Enhancing the Job Candidate Experience Through Surveys

Currently on the job hunt, my experience in the last few months has provided me with some insights into what distinguishes a positive from a negative application process. Let me provide a recent example involving a candidate experience survey from a big name pharmaceutical company I had applied to for a position in Account Management.

Shortly after receiving a rejection email for the position I applied for, I received a survey invitation from a noreply email address—standard practice from recruitment. The email stated, "we value your feedback and appreciate transparency in your responses." Intrigued, I invested a few moments in completing the survey, which consisted of approximately 5-7 relatively straightforward questions. The survey was short enough and respected the limited time of an applicant. The questions were clear, and there were several provided options to choose from. Always interested to complete such surveys, I found it well thought out and truly appreciated the fact that giving feedback was an option, even at the very beginning stages of my job application journey with this particular company.

However, one crucial aspect of the candidate experience survey was glaringly absent—a space for open-ended comments about the application process. Even when an 'other' option was available, it failed to prompt for additional details. I was hoping there would be room for me to type what I truly thought, not just select from multiple, closed ended questions where I felt almost forced to choose whichever answer was close enough to my true experience. In my opinion, the survey fell flat and lost the opportunity to capture the truth by not providing the necessary tools. It's a simple oversight but one that carries significant weight in the realm of surveys and data capture. Just one blank space to enter my 'other' feedback was the simple solution.

In the end, the survey felt almost as impersonal as the initial generic rejection email. It left the impression that the company was simply fulfilling a procedural follow-up rather than genuinely seeking valuable insights for improvement. A more progressive approach to candidate feedback involves providing the opportunity for folks to express their genuine sentiments.

My dream is for an organization to not only invite feedback but actively start a dialogue to understand the nuances of the candidate experience. This type of initiative would set a company apart, making it one that candidates and employees would be proud to associate with. This is a prime example of how one small format change can make a big difference in gathering more specific and valuable insight. This genuine feedback can then be used to help create a better overall candidate experience. After all, candidates are humans and should be treated as such.