GHOSTING PART 2 – companies do you have a part to play?
Posted on Wednesday, January 19, 2022 by Belinda Elliott — No comments
Firstly, let me say I do not believe there are any excuses for ghosting (the practice of suddenly and without explanation withdrawing from all communication). Everyone has a mobile phone, and it only takes a moment to send an email or text. But thought I would share a conversation I had recently with a candidate who did ghost a prospective employer.
A candidate told me he was offered and accepted a role but decided not to turn up. Naturally, I asked why, and he told me hours after accepting a second company (who he had interviewed with the day before) also made an offer and he found himself with a dilemma as he liked both roles.
Whilst deliberating he realised that the second company had responded quickly, always kept him informed, and recognised his value straight away. Whereas the first company had taken several weeks to respond to his application, with over two weeks between interviews, and over ten days before letting him know he was successful. He had requested interview feedback after not hearing back when promised and received nothing for further week. On reflection he decided to turn down the second job offer too as the opportunity did not offer him the career path he was looking for, but decided he wanted to find an alternative role in in a company like the second as he felt they were genuinely interested in him, as opposed to feeling he should be grateful for the opportunity.
I had to ask again why he did not let the first company know he had changed his mind, and his reply was “I did consider it, then I decided if they couldn’t be bothered to keep me informed during the interview process as they had promised, why should I go out of my way to keep them informed?”
I am not going to say if I agree or disagree with the candidate, but it certainly made me think. I must admit this is not the first time a candidate has commentated on the lack of feedback or contact from clients during the application and interview process.
I know all too well how incredibly busy we all get dealing with applications and interviews, but I just thought I would share and ask what are your views on this perspective?