✨The way to deal with ghost-candidates and minimize the risk of them skipping the interview is to stay in touch all the way from the moment of initial contact and try to build a sincere relationship. Make the candidates feel comfortable so that they'll share their true thoughts, and agree early on to be open and honest. At VCV, you can also customize an automated reminder-email that will tell your candidate that the meeting is happening soon.

✨Don't give a candidate the opportunity to do this, so be ahead of the curve and send proper feedback in time. Don't miss your own deadlines. Make feedback personal and structured. This won't take a lot of time if you prepare in advance: work out ready-to-go templates and customise them. Automation tools such as VCV help give feedback easily and not to forget anyone. For example, we have templates for all possible scenarios: for offering a candidate to record their video CV, for making an offer, for rejecting a candidate and much more. You can add your own templates and send them by just one click. (Templates are sent out automatically when you attach a certain status to a candidate).

✨A recruiter can usually detect such a situation as soon as they see it. So, don't rely on chance — work out a plan and a schedule. Don't keep the hiring process and the info you need on paper notes or in Excel files; but rather, start using digital tools to help you better track and assess a candidate. For example, define in advance the skills that are crucial for the position, and give scale points to candidates and leave notes on each. That will help you to find the one and only who you've been seeking for without the stress.

✨The key to come out as a winner (or at least not a sad loser) is to brace yourself from the very beginning. So prepare for the worst, but of course hope for the best. Another thing is that even if the candidate accepts the offer, don't go on a drinking binge to celebrate, but rather keep looking for more candidates before the contract is signed. And don't boast too much when the offer still hasn't been accepted (oh, especially to the hiring manager). Overall, Murphy was right!

✨We won't say the fight will be easy, but there are ways for you and the hiring manager to have a win-win situation. First, agree on the process and set up deadlines for feedback. Don't feel shy about reminding that you need the manager's approval. If you don't use video CVs yet, try them — it takes just minutes for the hiring manager to look through candidate video resumes and they can do it anywhere: during a coffee break or lunch, waiting at the airport or even while taking a bath at home. Or, if nothing works, sneak into the manager's office and put an alarm clock there, leaving a reminding note… *shrugging of responsibility for giving this piece of advice*

✨Be in touch with the hiring manager, as much as possible. Try to make short syncs every other day. There is another fear that goes hand in hand with broken magic — it's the monster that hits you from the back. Or when you find a perfect candidate, but the hiring manager met the one they like accidentally at an event on Friday night and forgot to tell you about it. Again, syncs help, and also you need a great reserve of patience!

✨The remedy for this threat is an ATS (Applicant Tracking System)! If you want to have an even better record of all your candidates then make a video database at VCV, always available and never deleted. And be careful about with whom you share access!

✨Of course your experience in recruiting is the best friend to face this fear with. Try to find a key to the applicant's soul and reveal who's a liar. Unstandard questions can help you with that — use those that reveal a candidate's personality. Like, what movie would describe them best or what would they like to change in themselves. Here you can find more such questions. You can ask these questions even remotely, before meeting the candidate: just ask them to record video answers to your questions, and customize the questions not to be re-recordable.

✨The only thing you can do to escape this situation when a hiring manager gives you an impossible task is to make the manager look at the task from another perspective. Try to discuss the conditions, give reasons and practical examples. Don't shout 'The typescript appeared in 2012 and we're living in 2020; it's been just 8 years!' When you find a good candidate, come to the hiring manager ready to present their strong points, show their video CV — persuade, and not point to the impossibility of the initial job request.

✨Get rid of the routine, hand it over to automation — you can automate at least 70% of your usual hiring procedures. From sourcing to scheduling. Use platforms like VCV to digitize your hiring and make the whole process smooth! Give yourself more time to analyze the candidates and find the best of the best.

We're all taught to confront our fears, and this is what we've done together in this article! Save this advice to feel safe whenever you come face to face with the recruiting monsters. Did you enjoy this trip to the 'world of recruiter fears'? Share this advice with your colleagues and friends!

VCV.ai helps you make this process as straightforward and easy as possible: create a vacancy and a list of questions; then ask the candidates to record their answers in video format, and select the best ones. You can also create tests to gauge a candidate's knowledge: use audio, video and pictures, and also utilize the anti-cheating feature.