From the Editor

I usually don’t make predictions, but I’m making one now: candidate experience will be in a free fall in 2025.

Not to rock bottom, but definitely a free fall. Really? This coming from the CandE candidate experience evangelist research team? What does that mean?

It’s true that the only happy candidates are those who get hired, but sadly, we predict the overall recruiting experience for the majority of candidates who don’t get hired will get worse. Read more about why here.

This week’s newsletter features a piece by Jenn Tardy Closing the Black Talent Gap: From Historical Exclusion to Future Innovation. Caitlyn McDonough and Jamie Kohn share Gartner research in 8 Emerging Trends That Will Shape Recruiting in 2025. Jason Pistulka explains Choosing an Applicant Tracking System ERP vs. ATS. Jim Stroud continues his series with How To Find Diversity Talent Your Competition Has Overlooked (Part 2, but really 4). Jake Zerbe shares sourcing insight with Leverage AI to Improve Your Sourcing Strategy, But Don’t Rely on It Completely. And I share the next case study in our 2024 CandE Benchmark Research Case Study series — CandE Winner Northwell Health.

There are also lots of new recruiting and hiring news links below — plus, current research, free webinars to register for, and a new discount code below for our upcoming ERE Recruiting Innovation Summit. Check out our special deal below: receive a free virtual ticket or one 20% off in-person ticket!

Let me know if you’ve got any news to share. Thank you for reading!

—Kevin Grossman, VP of Research & Editorial

Email me: Editor

Featured Article

Candidate Experience Will Be in a Free Fall in 2025

For all the other candidates who don’t get hired, the ultimate outcome is a positive and fair experience. But this year, they’re not going to get it – candidate experience will be in a free fall. So, how many employers will help slow it down?

More Recruiting and Sourcing Articles

Recruiting

Closing the Black Talent Gap: From Historical Exclusion to Future Innovation by Jenn Tardy

Let’s turn the lessons of the past into actions that create a more inclusive and innovative future for everyone.

8 Emerging Trends That Will Shape Recruiting in 2025 by Caitlyn McDonough and Jamie Kohn

Recruiting leaders should use this trend analysis and research to define their strategy to attract talent, optimize their operating model, and more.

Choosing an Applicant Tracking System ERP vs. ATS Specialist Providers by Jason Pistulka

By carefully weighing functionality, cost, and flexibility, organizations can make a more strategic decision that best supports their recruiting goals.

Sourcing

How To Find Diversity Talent Your Competition Has Overlooked (Part 2, but really 4) by Jim Stroud

Practical Strategies to Source and Engage Professionals from High-Diversity Companies and Communities

Leverage AI to Improve Your Sourcing Strategy, But Don’t Rely on It Completely by Jake Zerbe

The most effective approach is to integrate AI strategically while maintaining a human touch throughout the hiring process.

Candidate Experience

The 2024 Global CandE Research Report is here! Download today as well as all our other latest research.

New! 2024 Global CandE Research Report explores the candidate experience journey for over 230,000 candidates around the world, from pre-application to onboarding. The latest insights, best practices + more!

What Sets CandE Winners Apart is a special global report that highlights CandE Winner differentiators — those employers that participated in our annual research and have the highest candidate experience ratings overall.

The 2024 Business Impact of Candidate Experience research brief highlights the business impact of candidate experience and is based on the 2024 CandE benchmark research of over 240,000 global candidate responses.

2024 CandE Case Studies will be released weekly and here are the latest:

• CandE Benchmark Research Case Study – Arup

• CandE Benchmark Research Case Study – Delaware North

• CandE Benchmark Research Case Study – Northwell Health

JobSync Roundtable: What Matters & What Doesn't for Candidate Experience in 2025

Join us for this lively discussion with Kevin Grossman from ERE and CandE Community TA leaders, where we discuss what is driving change in candidate experience in 2025.

The 2025 CandE Benchmark Research Program Now Open

The annual CandE Benchmark Research Program helps you and your organization measure and understand your overall candidate experience ratings from pre-application to onboarding.

Employers big and small across industries are encouraged to participate. The CandE Benchmark Research Program will help you identify strengths and weaknesses in your recruiting process and your overall candidate experience with continuous candidate feedback.

Each year the CandE Benchmark Research Program recognizes those participating employers with the highest candidate experience ratings with our coveted CandE Awards.

Register today!

Other Recruiting, Hiring, and Business News

• Rise of AI career coaches ushers in new age of employee development

• Trump Layoffs Push Federal Workers Into Tough Job Hunt

• Beyond Resumes and Interviews: The Rise of AI in Talent Selection

• The 2025 Dice Tech Salary Report: 20 Years of Insights on Compensation, Trends, and Opportunities

• AI Agents Are Everywhere…and Nowhere

• Rethinking your career? You're not alone. Here's how to make a change.

• Thousands fired in US government as Trump, Musk purge federal workers

• How Flunking a Personality Test Can Cost You Your Dream Job

• What DeepSeek Signals About Where AI Is Headed

• Job Cuts Hit HR Tech Companies. Here’s What’s Next for the Job Market

• The Challenge of Navigating U.S. Employment Law in 2025

• How Your Company Can Avoid the 7 Deadly Sins of Recruiting

• Beyond the resume: Finding your best talent

Upcoming Webinars

Tech Demo Tuesday

February 25, 2025 | 2:00 PM EDT | 1 Hour

Discover cutting-edge recruitment tech to elevate your hiring process.

Doing More with Less: Streamlining Talent Acquisition for Overstretched HR Teams

February 26, 2025 | 2:00 PM EDT | 1 Hour

Streamline your hiring: discover how integrated workflows and AI-driven tools can transform talent acquisition for greater efficiency, compliance, and candidate engagement.

Conferences

ERE Recruiting Innovation Summit

April 29-30, 2025 in Las Vegas, NV

Friends and Family discount — receive a free virtual ticket or one 20% off in-person ticket! Use discount code: EREFAM

It's an interesting time for our industry right now, and with the current state of affairs who knows what this year will bring. We want to equip our talent acquisition community with the knowledge and tools to help level-up and future-proof careers.

So we decided to extend our "Friends & Family" discount to you and your teams! Register by March 1st to get 20% off your in-person or digital pass to ERE Recruiting Innovation Summit. The more colleagues you send, the more you'll save!

Use discount code: EREFAM

We'll see you there!