In college, all of my friends were working at this fine dining restaurant and making great money. When a new server job opened, I decided to apply. I still remember sitting in the big bay front windows and filling out the application thinking it was a sure thing. All my friends told the owner about me.

The owner took one look at me and said "nope." Looking back, I might understand why. I wore jeans to go to an interview at a fine dining restaurant. I most certainly didn’t fit the expectations of the role or the owner, a renowned Chinese chef.

The restaurant hired me a few weeks later, just not for the job I was applying to. I would start as a host. When the chance to be a cocktail waitress opened up, I took it and did well. Then, I became a server. But that never would have happened without my friends pushing back on this particular hiring manager to get me in the door.

What Causes Recruiter Pushback?

If you work in recruiting, you have most certainly experienced pushback from a hiring manager about a candidate. According to Jobvite research, about 52% of recruiters indicated that hiring managers frequently reject candidates who are qualified for the position. Why? Well I have a few hypothesis that go beyond the obvious answer of “they’re biased.” Yes, they are biased. We all are. But it might have something to do with the recruiter, too.

My hypothesis is that the requirements likely weren’t defined well. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, you can’t find it. In that scenario, it would be easy to say the candidate was qualified or to reject them altogether. No one is clear on what qualified means in the first place.

That’s where recruiter pushback should begin: when we define requirements, not when we’re bringing people in. If we don’t push back in the hiring manager intake when requirements are defined, we end up in order taker mode where hiring feels a lot more like a drive-through than what it should be: a collaborative process between a manager and a hiring expert, aka you. But how do you make a shift with managers? How do you move into a consultative role with the most difficult of managers?

Owning The Process

The first step? Take ownership of the entire hiring process - whether it’s administrative details like scheduling an interview or writing a job post. If you want to be treated like the expert, you have to manage the process. When you let the hiring manager own the entire process, they’re the expert.

Then, have a hiring manager intake. That means you show up with your research. You looked at other roles like theirs, did a job title analysis using Google trends, you have reviewed the legal job description from the most recent hire, and you have evaluated the available talent market.

The most important step? Stop asking for the order. If you ask questions like “what are you looking for?” the manager will always give you a wish list. Ask specific questions instead like, “walk me through a day in the life,” and “why would someone take this role over a competitor?” Focus on building understanding during a hiring manager intake, not just taking the order. If you’re wondering what questions to ask, check out my hiring manager intake.

Communicating The Process

From there, how you communicate about the hiring process is critical.  As much as we need to explain the process to the candidate, be sure to communicate with the hiring manager at all of the key touch points, too (if not more). It should never be a mystery to managers where you’re at with their hire. When you finish the first round of emails, interview them. When you finish the assessment, email them. You get the idea.

Most of all, communicate timelines. Hold them accountable to deadlines. If they don’t meet those deadlines, their role can’t be a priority for you, either. I know how wild that requisition load is right now. 

Every recruiter has to be trained to effectively pushback on hiring managers. That’s where you come in as the boss. Do training on how to communicate with managers effectively. Use training as an opportunity to create a standard and make sure your team knows what the most important questions to ask are. If you’re looking for someone who can deliver that hiring manager intake training - give me a call. I’d love to help. Book a meeting here.