Tag: applicant

Making job applicants wait

I’ve applied for a fair few jobs recently and I’ve noticed that companies seem to enjoy making job candidates wait.

For one position the prospective employer was really keen but took a week to do anything. After applying they got back to you after a week. After the initial interview they took a week to let you know you are through to the next round. When no next round notification happened after almost a week and you emailed them, they took a week to reply to your email. The email said they’ll be in touch in a week. WTF? Is there some internal policy around taking seven days to action anything?

For another position the company said that I was the only candidate. Great, what happens next? They need to talk to the board. After ten days of hearing nothing you reach out. Nothing. Radio silence. You mention to someone you know at the company that you are now looking elsewhere and you then receive an email letting you know that they are still keen to hire you and discussions internally are ongoing. You hear nothing for weeks and continue to apply for other roles. You then receive an invite for a second interview. Hold on, I thought I was the only candidate? You are but you now have to speak to other people in the company before your application can be taken further.

Some of these companies are small, less than twenty employees yet they have so much bureaucracy and red tape. How many perfect-fit candidates are they losing due to these processes and lack of communication?

That is what it essentially comes down to: a lack of communication.

If only these companies would let you know what is going on. The equivalent of the in-progress spinning graphical animation that most software uses to let you know that something is happening and that we haven’t forgotten that you are there. To let you know where you stand, that they are still considering you but that this or that is happening and we will be in touch by so-and-so date. But no, nothing. Radio silence and the hope that you will wait on them.

We’ll get back to you, in a week.

Thank you for your application

“Thank you for your application”.

I hate that statement. Especially when received in an email informing you that you haven’t got the job, one that you did not actively apply for.

The job market is pretty dire at present. There are few jobs in IT, even less if you specialise. Finding the real jobs among all the fakes is even harder. What with CV harvesters and the recruitment agency incentive schemes designed to fill their databases with candidate data by lure of a maybe role.

What annoys me however is where you are headhunted, go through several rounds of interviews and testing, only to receive an email saying “Thank you for your application but..” followed by anything from we have decided to go in a different direction / hire a candidate with more relevant experience / changed our minds due to the current economy / etc etc.

I don’t really care about the reason why as they are usually made up anyway and never constructive. The phrase thank you for your application just irks me somewhat because I did not apply, I was approached. I was actively sought for the role. I was told I was the only candidate they were considering and I had calls with the team and the CTO. All wanted me to start immediately, they were just waiting on the paperwork to go through HR / the board / the CEO.

Then pow! An email:

Thank you for your application..