Re: Corporate Constipation

["Jelinek, Jennifer" <JJelinek -at- PLYMOUTHWATER -dot- COM>]

I recently hired two graphic designers, and it took me about two months from
the time I placed the ad in the paper to get them in the office, actually
working (however, since I placed the ad a couple of weeks before Christmas
and trying to get anything done over the holidays is basically useless, I
would probably adjust the time of hire to about six weeks). My HR department
was pretty good about getting me resumes on time; I started interviewing in
early January. I spent two weeks interviewing, another week to decide and
run background checks, and then offered jobs. So, all in all, it took three
weeks at the most to inform candidates that they either were or were not
hired. But I also told them up front to expect this sort of delay...not to
expect to hear from me in a week, probably not for two or three weeks. I
knew how many people I was planning on interviewing, and how long it would
take HR to run a background check once I made my decision. I think what's
important is just letting your candidates know what to expect.

When I first applied for jobs before graduation from college, I interviewed
with a company for a position as a training manager, making interactive
training applications and so on. The interview went great! I was there for
an entire day, I met the owner of the company and really hit it off with my
interviewers. I left with a great feeling, sent a thank-you note, called to
follow up...two weeks, four weeks, six weeks went by...nothing. My
supervisor at the time (I worked in the university's media development
center), kindly advised me to look elsewhere. So, right before graduation, I
interviewed for the job I have now. Two days after my interview, they called
me in for a second interview. That same day, the original company I
interviewed with (mind you, this is over two months after my original
interview) called me back at 7:00 at night to ask me to come in for a second
interview. I declined, accepted the job I have now, and haven't regretted it
a bit. When companies take too long to respond, it makes me question the
organization...do I really want to work for a place that keeps potential
employees hanging for months on end? Probably not.
___________________________________________________________________________
Jennifer Jelinek
Marketing Services Manager
Plymouth Products, Inc. Sheboygan, WI
jjelinek -at- plymouthwater -dot- com