UK 
United States
Calling all recruiters – whilst you might consider honest and thorough, giving your candidates a full-as-possible runthrough of what a certain position entails and what the company culture is like, are you doing enough to prepare them for the hiring manager they’ll have to meet.
There’s a lot you might know about the hiring manager through your time spent sourcing candidates for them. However, the knowledge you take for granted probably isn’t known by your candidate.
Below, we’ve collated, from around the web, some of the best advice you should give your candidates when it comes to having to impressing, well, those they need to impress.
1. Appearance matters
Although many corporate cultures are a lot more relaxed when it comes to dress codes, it is still important that your candidate dresses to impress.
Writing in Quartz, Michael Brown, a global management expert, and author or Fresh Passion Leadership: Become a Distinct, Branded Leader or Extinct Generic, explains: “Of course, they are hiring you for your intellectual capacity, but the face the brains are dressed in also contributes.”
2. What certain hiring managers are like
Hiring managers have reputations. Some are stern, some are less so. If they have specific interests or are demanding a certain type of character for their position, it is up to you to give the candidate as much information as possible about this, so they attempt to impress or decide if the role isn’t for them.
3. They’re likely to not be prepared
Even though there is a position to fill, the hiring manager might not know exactly what they want. Tell your candidate this; if you’re upfront then they can impose themselves on the role and best display they have exactly what it takes for the vacancy.
4. They’re looking at more than your references
All candidates will have references on their CV. However, savvy hiring managers will be looking at a lot more than this. On today’s recruitment landscape, potential employers can access social media and, if the industry your candidate works in is fairly closed, they probably knows their old employers too.
5. They’re probably more interested in soft skills than hard skills
Whilst candidates will be keen to put their hard-won certifications and grades at the top of their CV, these days a lot of employers are hiring for mindset not ‘hard skills’. They are usually looking for someone who will be better at the job than their previous employee. Get the candidate to showcase, during interview, the people skills and growth mindset the employer wants.
