William Vanderbloemen’s company, which recruits candidates for management positions, uses a test that consists of sending text messages after an interview. Such messages can come even late at night to check on the candidate.
William Vanderbloemen’s company, which recruits candidates for management positions, uses a test that consists of sending text messages after an interview. Such messages can come even late at night to check on the candidate.
«Hi, Tim. This is Ben. I work at Vanderbloemen. I wasn’t in the office today. I heard you were there. I heard everyone was really impressed with you. I’m sorry I didn’t get to meet you. I would love to chat with you sometime,» Business Insider gives an example of such a message.
It notes that whether a candidate decides to respond quickly or postpones it until tomorrow may determine whether they are hired.
Vanderbloemen uses this test for its own vacancies, as well as when its clients expect employees to respond very quickly to requests. The test seems very simple, but it also reminds us of the constant pressure that candidates face.
The text-message test joins other unconventional tests designed to help determine whether a candidate is worth making an offer. One of them is an interview with a spouse over dinner. There is also the so-called «coffee cup test» — HR shows interviewers where the kitchen is, offers them coffee, and then turns down those who don’t clean up after themselves.
It is noted that in IT, where recruitment is quite slow, some candidates continue to send a huge number of resumes. And when job seekers do get a job, interviews can drag on for round after round.
William Vanderbloemen notes that ignoring a message after hours won’t be the only reason you won’t get the job. He says that even responding within 24 hours will put most candidates well ahead of their competition.
But answering very quickly, within one minute, as is done in sales and marketing, can give you an advantage.
«Then we think, ‘Yeah, no, maybe he’s just as crazy as we are. Is this normal for every job? No. Will this work at every company? No.’» says Vanderbloemen.
Recall that earlier, in her article in Dice, a recruiter with 20 years of experience, Leslie Stevens-Guffman, told how to choose the best time and days to submit a resume so that the employer is most likely to consider it.
