In today’s construction labor market, the companies that win talent are not just the ones with strong brands or competitive pay—they’re the ones that run a clear, timely, and intentional hiring process.
Candidates have options. And increasingly, they are evaluating how they are treated during the interview process as much as what the job is.
That was the central theme of Part 2 of ABC Western Michigan’s Strengthen Your Hiring & Workforce Strategy webinar series, presented by CTC Talent Partners and focused on Running an Optimal Interview & Hiring Process.
Your Hiring Process Is Now a Competitive Advantage
CTC opened the session with a simple but powerful framework:
How to Win
- Run a timely interview process
- Create an incredible candidate experience
- Disqualify the wrong candidates early
- Get offers accepted and counteroffers rejected
What Happens When You Don’t
- Candidates lose interest and withdraw
- Poor candidate experience = bad employer branding
- Time wasted with the wrong candidates
- Offers rejected and counteroffers accepted
In a tight labor market, delays, confusion, or poor communication don’t just slow hiring—they actively cost you talent.
Build the Right Hiring Team (and Define the Roles)
One of the most common breakdowns CTC sees is a lack of clarity around who owns what in the hiring process.
- Assign a primary point of contact to manage and facilitate the process
- Identify a subject matter expert to evaluate technical capability
- Designate someone who will own the candidate relationship and sell the opportunity
- Commit to a 48-hour feedback loop after interviews
- Agree upfront on the desired timeline from first interview to offer and start date
When roles and expectations aren’t defined, interviews drag out, communication becomes inconsistent, and confidence drops—on both sides of the table.
Speed and Clarity Win
- Determining compensation ranges in advance based on market data and internal equity
- Assessing whether current team members are within market range before making offers
- Delivering offers in less than one week after final interviews
- Providing specific, quality feedback after each interview
- Quickly disqualifying candidates who are not the right fit
In this market, time kills deals. The longer the gap, the higher the risk of losing the candidate to another opportunity—or a counteroffer.
Pre-Close Before You Offer
One of the most practical tools shared was CTC’s “Comparing Opportunities” exercise.
This is a structured worksheet candidates complete during the interview process to objectively compare:
- Their current employer
- The company they are considering
- Both today and 3–5 years into the future
It covers factors such as:
- Culture and core values
- Career path and advancement opportunity
- Leadership exposure
- TyPes of projects
- Company stability and long-term security
- Compensation and benefits
By having candidates complete this before an offer is delivered, contractors can surface concerns early, address objections directly, and shape stronger, more targeted offers—significantly reducing the risk of counteroffers.
Don’t Lose Them After They Say Yes
Another critical phase that often gets overlooked is the period between offer acceptance and start date.
CTC strongly recommended creating a touch plan during this window—team lunches, project site visits, onboarding touchpoints, and regular check-ins. Going silent after an offer is accepted is one of the easiest ways to invite a counteroffer.
The Bigger Picture: Hiring Is a System, Not an Event
When you step back, the message from Part 2 was clear:
Your hiring process is not an administrative function—it is a strategic system that directly impacts your ability to grow.
- Plan their process
- Move with urgency
- Communicate clearly
- Sell their culture and opportunity
- And treat candidates like future teammates, not transactions
…are the ones consistently winning in a competitive labor market.
How This Connects Back to Talent Planning
If Part 2 focused on how you hire, Part 1 of this series focused on when and why you hire.
- Forecasting retirements and future workforce needs
- Matching staffing plans to backlog and workload
- Building a continuous pipeline instead of hiring reactively
- Reaching candidates from adjacent industries and non-traditional backgrounds
- Real contractor success stories of skill-based hiring
If you missed that session, we strongly recommend starting there: Talent Planning Starts Before You’re Hiring
Plan earlier. Build wider. Hire better.
Want to Continue the Conversation?
If you have follow-up questions or would like to explore how these strategies could apply within your organization, our presenters from CTC Talent Partners are happy to connect directly:
