Have you ever applied for a job at your own company? Not reviewed the careers page or asked HR how the process works, but actually sat down and experienced it the way a candidate would.
Rene Beach, President of Focus People, recently raised that question during a conversation about recruiting, selection, and organizational performance. Her recommendation was simple.
Leaders should go through their own application process, including the screening tools, and pay attention to what the experience says about the organization.
It is easy to miss friction when you only see hiring from the employer side. A process can make perfect sense internally while feeling confusing, repetitive, or unnecessarily difficult to the person you are trying to attract.
Start Where Candidates Start
Pick an open position and apply. Upload a resume. Answer the screening questions. Use the chatbot if your company has one. Read the automated messages and notice how long each step takes.
Then look at the experience with fresh eyes.
- Are candidates entering information that already appears on their resume?
- Is it clear what happens after they submit?
- Does the technology help move the process forward, or does it create another barrier between a qualified person and your team?
Those details matter because the application is often one of the first real interactions someone has with your organization. Before a candidate meets a manager or walks into an office, the company is already communicating something about how it operates.
Count the Steps Before You Add Another One
The same exercise should continue through the interview process. Rene noted that hiring cycles can grow quickly as panels get larger, additional stakeholders are added, and one more conversation becomes necessary before anyone feels comfortable making a decision.
From inside the company, every step can feel justified. From the candidate side, a long or changing process may create a very different impression. Strong applicants are often considering multiple opportunities at once, and another employer may be prepared to move while your team is scheduling one more round.
Candidates should also know what the process will look like from the start. If there will be three conversations, tell them. If several people will participate, explain why. Clear expectations make a structured process feel intentional rather than disorganized.
Listen to What Your Interview Team Is Communicating
There is another useful exercise for senior leaders: sit in on a panel interview and listen closely when the candidate starts asking questions.
Do the interviewers describe the role, culture, schedule, and expectations consistently? Or does one answer surprise someone else in the room?
Those moments can become red flags for a candidate. If the people representing the organization cannot agree on what the job or workplace looks like, an applicant may reasonably wonder what communication feels like after they join.
The interview is not only an evaluation of the person sitting across the table. Candidates are evaluating the organization too. Every interaction helps them decide whether what they hear feels credible and whether this is somewhere they can see themselves succeeding.
The First Day Is Part of the Hiring Experience
That experience does not end with an accepted offer. In Rene’s conversation, one of the most practical themes was the importance of being prepared when a new employee arrives.
- Is the workspace ready?
- Does the person have the equipment, passwords, and system access needed to begin? Is there a training plan?
- Is someone clearly owning the handoff, or is the team figuring out responsibilities after the new hire walks through the door?
These may look like small operational details, but they send a message. A polished interview followed by a chaotic first day creates an immediate disconnect between what someone was promised and what it feels like to work for the company.
Try the Process Before Your Next Hire
Before your organization opens another important role, take an hour and experience the process yourself. The goal is not to find fault with HR or recruiting. It is to see what candidates see and identify where a process designed around internal needs may be creating unnecessary friction.
- Where did the process feel confusing or repetitive?
- How many steps did it take to move from application to decision?
- Did communication make the next step clear?
- Were interviewers aligned on the position and the company?
- Would the first day reinforce the experience promised during recruiting?
Leaders invest a great deal of time thinking about how to attract and retain strong employees. Going through the hiring journey yourself is a simple way to see whether the experience supports that goal.
At Focus People, we see the process from both sides of the table. One lesson continues to stand out. The way a company hires gives people an early preview of how that company operates. Sometimes the best way to improve that preview is to experience it yourself.
Check out the full conversation with Rene Beach, hosted by Operating Discipline, here.
Learn more about how Focus People helps organizations build stronger teams through a people-focused approach to staffing and recruiting.