When I was a kid, I wanted to be bilingual, I still wish I was but lucky for me there’s an app for that. Traveling to a foreign country doesn’t seem as intimidating anymore. In theory I could simply speak into an app and my words could be translated to the cab driver in Spain or the train conductor in Italy or the street vendor in Vietnam. It’s amazing what these mobile devices in our pockets have given us, but it’s also sad to think about what they have taken away.
No longer do you need to talk to a person to make plans—you send a text. You don’t have to call to make a reservation—you click a button. And you don’t have to even call to order a pizza anymore—you send a pizza emoji. Communicating is completely different now, thanks to technology, and while so many things are better because of it, the art of communication is dying—especially when it comes to the world of work.
Millennials now make up 35% of the workforce (Pew Research) which means that more than a third of workers grew up with the technologies that are killing our ability to communicate and engage with one another. So, it was refreshing to see a story in the news where a little girl wrote to Google telling them she wanted to work there and the response she received was a letter. Yes, a letter, old fashion snail mail from Google CEO, Sundar Pichai thanking her for the inquiry and encouraging her to apply in the future.
This letter is more than most people get who are conducting a job search. Often times job seekers feel like they’re in limbo throughout the job search process. But smart companies recognize that the recruitment process is an important part of their marketing strategy. Job candidates who are treated with respect could become brand champions for an organization. Hence, the conversation we’re having about Google doing a simple thing like sending a five-sentence letter to a seven-year-old. And now we all have a fuzzy feeling about Google, even if it is the desire to sit on bean bags and go down slides.
So, let’s all take a note from Mr. Pichai and start treating job candidates the way they deserve to be treated…I think if we keep working hard and follow our dreams we can accomplish everything we set our minds to.
Nexxt is a recruitment media company that uses today’s most effective marketing tactics to reach the full spectrum of talent – from active to passive, and everything in between. Learn more about hiring with Nexxt.