Introducing the Continuous Candidate

As we saw in yesterday’s Advisor, the “continious candidate” is always in the market for a better job. How can you combat this problem? Today we’ll look at the rest of what Jim McCoy, vice president of ManpowerGroup Solutions, has to say on the topic.

By Jim McCoy, vice president of ManpowerGroup Solutions

1. Build a talent community. Make it easy for continuous candidates to add themselves to an employer’s talent community. Whether it is on social media, career sites, or the company website, articulate opportunities for candidates to join your database and receive job alerts. Recognize also that much of this activity takes place on mobile devices. The content and format of communication must be smartphone-friendly; continuous candidates are likely to be job shopping while grocery shopping or at the gym.
2. Vet and reclassify applicants. The application activity of continuous candidates, combined with advancement as a motivator, implies that employers may receive a flood of applications and résumés from people who are underqualified for the open positions. How employers treat these cases significantly impacts the candidate experience and an employer’s reputation. Underqualified applicants should be vetted, reclassified, and transparently communicated with to avoid creating negative perceptions among applicants.
3. Challenge the myth of job-hopping. Older generation hiring managers may stigmatize the new generation of continuous candidates whose career paths reflect job-hopping activity. Continuous candidates and Millennials may view variety as an asset, whereas older generations regard it as a sign of instability and disloyalty. Educating hiring managers about the continuous candidate phenomenon is important. To properly assess a candidate, hiring managers must dig deep into the reasons for this type of behavior. Candidates who moved jobs frequently may reflect a desire for geographic mobility or a lack of advancement opportunity … Not of poor job performance or disloyalty.

Continuous candidates present significant retention challenges for employers. Believing “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence” is human nature. By becoming “employers of choice” and building an employer value proposition (EVP) that is based on opportunity for advancement, organizations can tilt the balance sheet of retention in their direction. That said, continuous candidates also represent an opportunity to build talent communities for current and future needs.
Continuous candidates are the new normal. Employers in denial about this phenomenon risk being left behind in the global competition for recruiting and retaining top talent.