Notice the operative “How To,” rather than “How Not To.” There is simply no excuse to ignore the people who sent you a resume, even if it was un-solicited.
It’s like getting on an elevator with someone who greets you with a cherry “Hello,” and you completely ignore them. You wouldn’t do that, but many HR people feel it’s alright to ignore the person who sent in his or her resume. Nevermind the negative PR for your company. I bet if your CEO knew you ignored these resumes, he’d drive his own hybrid to Washington, DC, too.
There are only three reasons why you ignore these vain attempts at contacting you for one of your treasured jobs. The first is unsolvable: You have no heart, no soul, and pretty much dislike everyone. The second is, you don’t have some kind of automated way of responding, that is simple, easy and fast for you. The third is you simply do not what to say.
I am going to help you with the last two.
Automation to the rescue. Even the smallest company can afford a simple to use Applicant Tracking System, which serves as an automated candidate tracking system by collecting, automatically sending out boiler plate answers, stores them for later (when you need candidates), and provides you with a legal paperwork trail if that ever should come up for your company. Our own JOBDIG TRACKER will do this all for you…and automatically send out a Thanks But No Thanks letter. All for only $179/month (cancelable at any time).
Here’s what to say.
Dear Mr. Jones,
Thanks for sending us your resume today.
Even though we are not hiring at the current time, we do want to encourage you in your own job search.Just because we are not now hiring, does not mean that other companies are not. We wish you well during these particularly tough economic times.
Best of luck to you,
Company HR Person
This semi-rant was continued today over at US NEWS, just because.
No user commented in " HR Managers: How To Respond to ALL Those Resumes "
GL,
One of the things I love about your entries is the consistent compassion. I think your blog will be more important in the future as we try to find our way through difficult economic times.
In the above piece, I think you have a typo. I think you meant “we do not want to discourage you in your own job search” in the piece above.
Conrad
Never mind. You got it right the first time! Duh, I need Ellen to loosen my brain back up!! Stretch those lobes…
Great idea! This simple action – even if delegated to the secretary – helps at least a little bit in spreading the positivity and helping job seekers feel a little more upbeat. It definitely reflects well on the company and their attitudes toward employees and people in general!
Conrad….I am glad you finally sent a note that it was ok. I was re reading and re reading.
Hayli—thanks for sharing this view. I think all of us need to be aware of the line we must walk between being realistic and honest, perhaps, but always being upbeat and forward looking.
Well, you’re a lot younger than I am. You were born in December, weren’t you? It’s always funny when an old guy leads a young guy astray and wastes half an afternoon.
What a great feeling an applicant would have about a company to receive such a positive response letter. Positives take us so much further and create the kind of image we want people to have about the firm.