Survey: Efficient hiring process more important to jobseekers than company reputation

KUALA LUMPUR: One in two job seekers (53%) say that they develop a negative impression of the prospective employer if the hiring process takes longer than expected.

An efficient hiring process is more important to job seekers as compared to other factors such as the company’s reputation and workplace environment, according to the Randstad Candidate Expectations survey.

The survey, conducted in September 2017 with 2,000 respondents from across Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia, also found that 89% of job seekers are more likely to reject an offer if the process takes more than four weeks.

Randstad Singapore, Hong Kong and Malaysia Managing Director Michael Smith says job seekers prioritised their own career development during the search process. 

As such, employers should adopt a needs-based approach towards recruitment by placing the job seekers’ career objectives and goals first.

“Employers are encouraged to have a care for personal touch through regular updates and face-to-face consultations with job seekers, while leveraging HR technology to speed up the hiring and selection process. 

“This can help reduce job seekers’ stress and anxiety throughout the recruitment process,” he said in a statement.

The survey found that across the three markets, communication levels, degree of personal interaction and the recruiter or hiring manager were important elements to at least one-third of job seekers during the recruitment process. 

The bottom three considerations that impacted the job seeker’s experience are workplace environment, online presence and the use of innovative, emerging technologies.