This month’s questionable phrase: unsolicited applications

What do you say when you want smart people to send you their CVs – but you don’t have any job openings?

In Denmark, “You are welcome to send an unsolicited application” is used quite a bit – but few feel comfortable with it. Every few weeks, our clients ask us: Is unsolicited application the right term to use? Will people understand it? What can we say instead?

Negative associations
Unsolicited means “not looked for or requested; unsought,” such as an unsolicited opinion, which is the kind you usually don’t want to hear.

(But the act of asking for an unsolicited application makes it…well, solicited – so as well as having negative connotations, the term causes immediate linguistic problems.)

The term unsolicited application is actually most commonly used in the insurance industry, and means: “a request for life insurance coverage by an individual, not through an agent or broker.”

In computer science, an unsolicited message is ”a warning or error message that is automatically issued by a computer program when it detects a problem, and that does not depend on the operator making a query.”

Clearly, none of this really suits HR’s desired message. After all, despite its formal name the Human Ressource department is all about people – not computers or insurance plans. So it makes sense to skip the tech-talk and use a human approach that actually engages people.

Positive presentation means positive reactions
If you want your company to come across as the kind of place people will actually want to work, you need to create the right impression. And something like this will do the trick:

“We like to hear from smart, capable people who can make our team stronger. So if you think you’ve got what it takes but don’t see a job posting that suits your particular skills, send us your CV and cover letter and tell us why you’d like to be here.”

So the rule of thumb on getting great CVs? Keep it simple, keep it human – and say what you want to say.

What if you don’t want unsolicited applications?
If you’d like to discourage people from sending random applications, “We do not encourage unsolicited applications” makes a lot more sense.

Although your company will sound more attractive if you can turn it into something positive. Something like this:

“Take a look at our job openings – and specify which position(s) you’d like to apply for when you send us your CV and cover letter.”

You’ll get your message across – all while creating a more positive brand image.

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What do you think?

Does your company say "unsolicited application", or do you prefer something else? Please share your thoughts and ideas on on our blog - we'd all like to know!