroffers are also at an all-time high as companies try everything they can to keep as much talent as they can. It's critical to stay in touch with the prospect at this point and ensure that they understand how much they're appreciated.

Here are the measures to follow now that you've accepted the current situation.

Be Proactive Through the Entire Process

Based on your communications and how the process unfolds, candidates build impressions about what it will be like to work at your company. It reflects poorly on the company if the application process is awkward and disorganised.

From beginning to end, the procedure must be fluid and simple to navigate. You want to impress a candidate sufficiently to compel positive action from the moment they first see a job post or visit your website. The candidate must believe that your company is well-managed, proactive, capable, and, most importantly, concerned about their candidate experience. If a candidate applies and does not hear back for several weeks, another employer is likely to take notice.

Consider the process from the perspective of the candidate. Are you able to identify any bottlenecks? Are there any areas where you're unsure? Inquiring about candidates who have previously self-selected themselves out of the process can often yield useful information. All of this takes time, but it's well worth it when you consider the hidden costs of losing applicants late in the process.

Strengthen Your Employer Brand

The strength of your employer brand is critical when it comes to attracting and maintaining great employees. This is also true for those who have accepted a job offer and are looking forwards to their first day on the job. When a candidate accepts an offer, they may be required to leave their existing job, which frequently results in a counteroffer. It might be very enticing to be offered more money in exchange for staying in a secure position.

However, make sure they know that the grass is greener on your side! It's pointless if they just find out after they've started. Make sure your communications reflect the fact that your company is a fun, challenging place to work! In the same way that you look for prospects when sifting through resumes, you should position your brand to indicate what a terrific place to work in order to catch their interest. The employer brand and offer must be such that the candidate perceives your company as their future workplace.

Showcase your company's unique benefits, whether it's the opportunity for professional progression or the ability to work from home. It could be just the thing to persuade your best candidate to stay in the race until the end. Your company brand should scream opportunity to any potential employee who is considering joining. You'll lose folks in whom you've invested a large amount of time if it doesn't.

Don’t Delay in Sending the Offer Out

When an applicant accepts a verbal job offer, their degree of engagement reaches new heights. The applicant will be ecstatic, but if the offer does not materialise within a reasonable time frame, the candidate will become increasingly sceptical.

Some businesses can take up to three weeks to submit formal papers, which is excessively long. The longer the hiring process takes, the more time competitor employers have to try to recruit your candidate. If the timeline cannot be shortened, realistic expectations must be set and constant contact with the candidate maintained to guarantee high levels of participation.

If the organisation hires an outside recruiter, this is an important element of the recruiter's job. You're not paying them to send you CVs; you're paying them to locate exceptional, motivated employees, which requires them to work with the candidate from the initial interview to the start date and beyond.

A welcoming call from a senior staff member or future line manager can go a long way once they accept the offer. It displays that the company loves and cares about its employees as individuals, which is highly valued and inspiring for your potential employment.

Utilise an Onboarding Process

Using an onboarding process to keep in touch with soon-to-be employees is a practical way to stay in touch, and progress can be tracked if you go the extra mile and use software. The difference between high staff retention and high turnover can be determined by a well-designed onboarding process.

Before the contract is sent out, onboarding should begin as soon as the offer is accepted. There are a range of standalone tools as well as particular modules of larger HR software systems that can be employed.

Candidates can fill out forms, complete e-learning modules, watch videos, and communicate with workers and other new hires throughout their notice period. As the start date approaches, the most crucial thing is to keep the candidate's interest and develop excitement.

This involvement is priceless because it makes the candidate feel like they are already a member of the team. Many companies will send out an offer letter, wait a month for a signed response, and then expect a fully committed candidate to show up. While many candidates join, some prefer to take alternative offers or remain in their current position because they feel more valued and involved.

These are just a few ideas for keeping your new hires interested and motivated before their first day on the job...and while they're still being courted in today's talent-scarce market.

P3 Recruitment can assist you in finding and keeping high-quality candidates. Connect with one of our recruiters today if you need to swiftly fill available positions with suitable individuals. Let's collaborate to make your business the success it deserves to be.