A recent CNN Business piece declares, “The job market is so good, new hires aren’t showing up for their first day of work.” They cite candidates receiving multiple offers and then simply no-showing on their first day of work. As if you needed further convincing that we are in a job market firmly in the favor of the candidate.

However, no-shows don’t have to be your fate. There are two takeaways that can help make this a non-issue in your hiring process in any type of job market.

Stay Engaged

It’s human nature to not want to disappoint those with whom you feel a personal connection. As a staffing agency, we are best at what we do when we invest time and energy into building a meaningful bond and rapport with our candidates. We’ve often talked with them a dozen times, texted, emailed, from their first intake call until they hopefully received a job offer. Our communication doesn’t end with the candidate after they’ve accepted the job offer and neither should yours. Check-in on them before their start date and let them know how excited you are for them to join your company and become part of the team, proactively reach out and ask if they have any questions on where to go, when to arrive, how they should dress, etc.

Be Decisive

The quickest way for a candidate to lose interest in your company is extending an interview and not receiving timely feedback about next steps. If they are actively looking for a job, they haven’t stopped looking just because they have been on one interview. If something else comes along, they will certainly give it a chance and sometimes the, “if they don’t get back to me in a timely manner that’s probably not a place I want to work anyways” mentality will take root and you’ve lost them. Also, if you are working with a staffing agency, they may open that candidate up for other jobs they are working on if the feedback process isn’t timely.

Your company has invested time and money in finding a quality candidate – make sure you are doing all you can in the late stages of the process to make sure the candidate turns into an employee.

Need some help turning the application into a hire? TriMech Staffing can lend a hand! Find out how with our infographic.