Job Search Blog

Suggestions How To Increase LinkedIn InMail Response Ratio?

Every week or so, along with my recruiting, I run a very specific announcement on LinkedIn about a variety of good opportunities. Recently, that was the case, I announced a wonderful job opportunity in the Austin, Texas region. One of the project consulting firms and I have placed a number of people there over the years and they have a need for a salesperson. This opportunity is very unique, because they will accept experience selling high-end IT staffing services. This happens to be rare, for the tech industry.  The majority of project consulting firms look for experience in what they do and prefer a following.

A little background, I have placed three of the top salespeople in the country with this firm over the past few years. These guys can make more than $500,000 a year, which is even rarer in the project consulting business. On top of that, this company retains people forever and have very little turnover.  That said, this is a really good job opportunity and company.

What happened and perplexed me regarding LinkedIn?

I reached out to at least 16 candidates on LinkedIn and received responses from half, stating they were interested in pursuing the job opportunity. When the candidates reached out to me with statements of interest, I was excited. However, when I responded to each one of them, asking them to call me and discuss the opportunity further, all contact ceased. In fact, I reached out to each of the candidates twice and still have not received a response.

I am perplexed, I’m sure that the majority of these people do not have an opportunity to earn $500,000 where they currently are working. That said, not all compensation can be gaged by the wage. However, I am familiar with many of the firms that these people work for, and although they are nice people and companies, they are nowhere near the caliber of my client.

So, the question is, why do people accept the LinkedIn InMail invite for a new opportunity yet do not have the common courtesy to respond to the numerous attempts to connect afterwards?

Even a response to tell me they are no longer interested would be sufficient.

To be so rude as to simply ignore the request, is beyond my understanding.

Has this happened to you before? How have you handled it?

Please write with your suggestions and feedback.

Hiring the right talent is always a challenge for organizations, here are 7 common mistakes hiring authorities should avoid to ease hiring pains.

1. Avoid telling multiple candidates that they are perfect for the job and then never contact them again

2. Avoid informing candidates they have a very urgent need to hire someone and then ghosting them

3. Avoid making an offer to the candidate and then lowering it by $10,000 than the original

4. Avoid postponing hiring and then overworking everyone in the department

5. Avoid badmouthing previous employee in the guise of being “honest” which only makes the job sound awful

6. Avoid having more than three people involved in the interviewing process, and not coming together with a clear vision what type of candidate you are seeking, thus everyone having a different opinions on the ‘right fit’

7. Avoid taking more than 60 days to hire anyone and then giving up on hiring anybody because you’re attempting save face, in the midst of looking like a poor manager to everyone in the company

We have a large recruiting firm and, fortunately, are able to facilitate multiple candidate interviews.  The candidates understand their role in preparing and performing a good interview, with the goal always to receive a job offer.  Providing the hiring authority clear reasons why they ought to be hired is the basis in preparing for interviewing success.  At Babich & Associates, we offer candidates extensive job search training programs that prepare them for the most challenging interviewing methods.

However, even the smart and the qualified candidates still say thoughtless phrases or do tactless acts that prevent them from moving forward in the hiring process.

The list below are recent phrases that interviewers should avoid.

• Informing or implying to the employer that you do not need the job or work

• Requesting unlimited or advanced PTO to spend time with family or friends

• Asking for an extensive start date

Understanding the interview process from the hiring authority’s perspective, to correctly interpret how you are being perceived, is pivotal for interviewing success.  Having the ability to ‘read the room’ can help filter our speech and maintain a communicative flow, that allows us to sale our assets and emphasis our strengths to advance the company’s goals and mission.

Everyone in an interviewing process needs to think about what their questions sound like and how they come across to the other person.

In this market, where the companies and the candidates are equally interviewing one another to discover if they are a good fit, being capable of answering effective questions in a respectful manner is key.

I have heard appalling responses from both candidates and hiring authorities when asked effective questions.

Examples:

Hiring authority refused to answer candidates question regarding why the position was vacant by stating, “I prefer not to talk about it.” Leaving the candidate with a red flag in regards to the company environment.

On the other hand, a candidate refused to answer the hiring authorities question regarding a work experience and replied, “I do not want to answer that but I have a question for you.” Leaving the hiring authority confused and to lose interest.

In my book, Acing the Interview: How to Ask & Answer the Questions that Will get you the Job, I devoted an entire chapter regarding the inappropriate things that people say and do while they are seeking a job or a good employee.

The point is, being capable of answering questions effectively and respectfully from both a candidate and a hiring authority perspective is imperative, in landing the job or the candidate that could benefit each party involved.

Our CIO client had developed a year-long program that he actually “sold” to the rest of the C suite. He simply needed a qualified program manager. Unfortunately, he said his standard was so high, in which he spent three months not being able to find anybody. It seemed like the longer he looked the more difficult he made it on himself (not uncommon).

He had been through at least five or six good candidates but could never quite bring himself to pursue them. He finally mentioned to us that the rest of his management team was wondering what was wrong with this whole thing. They wanted to know why he hadn’t gotten on with the project. He convinced them to come up with a little more money and committed himself to get it done.

We came up with an excellent candidate and explained to him that the candidate was going to cost 10 or $15,000 more than what he wanted to pay. Being under that kind of pressure, he was convinced that he could do it. After interviewing the candidate three or four times, he was convinced that this was “the guy.” He was so convinced and so thrilled with the candidate he broadcasted the fact that he was going to hire this guy to everyone in the company. And on paper, it sure did make the CIO look good. He was so proud of himself, he was metaphorically “high-fiving” with everyone. Unfortunately, he hadn’t even offered the candidate the job and was making the assumption that the candidate would accept it. He just assumed that he would be able to “work it out” with the candidate. He just got a little ahead of himself.

This kind of thing happens a lot. The poor guy was in the “fishbowl” and everybody, it seemed, was watching to see what would happen. The CIO was so excited he finally got around to talking with the candidate about compensation. He had never really discussed money with the candidate although we had explained to him that the candidate was not going to consider anything less than $150,000 which was $10,000 more than the CIO had in mind or had budgeted.

The CIO was now in a real pickle. Somehow, he got the money. Reading between the lines we think that the guy really put his professional reputation on the line with his company. He did not tell us, but we’re pretty sure that he pulled every political stopper he could to get the money.  What he neglected to do however was to ask candidate about, not just his salary compensation but all of his benefit expectations, etc.

Admittedly, the candidate had never really analyzed his present benefits package all that much. Now that he was faced with a possible job change, he started looking at all of his compensation. The candidate came to the conclusion that his present benefits package was worth at least another $15,000, so he decided that he wouldn’t move for anything less than $165,000.

Now, to be fair, we had discussed all of this with the candidate before the initial offer was made. He never mentioned anything to us about his “benefits package.” We asked him when the negotiation was going on about anything else he could think of. Admittedly, we believe that the whole thing went to his head and he started thinking, “well, if I can get  then to $150,000, I probably can get more.” He never really quite said that to us, but his attitude changed rather rapidly.

What happens next is unsure, given the outcome has not unfolded as of yet.

We have a tremendous amount of empathy for the CIO. He’s in the fishbowl. He stuck his neck out and announced to the whole world that he had this job filled. When things get this complicated and ego starts getting involved, it’s normally not good.

Here is the point:

Try not to get ahead of yourself. Hiring people is hard to do. All you can do is your best and try not to make promises that are dependent upon other people.

Clearly educating yourself on everything you need to know about the job and then successfully interviewing with the hiring authority, leads to the next step; asking for the job.

How do you ask for the job in an interview?

Thoughtfulness is the key.  Placing emotional state aside and remaining focus on working the process till you receive an offer and start date is the goal.

A great example of a candidate that worked this process was Becky.

Becky was on her second interview with the hiring authorities’ system engineer. She had been on the video call with him for almost 30 minutes and knew that the interview was going well.

But lots of candidates realize an interview might be going well yet miss the opportunity to respectfully ask for the job.  Becky had the courage and the training to ask, “Are you going to tell the boss to hire me?”  While this may sound bold or aggressive, she had already built a rapport with the hiring authority and displayed enthusiasm for the company and position at hand.

She worked the process effortlessly.

The last three or four candidates this company had interviewed did not or would not simply ask for the job, let alone ask a subordinate of the hiring authority if they were going to recommend them.

The guy that Becky was interviewing with started laughing and said, “I just sent an email recommending we should hire you.”

Moral of the story: Preparing and executing a good interview are foundational; however once they are established complete the order of business by requesting the job at hand.

We have most likely covered the topic of interviewing in the past however, as John Wooden stated,

“The eight laws of learning are explanation, demonstration, imitation, repetition, repetition, repetition, repetition, repetition.”

Therefore, we will practice a little repetition in the area of reviewing successful interviewing tips.  As we have discussed in the past, performing well during the interviewing process requires the need to recognize your own context, as well as the context of the people you are interviewing with.  Successful interviewing should be easy, conversational.

Below are 3 main tips to assist in making the interview process effortless.

1. Understand the business perspective. Candidates have to realize from what point of view the employer is inquiring from and then answer accordingly.

Ask yourself what is the employer attempting to discover?

• • Can you do the job?

  • If you have an agreeable personality?

  • Are you a risk to the company?

  • Will the salary you seek be within budget?

2. Take the time to understand and comprehend what the employer is asking?

Often, people are so nervous in an interviewing situation, they start answering a question before the really understand what’s being asked.  There’s nothing wrong with asking the hiring or interviewing authority to restate questions for you to get a better understanding and allow you to process a response.

3. Research and preparation for the interview.

Attempting to ad-lib answers rather than providing an examined response, regarding the company or the hiring authority, will always lead to disaster.  No matter how well a person thinks on his or her feet, the interviewing process is more sophisticated than it has ever been. Ad- libbing won’t hack it.  Answering questions well takes a lot of practice and preparation.  The candidates who prepare well for interviewing questions get the offers.

Interviewing has a great implication on your career.  Practice the above tips repeatedly to assist in your next interview success.

When candidates lose out to a lesser candidate, of skill or background, due to lack of salesmanship when it comes to their qualifications or lack of interview preparation they often fall into the “blame game”.

A great example of this was a candidate I had who changed the interview time with the hiring authority twice, he did practically no research or preparation on the company or the person he was going to interview with.  The candidate went into the interview with a, “what you got for me?” attitude.  The hiring authority, obviously unimpressed, eliminated the candidate immediately.   When I relayed the elimination information to the candidate he stated, “Well, I guess it just wasn’t meant to be.”

No kidding, I thought.  He totally screwed up the interview.

Taking advice from trusted sources is the best way to see your blind spots.  In this case, I suggested the candidate should:

• Reflect on what he contributed to the rejection notice

• Modify and change his interview mindset and approach

• Review results, once new interview tactics are applied

If a candidate does their absolute best in interviewing for a job, meaning they researched, practiced, and prepared themselves the best way possible and still are not hired.  All they can do is try again.

Michael Jordan stated this best,

“I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can’t accept not trying.”

Do not waste your time blaming others, particularly if you do not try, merely reflect, modify, and review your process to be prepared for your next opportunity.

Word of advice, please avoid wasting your time formulating answers to oddball or senseless interview questions rated by popular publications.   Many large online publications claim hiring or interviewing authorities ask a host of absurd questions during interviews, such as:

• Does life fascinate you?

• How would you get an elephant into a refrigerator?

• How many planes are currently flying over Kansas?

Hiring authorities who ask these types of questions are rare, to say the least.  Either way, you are better off spending your time preparing to convince the hiring authority what assets you can offer the company that nobody else can.

The majority of people do not spend enough time focusing on this kind of question, which would benefit the company and the candidate in understanding and communicating their assets.

Any interviewer or hiring authority that is so egotistical to ask “tricky questions” may not be the kind of person you want to work for.  If they are more interested in tricking you than they are in finding out if you would be a good fit, this should cause concern.

Some time ago, I had a candidate who was asked a “tricky question” during her interview and rather than trying to formulate a witty answer she simply asked the hiring authority, with a smile, “What does that have to do with the job?” The hiring authority took her response well, given she was polite, and thought she demonstrated lots of courage.

Tricky questions, during the interview process can be distracting however do not get hung up, simply focus on your key reasons why you want the position and emphasis your assets that would benefit the company.

Put your best foot forward and let the pieces fall where they may.  But, by no means should you waste your time focusing on how to respond to irrational interview questions.

In doing my bible study time I thought, if Abraham could negotiate with God, we should be able to effectively negotiate with employers.

While I understand this is a big jump, to go from biblical to employment skills, the point stands that effective and respectful negotiation skills is key in a job search process.

When I read Genesis 18, Abraham attempted multiple negotiations with the most-high God in stating:

“. . . .will you sweep away the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not spare the place for the sake of the fifty righteous people in it?”

“. . . what if the number of the righteous is five less than fifty?  Will you destroy the whole city for lack of five people?”

• What if only forty are found there?
• What if only thirty can be found there?
• What if only twenty can be found there?
• What if only ten can be found there?

The Lord answered each time, For the sake of fifty, forty-five, thirty, twenty, or ten, I will not destroy it.

 Even God Might Negotiate!

Understanding when and how to negotiate job offers or salaries is an essential part of the job search process.

Key Tips when Negotiating:

• Do not lead as if you have alternative offers unless you really do

• While God is patient, humans are not, there is not always room to negotiate

• Prove your value and reasoning in requesting more money

Overall, the emotional and psychological strain of negotiating wears most people down therefore they are not willing to do it appropriately.  Just remember, very few companies try to get away with paying as little as they can. There are some cheap companies out there, but even they know that they get what they pay for. If they “low ball” you, don’t take the job.

Being able to effectively negotiate with employers, when appropriate, is an essential part of the job search process that should not be dreaded or anxious, when done tactfully.