While I wholeheartedly agree and sympathize with many of your thoughts, I'm not sure what incentive (other than legal requirements) there is for businesses to follow these. The "stick" (will lose out on the best candidates) is hard to prove or disprove. The "carrot" (getting better candidates) is equally hard to prove/disprove. Consequently, self-interest, "good-enough" solutions and general inertia will keep the status quo in place. It would be interesting to profile a few companies that take this approach and see how they do.
I took a minute and had a bit of fun responding back to your points:
1. Playing Games on Salary
- negotiating, especially from a position of strength, saving money, winning on a deal is second nature to business;
2. Provide Clear Job Descriptions
- most businesses/hiring managers don't have a clear idea about the position themselves; how would the communicate one to the applicant? been there myself; it's just the way it is
3. Share the Hiring Timeline
- requires extra work by the business; share a date and it implies a commitment (think project management); easier to say nothing; path of least resistance
4. Unfriendly Job App Systems
- only unfriendly to job applicants, not the business; screens out the applicants who are not "serious" (that's a job btw); need I say more?
5. Invasion of Privacy
- here I would assume there are legal obligations/laws; you missed the latest about some companies wanting applicants' FB passwords
6. Regard for Candidate's Time
- refer back to 3 & 4;
7. Misrepresent Work
- businesses are in the business of selling; I bet in a lot of cases it happens naturally; perhaps hoping for the best or that candidate will be able to "survive"
8. Two Way Interviews
- refer back to 3 & 4; who's in the position of power?
9. Commitments
- again, back to 3 & 4; it is not a negotiation between equals
10. Rejection Notes
- I'm sounding like an old record, so I'll let you guess on this one :-)
Here's hoping though.
Len
Len Fardella11:57AM June 27, 2011
Thank you Alison. I wrote a blog about a year ago similar to this. I am an ex-HR Manager and Hiring Manager, and I can attest that there is NO reason to require a SSN, or DL number, references, or salary requirements at the APPLICATION stage! Geeze, what BS. Job seekers: Skip the online application completely. It is the worst thing to happen in HR in years. Use the phone instead and skip HR.
Also, I would add that resumes should be standardize. Trying to "guess" what type and style of resume a HR, recruiter or Hiring Manager likes is a waste of time, and often highly qualified candidates are passed over. Unless the job is writing resumes...and trust me, super talented people who can run companies are not always the best resume writers!
Just my thoughts.
Kristi Enigl
Kristi Enigl10:56AM June 27, 2011
Thank you, thank you, thank you....I have been screaming about items 4 and 5 recently. Usually I try to find the employers email address. I write them and threaten to report them the the EEOC.
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Len Fardella 11:57AM June 27, 2011
Kristi Enigl 10:56AM June 27, 2011
bavb of NY 9:40AM June 27, 2011