A number of months ago I spoke with the head of marketing for a local company. He was hiring for a role that required a great deal of writing. A candidate had submitted a resume with a typo in the first line and he automatically made a number of assumptions that were not in the candidate's favour.

Poor Spelling & Negative Assumptions

The most important assumption, and one which most of us would make, was this…”If he doesn’t proofread his resume (or have it proofread by somebody else) for an important job that demands impeccable written and other communication then he will be equally “careless”, “sloppy”, “unprofessional” when it comes to the company’s marketing copy.

A Lucky Break

Thankfully for him, the HR person was persistent and insisted that the person was a very high-calibre candidate worthy of an interview. Based on this, the hiring manager interviewed the candidate and confirmed that the candidate was indeed a rock star.

Now, rather than mention the error as a key reason for not hiring him, the manager began trying to rationalize the error and explain why it probably happened. Interestingly, neither the assumption that the candidate was unworthy -- based on one piece of evidence -- nor the subsequent rationalization are factual. We can say that she definitely made a typing mistake, however, we can’t say why.

In the end then it really comes down to a feeling. At first, the hiring manager was negatively disposed to the candidate then became positively disposed. At some point, the manager’s first instinct may be born out in a typo or other error or it may be that the person goes on to a long and successful career with that organization.

The Bottom Line

The bottom line is that people make assumptions about everything that you do and look for reasons to either like your resume or throw your resume out. If you don’t have a kindly HR person in your corner who can defend your capabilities you had better make sure your resume is written well with the job description and accuracy in mind.

The Dog Days of Summer

For both recruiters and candidates I would say that summer in North America is the most difficult time to be conducting a job search – and particularly to be actively considered for a job. The reason is probably fairly obvious. While Christmas, Easter and Spring Break have short windows of time during which people can be away, “summer” holidays can be very broadly defined. For some people in an organization, they might begin taking 1-2 weeks off  as early as May or June while others might not go away until August or September and of course any time in between.

The challenge lies in the fact that most hiring of IT positions is not done exclusively by one person. I have seen organizations who have one-step process when, for example, it is a short-term contract position that is in high demand or in rare cases a permanent role that is desperately required. These scenarios, particularly in the Vancouver marketplace, are exceedingly rare. In most cases, hiring is a three, four or five step process? Along with those steps comes the requirement to meet a variety of different people in the organization and on the specific team that is being hired for.

A Long Process Gets Longer

The hiring process is long enough already when people are in town. However, even the typical 6-8 week hiring process can drag well into three months and beyond when people are away and out of town. This is frustrating for candidates and can lead them to either turn down the role or engender bad feelings about the organization after they are told they didn’t get the job. Imagine that the candidate then goes on to tell all who will listen about his negative experience. This can result in a PR nightmare and deter qualified candidates from applying for roles well into the future. You don’t want that.

Some Solutions For Clients & Candidates

There are several ways that the above scenario can be avoided. An organization that is hiring can ensure that the candidate is kept apprised of any delays. The simple courtesy of communicating with the candidate can keep them onside and happy. A candidate that is involved in a protracted interview process can also take on communicating and asking questions about where things stand, what the steps are and when the organization intends to make a final decision. A professional recruiting firm will often play this role and act as a kind of project manager to ensure that things run smoothly for the benefit of both the candidate and the client.

The Bottom Line

Summer, and really anytime, can be challenging when it comes to hiring people if the process isn’t managed properly. Both the organization and the candidate need to do their parts to ensure that decisions are made in a timely manner, that people who need to be involved are available and that next steps and any delays are quickly communicated. This will ensure that, even during the summer, companies find productive employees and candidates get great new jobs.