If you’ve ever been a job seeker, you know employers don’t design their recruiting practices to make your life easier! While it might not be realistic to expect them to put your interests above their own, why should it be unrealistic to expect them to treat potential employees with respect and make the recruiting/hiring process straightforward for both parties?

A New Hoop for Job Seekers to Jump Through

It’s been a while since I mentioned an article by Nick Corcodillos (Ask The Headhunter), but today I read one that really pushed some buttons, titled, “New Grads: Send a robo-dog to job interviews!” Whether or not you’re a new graduate, I consider this article a must-read. It brings up, once again, the subject of how companies structure their recruiting practices and the impact on you as a job seeker.

Technology can help us in a lot of ways; it can also be used in ways that make no sense and are actually counter-productive.

Here’s a small excerpt from the Corcodillos article:

“…new grads must subject themselves to machine interviews, invest their time filling out online applications, and wait like starving dogs to be fed. Meanwhile, Goldman Sachs HR managers get paid to wait for bots to do their hiring.…It seems not to occur to the Goldman Sachs of the world that they can’t find talent because they’re not looking for talent….rather than going out to meet the talent, Goldman Sachs is sending a robo-dog named HireVue with a note in its mouth. Machine interviewing.”

How Do You Handle Recruiting Practices Like That?

First, you recognize that your odds of reforming senseless recruiting practices aren’t great. It won’t help your job search to take on the role of Don Quixote, tilting at windmills. So what can and should you do?

One approach that’s worth investigating and possibly putting some real muscle into is to build a brand that presents you as a “must-have” candidate, one who has a better chance of attracting employer attention and being sought-after instead of being the seeker. Of course, this is not an overnight-success option. In the meantime, you’ll want to look at steps you can take that might bring shorter-term benefits.

I should mention that it’s been a long time since I was personally a job seeker. However, I still remember much of what I went through then. More important, I do what any professional in any area of business should do: I take an active interest in the profession I’ve chosen and work to keep my knowledge and expertise current. I’m still working on refining my brand as a career services resource–how’s your brand coming?

My ongoing effort includes maintaining awareness of career elements that are disappearing, new or emerging trends, etc. It involves consulting experts whose opinion and work I respect. It does not include resting on my laurels. What I did 15 years ago might matter to me; it probably doesn’t matter much to the people I want to work with (or for) now.

So here’s a (very) short list of ideas to consider if you’re faced with recruiting practices that lack real consideration for you as a job seeker.

1. Is this really a company you want to be associated with?
2. If so, can you find a way to bypass the recruiting practice that’s blocking your path–for example, someone to help you do an end-run around it?
3. Assuming your answer to #2 is yes, then do it! If the answer is no, you might want to revisit #1. Maybe you can target another company that hasn’t yet fallen into the “over-automated” recruiting trap.

As usual, there are no easy answers. You have to decide what options you have, pick the best possibility, and start moving.