When prospective employees interview for a job, they obsess over making a good, lasting impression. Firms should do the same. To learn how firms can avoid typical pitfalls, Consulting’s One on One sat down with David Litherland, managing partner of Summit Search Group, an executive search firm specializing in placing professionals within professional service firms.

Consulting: What do most firms not consider when beginning the hiring process?

Litherland: When you say that you’re now open to hiring someone, you’re opening your firm up to public scrutiny. It’s crucial to think about how you greet people, what their experience is while interviewing with your firm.

Consulting: Where do firms typically go wrong?

Litherland: A few weeks ago, a company came to us and said they were in need of adding new staff. We then went into the marketplace to find suitable candidates and sent their resumes to the firm. The company then made a short list and interviewed six prospects in one day. And then, the company went quiet. Put yourself in a candidate’s shoes. The wait is excruciating. Candidates, especially in this economy, wake up excited about an interview. They get a haircut. They wear their best clothes. They tell their friends and family about the interview. But they can get anxious when they have nothing to report because they haven’t heard back from the firm that day. Or the next day. Or the day after. Often, the candidates then call me. I do my best to defend my client, saying that the company is ‘very impressed, but also very busy.’ But then a week goes by. Then two weeks go by. And the candidates’ thoughts go very sour, very quickly. Each of the candidates, who were once very excited about the prospect of working for the company, is raising questions, like: ‘Is that the way they make decisions? Is this management’s communication style?’ Candidates then begin to vent: ‘even if they wanted to talk with me again, I’d have no interest.’ And then they will forever remember that experience.

Consulting: With the explosion of social media, one bad experience can be shared immediately with other prospective hires and even clients, right?

Litherland: Exactly. The proliferation of social media only exacerbates the impact of the anger. Within hours of an interview, candidates are flooded with questions from friends and family asking: ‘Did you hear anything?’ When the person has no news, they feel embarrassed. And suddenly those candidates, and their broader social network—and their social network’s networks—are warned off from wanting to interview with that company or buy its products or services. The ease of Twitter and Facebook enables disenchanted candidates to share their frustrations instantly. And that feedback never comes back to the company.

Consulting: In an age of instant gratification, are candidates too impatient?

Litherland: Lack of communication following an interview equates to a lack of professionalism. Candidates understand that every interview won’t lead to a job. Just tell me that you’re not interested in the six individuals you met. My job is to call them to say that they’re not moving forward in the process. Candidates understand that and appreciate the callback, if it’s done in a timely fashion. Otherwise, it’s like breaking up with someone by not calling her back anymore.

Consulting: What affect does this ill will have?

Litherland: When disgruntled employees, or prospective employees, spread the word, it affects the caliber of folks that company can attract. And when the caliber of individuals you are seeking are not interested in your company, you have to lower your standards. You can easily find yourself struggling to attract top talent for reasons that have nothing to do with the state of the job market.

Consulting: How quickly should firms circle back to candidates?

Litherland: I suggest sending at least one communication within 48 hours of an interview. That doesn’t have to mean that you’ve made a decision or even that you know whether they are going to go forward in the process, but they need to have some feedback. The communication can be something as simple as an e-mail thank-you note that says: ‘Thanks for meeting with me. We are doing additional interviews and hope to be back to you within x number of days.’ The key is to set an expectation of when the candidate should expect to hear from you. Things can happen. You’re having a poor quarter and the nature of the role you were looking to fill has changed. As a result, you’re not going to be hiring right now. That’s okay. But you have to communicate something. We have a number of clients who take hiring very seriously and it requires buy-in from a number of stakeholders. As long as you give that information to the candidates upfront, it should be fine. It just comes down to simple communication.