I’m flooded by job candidates calling for more info
A reader writes:
My company has a very small number of permanent employees but we employ a large number of entry-level seasonal workers at a couple of points in the year. We don’t have landlines, only company cell phones. The phone number on our website, brochures, etc. is my number and job applicants often call my number, asking for more details about compensation, qualifications, job duties, etc. before they have been contacted for an interview.
On the one hand, I don’t want to be one of those snooty HR people, and I know this would be the first job for a lot of these folks. But I’m not in HR or the hiring manager for these jobs, many of these details are in the job posting, and honestly, it’s just annoying. The system is pretty automated — within three weeks, they are either contacted for an interview or sent a rejection — so it’s not like we’re leaving people hanging.
How much should I talk to applicants when they call? And is there some way I can gently educate young and eager job seekers about what is and isn’t appropriate?
I answer this question over at Inc. today, where I’m revisiting letters that have been buried in the archives here from years ago (and sometimes updating/expanding my answers to them). You can read it here.
