Best Practices for Managing Candidate Relationships

In the early days of Gem, our mighty recruiting team of 1 was drowning—30+ open reqs, hundreds of candidates lost in spreadsheets, three hiring managers pitching the same person. Until our Head of People said, "What if we treated talent like customers?" Here's exactly how we rebuilt our talent strategy: BACKGROUND: We were scaling fast. Talent data lived everywhere: personal inboxes, random spreadsheets, forgotten Slack threads. The breaking point: we lost a staff engineer to our competitor. - Candidate had expressed interest 8 months earlier - Their info was buried in an ex contract recruiter's inbox - By the time we found it, they'd already signed elsewhere Then came the embarrassment: Three different people reached out to the same eng leader candidate. Different messages. Two different comp ranges. The candidate forwarded all three emails back: "You might want to get aligned internally first." That's when we realized: most talent pools aren't pools—they're graveyards where good candidates go to be forgotten. THE SHIFT: Initially, I thought better spreadsheets would fix it. Classic founder mistake :) Our Head of People pushed back: "We spend millions on CRM for sales. Why are we tracking our second-most-important pipeline in Google Sheets?" If candidates are future employees, why weren't we treating them like future customers? We had just launched shared projects in Gem, so here’s the system we built: —— 1. Individual Pools (specific roles): One pool per req. A/B test outreach. Track "silver medalists." Share with hiring managers. 2. Team-Wide Pools (evergreen roles): Frontend. Backend. Data Science. ML. One curator per pool. Clear naming: "TP_Frontend_Senior" 3. Engagement Cadence: Monthly: Blog posts, company wins 1-2x Quarterly: In-person happy hours & meetups Annual: "Where are you now?" check-ins 4. CRM Layer: Filter by location, experience, diversity metrics Search all pools simultaneously Track every interaction —— ↳ Now, what did this actually accomplish? - Time-to-fill dropped significantly. - Response rates improved dramatically. - Duplicate outreach vanished. And here’s how you REALLY knew we were on to something: Candidates we engaged with started reaching out to us first. Not for jobs. Just to stay connected. To refer friends. We'd built a community, not a database. Key lessons: Talent pools without engagement are expensive graveyards. Build relationships before you need them. Treat candidates like customers, not inventory. P.S. This system became what Gem is today. If your team's still losing candidates in spreadsheets, let's talk.

Recruiting isn't about closing fast. It's about staying close. But here's the challenge: How do you follow up long-term without annoying the candidate? How do you stay on their radar… without feeling like a telemarketer? You ask for permission, and you earn the right to stay in the conversation. Here's a simple 3-part framework I teach leaders to use: 1. Acknowledge the timing "I totally get that now may not be the right time to make a move." When you acknowledge their current reality, you build trust. 2. Ask for alignment "Would it be okay if I stayed in touch over the next few months, just to keep the conversation open?" This shifts follow-up from "nagging" to agreed-upon access. 3. Set the tone for future value "I'll make sure anything I send your way is relevant to where you're headed, not just where you are today." Now you're not a recruiter. You're a future-focused partner. Bonus tip: Keep it human and low-pressure. Text updates. Quick voice notes. A win your team just had. A leadership thought that made you think of them. The goal isn't to sell. It's to stay worth replying to. Because the best candidates aren't always ready on the first call. But they do remember who stayed connected the right way. Play the long game, with permission, not persistence.

Recruiters... Candidates do not want to feel like just another application or resume. They are human and the recruitment process should have a personable human touch to it. In the fast-paced world of recruitment, one of the most underrated but essential elements of success is the relationship between Recruiters and candidates. It’s not just about filling a role—it’s about fostering trust, communication, and long-term connections. When you recruit with these aspects in mind, this is what can happen: 1. A Positive Candidate Experience: Regular check-ins and communication demonstrate that you genuinely care about the candidates’ progress and career goals. This leaves a lasting impression, even if they aren’t selected for a role immediately. A positive experience could ensure they’ll come back to you for future opportunities, which has happened to me personally many times before! 2. Helps Build a Strong Talent Pipeline: Staying in touch allows you to keep a pulse on candidates, even if they aren’t the right fit for a current role. You’ll have a go-to list of qualified individuals ready for when new opportunities arise. A deep network of engaged candidates is an invaluable asset! 3. Gives You Better Insights: Regular interaction helps you understand candidates’ goals and preferences, allowing you to find the best match for both sides. Just like any human relationship, the more you interact with one another, the more you learn about each other. 4. Trust and Transparency Matter: Pause and read that again! When candidates trust you, they are more likely to be open and transparent about their career goals, compensation expectations, and other critical details. This helps you find the best match for both the candidate and the client, leading to successful hires. 5. Encourages Referrals: Strong relationships often lead to referrals! (And we all know how much a Recruiter loves a good referral!) Candidates who feel valued are more likely to refer their friends, colleagues, or other professionals within their network, expanding your talent pool and giving you a competitive edge in your search. Ultimately, recruitment is all about relationships. When you build trust and keep the lines of communication open, everyone benefits in the long run. So take some time to really focus on QUALITY of your conversations and interviews over quantity. #RecruitmentTips #Relationship #Network #QualityOverQuantity

Your management team should each maintain a secret weapon… A "nurturing list" of people they'd love to hire. This strategy transforms how you think about talent acquisition. Here's how it works: Each leader identifies 1-3 talented people not currently in your company who they'd want to see join if a position opened. These aren't active job candidates. They're people your leaders genuinely respect and would love to work with. The nurturing process happens quarterly: Coffee meetings or dinners. Email updates about company progress. Sharing industry insights. Keeping them warm without being pushy. When you need to hire quickly (and you always need to hire quickly), you're not starting from scratch. You're calling someone who already knows your culture, understands your vision, and has been following your progress. One client filled a critical VP role in two weeks using their nurturing list. Instead of a 3-month search, they had a qualified candidate ready to move. But here's the discipline: you nurture these relationships when you DON'T need them. It's like building an emergency fund for talent. Most companies scramble when they need to hire. Smart companies are always building relationships with future team members. Do your leaders maintain nurturing lists, or do you panic-hire when positions open?