USING TEXTS IN THE JOB MARKET

Mobile messages are “another tool” in tight labor market

If a recruiter texts you about coming in for an interview, which smiley face — if any — is OK to use in response? How long is too long when texting an answer about which programming skills are your strength? If a recruiter sends you a Bitmoji avatar leaning up against a water cooler, would you be more apt to write back or hit delete?

These and other questions may increasingly come up as more employers add text-messaging platforms to the hiring process, to coordinate interview logistics, connect with past applicants and ask initial screening questions before taking time for a phone or in-person interview. In a tight labor market, employers are looking for ways to grab the attention of potential workers, save money on managing multiple queries to candidates and better manage how they communicate with job seekers so they don’t think their résumés have fallen into a black hole.

“More and more people get spammed by job offers via email,” said Brian Kropp, group vice president for Gartner’s human resources practice. Text messages, Kropp said, are “another tool companies can use in a very tight labor market to try to get traction.”

A growing number of technology companies have sprung up to help employers use messaging tools to text potential workers. Mya, which launched in 2016 and now works with several large staffing firms and more than 40 Fortune 500 companies, uses “conversational” artificial intelligence to text with applicants about basic qualifications, availability and interview logistics. Canvas, which utilizes machinegenerated questions and human recruiters to message with candidates, de- scribes itself as “the world’s first text-based interviewing platform.” Other companies such as Textrecruit and Trumpia also have offerings.

Using text messaging in recruiting or for initial candidate screens provides some inherent advantages, say industry analysts and the companies behind the technology. People are more likely to respond to text messages than email, offering higher response rates from candidates who might overlook job-board email listings or emails from recruiters. Gartner’s research shows that candidates open and read only about 20 percent of the emails that recruiters send via Linkedin, while the texting platforms anecdotally report response rates of 60 percent to 70 percent, Kropp said.

The quick, conversational back-and-forth of text messaging can also speed the process along, letting employers ask basic questions about qualifications and availability — while candidates can ask about benefits or pay — before scheduling a meeting or phone call that could be a waste of both sides’ time. The low-pressure, informal way people approach texting — especially millennials and Gen Z applicants, who prefer it to email — can also cut down the awkwardness of a first-time discussion. “Can you imagine a (dating) app like Bumble or Match.com, and the first interaction was a screen conversation over the phone?” said Aman Brar, CEO of Canvas.

Yet if companies aren’t careful, getting a text about a job or the work culture of a company seeking to hire might feel intrusive or like mobile-phone junk mail. The aspects of texting that make it feel personal can also make it feel invasive.

Text-based recruiting is largely being used for highvolume job categories such as retail, food service, nursing and customer service, though some companies are also using them for professional staff jobs or highdemand positions such as software programming. Brar said Canvas has been used to recruit welders, machinists, graphic designers and software engineers.