Remote work is no longer a niche perk; it’s a game-changer to expand your talent pool and attract the most in-demand candidates on the market. But with this shift comes a new challenge: crafting a stellar remote candidate experience.
It’s not enough to simply move your in-office interview experience online. You’ll need to be intentional about crafting a positive remote candidate experience.
In this blog post, we’ll explore best practices for enhancing the remote candidate experience, offering actionable tips to streamline your recruitment strategy.
Create a clear and compelling job description
Your job description may be the first impression you make on a job seeker. Make sure it’s clear and compelling to help candidates understand your role, your company culture, and why they should consider your opportunity.
Remote-friendly job descriptions may offer different insights than an office-based job description in order to attract the right candidates:
- Specify remote work requirements. Make it clear that your position is remote, specifying any required time zones or geographical locations.
- Highlight the perks of remote work. Sell candidates on the benefits of remote work, such as flexible schedules and a focus on productivity over presenteeism.
- Emphasize your company culture. Share insights into your company culture and how you support remote employees. For example, call out growth opportunities and career paths within your organization.
- Share your remote compensation strategy. Be upfront about how you determine pay for remote employees. For example, do you have location-based pay or use a global pay rate?
Leverage technology for a seamless recruitment process
Remote recruiting can be challenging if you’re accustomed to assessing candidates in-person. Leveraging the right technology can make your process more smooth, effective, and candidate-centric.
Remote hiring tools include:
- Video conferencing software
- One way video interview platforms
- Automated scheduling tools
- Online assessments
Utilizing technology efficiently helps you build a professional and stress-free recruitment experience for remote candidates.
Train interviewers to provide a standout remote candidate experience
Your team members may not have much experience with remote interviews, which can negatively impact the candidate experience. Set interviewers up for success by offering remote interview training.
Here are some best practices to share with your interviewers:
- Sign in to the interviewing platform early to ensure your camera, microphone, and internet connection are functioning properly
- Conduct the interview in a quiet, distraction-free area
- Use a clean, uncluttered background or a virtual background
- Ensure your face is well-lit, preferably with natural light
- Dress as you would for an in-person interview to convey professionalism
- Start the interview on time
- Look at the camera to simulate eye contact
- Nod and respond to show you’re engaged
Communicate clearly with candidates
Your candidates may also be inexperienced with a remote hiring process. Clear communication about what to expect can help put job seekers at ease.
For example:
- Share the remote interviewing best practices you share with your team members
- Offer interview times in the candidate’s timezone and send them a calendar invitation with a link to your scheduled video call
- Ask your candidate for a phone number where you can reach them in case of technical issues
Sell your remote work experience
A positive remote work experience signals a supportive, flexible, and modern work environment, which is increasingly important to candidates. Highlighting your remote work culture, tools, and support systems can reassure candidates of their potential for success and satisfaction in the role. Moreover, it showcases your commitment to employee well-being and work-life balance, essential factors for today’s job seekers.
Take the time during your recruitment process to highlight the ways you support your remote employees, such as:
- A home office stipend
- Coworking space access
- In-person team building events
- Remote-first meetings
- Asynchronous collaboration tools
Ensure a positive onboarding experience
Employee onboarding is a critical transition between the candidate and employee experience. It reinforces that your new hire made the right decision to join your company and helps build early employee engagement.
A thoughtful remote onboarding process might include:
- Welcome kits. Send a welcome kit with company-branded items and necessary equipment before your new hire’s start date.
- Account provisioning. Make sure your new employee has account logins for their company email address and other mission-critical tools before their start date.
- Introductions. Introduce your new hire to key contacts within your company via email or a video call.
- A remote buddy. Pair new hires with another remote employee to guide them through the first few weeks.
Gather and act on candidate feedback
Continuously improve your remote candidate experience by gathering feedback from candidates—and acting on it.
There are many ways to collect feedback:
- Candidate experience surveys
- Employer review sites
- One-on-one conversations with candidates
Look for patterns so you can identify areas for improvement and implement necessary changes. It can be useful to isolate feedback specifically from remote candidates, as they have different experiences than candidates interviewing in person.
For example, your interviewers might be really focused on your candidate when they’re in a conference room together, but distracted by their second monitor when they’re interviewing a candidate remotely. These patterns are worth considering so you can provide all candidates with a standout experience.
Final thoughts on the remote candidate experience
Your candidate experience is crucial for attracting and retaining top talent—though it needs to be tailored to fit the needs of remote job seekers. By implementing these best practices, you can create a smooth and engaging hiring process that enables candidates and interviewers to hold meaningful conversations and ensure mutual fit.
Want to learn how JobScore can help you elevate your candidate experience? Start your free trial or schedule a call with a recruitment advisor.
