Temporary job candidates seem to be brushing up their CVs instead of
themselves because they show up at interviews lacking the basics in
personal hygiene.
Almost half of recruiters, including IT specialists, said applicants’
major pitfall was giving employers a bad first impression by failing
their ‘scratch and sniff’ test.
In fact, poor personal appearance was employers’ most common complaint
about job candidates, according to feedback from 200 recruitment
agencies.
Turning up too casual was the biggest mistake, typically a forte of
youngsters, with most employers complaining, often of trainers, too
much jewellery or revealing clothing.
The sloppy turnout has got recruitment captains wondering whether
candidates are too complacent, despite the economic woes, to be hired
for the vacancies that still need filling.
“The feedback from many recruiters suggests that many job hunters are
being a little too blasé when it comes to preparing for interviews,”
said Tom Hadley, a director at the REC, which commissioned the research.
“Candidates are [still] very much in the driving seat when it comes to
choosing their next role but it’s vital they don’t become complacent
and miss out on that all important job offer simply because of their
appearance”.
Nerves before interviews can explain candidates’ odd clothing, Hadley
said, but employers will be much less forgiving of their eccentricities
if they seem to stem from a lax approach.
“By taking the time to prepare, job hunters are much more likely to be comfortable and confident during interviews.”
Candidate clangers in the research included one woman who was too vain
to wear her glasses to interview that she mistook a cupboard for the
door on the way out.
Asked to identify their biggest weakness, one candidate replied “my
dishonesty,” while another responded to a question about their IT
skills by saying he was an expert on Sony’s PlayStation.
Mar 7, 2008
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