Earlier this year, during my in-between-jobs time, I took a plunge into learning more about career coaching. The topic I was interested in for a long time, but never had enough time to get myself fully embraced.
The more I was immersed in learning and practising, the more I was confident that a subtle coaching education wouldn't harm anyone within the recruiting industry. Some of the coaching tools can be super powerful to frame conversations with candidates or clients in an intentional way to build trust and long-term rapport.
Below are my takeaways from my journey.
*These tools are not a rocket-science, and most likely they have been used by most of us in an instinctive way. But using them in an intentional way is a step up in a recruiting game, it's a sign of self-reflection and care about the candidate's experience from the very start.
Open-ended questions
When dealing with passive candidates, it's essential to understand that underneath an automatic “Thanks for reaching out. I'd like to learn more” there is usually a backstage story to discover.
I agree that there is nothing more discouraging than asking a passive candidate why they decided to apply for a role, while actually they were “headhunted”.
However, as much as your job is pitching a role to a candidate you still can get some motivational context by asking open-ended questions and learning more about your candidate.
Sometimes you just need to dig a bit longer to get down to the pot of gold.
- What keeps you excited about your current job?
- What would you like to change if you could?
- What are the top three things you seek in a new job, and why are they important to you?
Scaling
Scaling questions are common techniques used in a coaching process. This is a fantastic technique that can help gauge your candidate's engagement throughout the process subtly. It's also an efficient pre-closing strategy.
Example:
On a scale of 1 to 10, how ready do you feel about accepting our offer at the moment?
If they say, let’s say 6, dig deeper:
What needs to happen for you to move to a 7? What else?
Active Listening
Think about your recent candidate screen.
Have you actively listened to your candidate or, rather prompted with questions to get answers in accordance to the script?
During prescreen calls, recruiters often focus on delivering information and confirming role requirements, which is not a bad thing at all. It’s all about keeping a balance.
Ideally, talent acquisition partners should spend more time simply listening to candidates, understanding their situations, and exploring their motivations.
Think of:
- paraphrasing what your candidates said in your own words
- reflecting on their words to get their perspective and context
- summarising at the end of your conversation to provide clarity and check if the main topics have been covered
It's a simple yet powerful way to build trust and rapport early in the recruiting process and ensure your candidate is being heard.
Role-Playing in a Candidate's Interview Prep
Role-playing is one of the tools used by coaches with their clients to try different perspectives.
In recruiting though it’s a highly effective method to prepare candidates for interviews, especially when dealing with behavioural-style questions, challenging formats, or just anxious candidates.
Role-playing as a part of preparation or mock interview allows for immediate feedback and coaching, could calm nerves, and simply set candidates up for success.
Is there anything else from coaching you'd recommend to incorporate into a recruiting toolkit? Let me know!
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