Despite increased emphasis on the candidate experience in recent years, a new survey suggests hiring companies still have room for improvement.
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The latest American Staffing Association (ASA) Workforce Monitor survey of more than 2,100 U.S. adults, conducted online by The Harris Poll, finds approximately seven in 10 Americans (69 percent) believe that the job search today is too impersonal.
What’s the Status
Even more respondents, eight in 10 (80 percent), say that applying for a job feels like sending their resume or job application into a “black box.” The “black box,” more commonly referred to as the “black hole,” has been a source of job seeker frustration for many years.
Technology Gets Mixed Reviews
Despite these findings, Americans do consider less-personal resources to be valuable when looking for work. Approximately eight in 10 respondents (83 percent) believe that technology has made finding a job easier.
Be that as it may, a majority (59 percent) says that emerging technologies (e.g., big data mining of resumes and job-on-demand apps) actually make it more difficult to land a job. The same percentage of respondents (59 percent) say the internet is not “all I need” to find a job.
In fact, even in this age of technology, 85 percent of U.S. adults think that personal contacts are more helpful than the internet in finding a job.
A Little of That Human Touch
Approximately seven in 10 survey respondents cite in-person or face-to-face contact (72 percent); phone calls (72 percent); and email (71 percent) as acceptable ways to initially contact them regarding job opportunities. Only about one in four (24 percent) say text messages would be welcome.
Yet, while respondents view email favorably, they are less enamored with other forms of online communication. Only 36 percent say contact via an account on a website is a preferred method. Social media messaging ranks even lower, with only 15 percent of respondents saying it is a preferred method for initial contact regarding job opportunities.
As for video conferencing, it isn’t viewed favorably either, at least not for initial contact; only 20 percent of U.S. adults say it is a preferred method.
“When recruiting talent, ‘high touch’ still wins the day,” said Richard Wahlquist, ASA president and chief executive officer. “Businesses that rely too heavily on a ‘high tech’ but largely ‘faceless’ process are sending the wrong messages to job seekers looking for connections with companies that value their employees.”