Does an Ideal Recruitment Process Exist?

Aga Babicz
6 min readAug 13, 2021

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The recruitment process can take many shapes and forms. All of us know that it varies depending on multiple factors, such as the industry, the company’s character and of course the job itself. However, there seems to be some kind of pattern which is being moderated based on the factors from the previous sentence.

In this article we’re trying to define this model and investigate whether something like an “ideal recruitment process” even exists, so keep on reading to find out what’s our opinion as the IT recruitment agency.

Recruitment process scheme

What’s the starting point of the recruitment process? On the client’s side there appears a need to find a new employee. When the job requirements are defined and the candidate profile is described, it’s time to start the search. The company might want to do it individually or use external help, e.g through an agency, by working with a freelance recruiter or in the RPO model. If you’re curious about the advantages and disadvantages of these 3 methods you can get more information in our other blog post dedicated to that topic.

After some time, the first CVs should appear in the database and then comes the selection procedure. The potential employees are being invited to the first interviews and if they prospect well there usually is a 2nd (and quite often even a 3rd) meeting.

A while ago we asked our followers on LinkedIn: “How many stages does the optimal recruitment process consist of?”. 88% chose 2 stages, the other ones picked 3 stages.

The standard recruitment process in the IT industry, which consists of 1 stage on the agency’s side and 2 stages on the client’s side, ends on average with filling a vacancy within 2–3 weeks. It’s also common that it includes a technical verification phase, the most popular methods are: meeting, phone call, live coding, paper coding, sample code and home task. Some sources indicate that the hiring time differs based on the experience level of the sought-after candidates, so e.g. the average time spent on hiring software developers is 3+ weeks for Juniors, 5+ weeks for Mids and 6+ weeks for Seniors.

And of course, the recruitment process can be considered done when both parties agree on the terms of employment and sign the contract.

The above process might seem easy, but you probably know from your own experience that its execution is often a challenge. And the most convenient way to figure out whether a perfect recruitment process exists is to look at the most common slips that happen during it.

The 5 most common mistakes in recruitment

1. Incomplete job advertisement

If the job advertisement is not written in a clear and convincing way there’s a high chance that the potential candidate will run away from this offer as fast as a Jack Sparrow on the gif

Try to mention some things about work that the person who’s reading can relate to and can become interested in. Describe not only the necessary hard skills but give a sneak peek of the company’s environment/mindset/culture.

We don’t even want to mention that stating false information only to attract candidates is unacceptable. Offer only those things that are real and that you can truly provide.

Additionally, in the IT industry the presence of salary rates on the advertisement is becoming a norm. In fact, 82% of software developers look for job offers with those values clearly stated, so give it a try if you haven’t been doing so already.

2. Lack of knowledge

Preparing for the meeting with a candidate is an essential part of a good recruitment process. By reading the CV and looking at their LinkedIn profile you show your interest in the candidate. The information that you have is also crucial for having a meaningful conversation.

If you recruit in the IT industry make sure to have sufficient technical knowledge. We don’t mean that you need to know how to write a code, but at least make sure that you know that Java and JavaScript are not the same programming languages.

Try to be a real partner in the conversation, who shows the knowledge in the domain. It will also help the IT specialist to open up and encourage them to share more about their previous work experience. Remember also that the relationship is being built from the beginning of your contact with the candidate, so don’t act like an emotionless robot asking the same questions in every phone call.

3. Inappropriate interview

Relationship status, family matters or commenting on someone’s look — those are some of the big NOs in the recruitment process. By being nosy you will only demonstrate your lack of professionalism and scare away the potential employee. If you work in the HR department it’s necessary to know the basis of the legal regulations that allow you to keep the conversation within the appropriate limits.

4. Timely process

If you reschedule the dates of interviews, don’t show up on time or the whole process stretches up unnaturally, it’s good to reflect on your actions and make necessary improvements.

We described this problem more in the article “Recruiting on a Time Crunch — 5 Effective Strategies”, but in short: have control over the time and respect the time of the interviewees.

5. Lack of feedback

Lack of knowledge about the progress in the recruitment process is extremely frustrating, especially if the candidate has a positive attitude towards the offer from the beginning. If you, or the person who’s responsible for the hiring decision, have already made up our mind about cooperating with a candidate then don’t hesitate to inform them about it.

Even if your decision can be disappointing to the person, make sure to not stay silent. After the process, provide the candidate with feedback — what went well, what could be improved and why you think this person does or doesn’t match the job profile.

In addition, if we really care about the candidate’s development, regardless of whether they accept or reject our offer, it is worth providing them with feedback that can support them on the professional career path. Perhaps what they hear will make them get the next job more easily?

To answer the question from the title…

After all the above information it’s time to come back to the question: “Does an ideal recruitment process exist?”. The answer is: “YES!”, but its definition is different for everyone. It is worth following a few general golden rules mentioned earlier to make the chances of hiring the new person bigger, but whether they will be happy about the whole process remains an individual matter. So make sure to provide feedback but also ask for it, maybe the candidate will also tell you which points you should improve to make the process better and more effective.

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Aga Babicz

Marketing Specialist at Next Technology Professionals - IT Recruitment | IT Outsourcing