As an HR professional for many years, I’ve been on both sides of the employment market. I’ve recruited for positions and been a job seeker. Over the years, I’ve watched the process evolve from newspapers ads and paper applications to internet job boards and electronic submissions. The candidate who stopped by to drop off a resume has been banished. Now no one is anyone unless there’s an electronic application.

Other relics of the old system are company “no thank you” letters. You know, those things on paper that require an envelope and stamp. They’ve been replaced with automated “no reply” emails. That is assuming you get a response at all. Don’t bet on it. Most applications are met with silence.

We have expansive hiring tools including internet job boards, recruitment software, online screening assessments, social media, video ads and virtual interviews. These are just a handful of the many talent acquisition resources available. Yet while our recruitment technology has become sophisticated, our social skills are stuck in middle-school. Many employers think they have the upper hand in hiring. Their mentality is they don’t need to court employees; they should come to them.

This may have worked in the past, but not now. We are in an employee market with an average unemployment rate of 3.7% (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, August 2022). Go to any networking event and you’ll hear employers talk about the difficulty in finding talent. But instead of seeking ways to draw candidates, many employers are alienating them. Let’s count the ways:

1.    A painstaking application. There are few things less irritating than having to fill out involved electronic applications with umpteen required fields. Job seekers realize the odds are they won’t even get an interview, so why should they spend 45 minutes filling out your tedious application? Chances are, they won’t. They’ll click off and move on to another that doesn’t require their life story.

As the first step in the process, the application should be quick and easy—resume, contact information and optional cover letter. After you have finished screening, there will be plenty of time to get detailed information from the applicants you are seriously considering.

If you require more than the basics at the application level, you risk losing qualified candidates. This is especially true for millennials and younger generations. According to Glass Door, 58 percent of their users are looking for jobs on their phones and 35 percent of job seekers say they would prefer to apply from their phones. Try filling out 65 required fields on your phone and see how far you get.

2.    Missing phone screen appointment. The candidate has a confirmed date and time, which the interviewer misses. Why? If something came up last minute, then the candidate should’ve received an email or text. Not doing so is rude, unprofessional, and dismissive. You may not get a second chance to talk to them.

3.    Arriving late for interview. You expect the candidate to be on time, so you should do the same. It might make you feel powerful to leave them languishing in the lobby, but it’s not professional. Remember, it’s not all about you. The candidate is also deciding if they want to work for your company. Make a good first impression by being on time.

4.    Being unprepared. Have you ever gone to a doctor’s appointment, gone over your medical history with the nurse, and then the doctor came in and asked the same questions? Frustrating, wasn’t it? You probably wondered why the doctor didn’t review your chart. This is how a candidate can feel when the interviewer comes in cold. Before the appointment, take some time to review the candidate’s resume. This will help you comment on their background and build rapport.

5.    Not following up. Phone screens aside, candidates who’ve had onsite/video interviews deserve a response. It takes minutes to send an email, so there is no excuse for lack of follow-up. Note to recruiters: you aren’t off the hook. Saying you’re going to present someone to a company, then never following up with an update or responding to a candidate’s inquiries is not acceptable. The talent agency industry doesn’t have a great reputation, and I believe it’s largely due to recruiters ghosting candidates instead of giving them the courtesy of a response.

6.    Ignoring emails from candidates. See #3. If the candidate is asking for an update on a recent interview, have the professional courtesy to respond. If you’ve passed, tell them this. If you haven’t decided, say so. This is recruiting 101.

7.    Checking out. Looking at your phone, texting or taking a call from someone during an interview isn’t a good look for the employer (just as it isn’t for the candidate). Allowing interruptions from staff while you troubleshoot issues isn’t likely to make a favorable impression on the candidate. Give the person your full attention. If something urgent comes up and you must respond, excuse yourself and step out of the room.

8.    Requiring COVID vaccination. This is an infringement on a person’s freedom. The U.S Supreme Court has ruled it is unconstitutional for private employers do require the Covid injections, yet some employers are still doing so. This is wrong. It will also unnecessarily limit your queue of candidates.

9.    Requesting references with application. It goes to the "one-size fits all" approach of number 1, the laborious application that covers every base for every applicant. It is a poor hiring practice to ask people who haven’t been interviewed to provide references. Many candidates will be put off by this. They don’t want to “burn” their references unless they are seriously being considered for the job. They are right. Save this for when you’re close to an offer.

10. Virtual interviews. Some companies are using AI technology that sends a virtual interview request as the initial step in the interview process. The candidate clicks on a link and answers prepared questions, speaking to a camera. There is no other person present. The interview is usually short, perhaps 20 minutes. The candidate receives an automated email that someone will review their video and respond if there is interest.

While this may seem efficient, especially for larger companies, I call foul. It is dehumanizing. There is no opportunity to form a connection. Candidates cannot comment or ask questions. They're in an artificial setting, staring at a camera talking to no one.

As an employer, using virtual interviews (especially at the first level) also invites bias and discrimination. If you have 20 minutes to watch a video, then you have 20 minutes to talk to the person. Not doing so opens the door for you to click off two minutes into the video because the person is too old, the wrong race or doesn’t have the look you want. If you had the person on the phone, they’d have an opportunity to speak to their experience before you judged their appearance.

Even a video interview is better than a virtual one, because the candidate can still interact with you and sell themselves in a way they can’t if you’re watching a recording of them. You may think you're incapable of discriminating against someone, but we are all human beings. Why go down this slippery slope?

Yes, I’ve spent a lot of time on this one. That is how much I detest this idea. May it die the death of resumes with pictures.

There are probably a lot more, but that’s my list. What do you think? Anything you would add?