Be careful! 5 phrases that will alienate the best specialists.

Recruitment is, contrary to appearances, a very complicated process. Skilful selection of keywords, appropriate syntax of sentences, psychological tricks and many other technical aspects make a project that is simple in principle, and may turn out to be something unattainable for the average recruiter. Very often, however, the awareness of what mistakes should be avoided in contact with candidates helps in better reception of messages sent to potentially interested parties. Below we have collected the 5 most important and annoying phrases used (unfortunately still quite often) by a large number of recruiters.

"I will contact you as soon as I receive a response from the client."

What if you don't receive? You make the candidate wait forever, waiting for him to stop waiting for a message from you because it's been a long time and there is a chance that he forgot? This is one of the most common mistakes that makes the candidate less willing to contact your company and you as a recruiter next time. In contact with the candidate, you should know when you are able to give him an answer. When working with a specific client, you should know their calendar and the time period in which you can expect feedback. The candidate needs clear information when he will receive the message, if you are unable to specify the exact day and time, use approximations, but never leave the candidate in a situation where "he has to wait until you receive feedback from the client".

“Thank you for sending your CV. Can you tell me a little more about yourself?”

What more do you expect? Did the sent CV lack specific information important for the whole process? Recruitment, especially for technical positions, is governed by its own rules. Programmers are usually very detailed people, so they like detailed questions themselves. However, by asking such a general question, the candidate may get the impression that he is dealing with a beginner and not very experienced recruiter. What you should be interested in as a recruiter is his experience, which you can see in the CV, skills related to specific technologies, but not general questions that do not bring anything, and as a result only cause frustration for both parties. Before contacting the candidate, do some research about him, try to find out as much as possible and ask only specific questions that are necessary for the success of the process.

"Hello, I'm sorry to disturb you, but I'm looking for a person for the position of..."

Why are you apologizing in the first place? This would mean that you should not contact the candidate under any circumstances because you may expose him to unpleasant situations. Do you really mean it? If not, there's no need for you to start a conversation with such negative phrases. The candidate may take it very badly, thinking that you are inexperienced, unfamiliar with the market and the specifics of the industry, and not very confident. These elements will not have a positive impact on the recruitment process. Instead of such a phrase, it is better to use the phrase: "Hello, I hope you are doing great today. I am contacting you because I would like to talk to you about one offer.”. Such a beginning of the conversation is much better and will ensure that you will not be perceived negatively at the very beginning of building a relationship.

"Can you tell me what you do?"

If you received a Java programmer CV, then most likely you are not dealing with an F-16 pilot. Of course, as Anita Lipnicka sang, anything can happen. However, asking such a question will certainly not help you. What the candidate does is clearly written in his CV or profile on the social networking site. If you need more detailed information, e.g. regarding the technology in which the candidate is currently working, because his CV is outdated or contains issues that you do not understand, try to formulate your question differently. Focus on what your client is looking for and what strengths the candidate has. By building a bridge between these two needs, you will be perceived better in the eyes of the applicant.

"Do you think you are good enough with this technology?"

What does good mean in your understanding? Do you have a description of a specific issue from your client along with the source code that the potential candidate should face? If not, don't ask these questions. They cause you to deeply sink yourself as a recruiter. Of course, you don't need to know every technology, especially in its practical aspect, but you should know who and for what task you are looking for. The lack of this fundamental knowledge erases you in the eyes of a conscious candidate. When contacting the candidate and asking questions about the technology and whether he or she is good enough at it, you should have a list of specific skills resulting from the given technology that the candidate should have in order to be able to apply for the position you offer. Without specifics, do not waste your time or the candidate's.

In summary: be specific. Do not ask the same questions several times, keep detailed notes on each contact with a specific candidate. If you can't control it, and you have a lot of projects on your mind, use tools for recruiters, which are plenty. Don't promise the impossible, clearly specify the dates of feedback for candidates, don't ask about things included in the CV, specify your questions and finally ... don't apologize if you haven't done anything wrong. Candidates need recruiters and most are willing to talk to them. However, they expect you to maintain class and professionalism.