Unemployment in Ireland is at its lowest level in ten years at 5.6%. This indicates that it is very much a jobseeker’s market at present. The term “ghosting” used to be more associated with the employer but now it seems job seekers are just as culpable.
It can so happen that a candidate applies for a position gets through all the interview stages and is then offered the job. However, instead of kindly responding by accepting or declining the job, the job seeker just does not reply at all and is never heard from again. In many cases, candidates may not even show up to their first day of work after accepting a position. They may even walk out of their current company without any warning, explanation or contact afterwards.
So instead of ghosting employers check out these ways to handle the situation as best you possibly can and reasons not to ghost.
Imagine you were them
Put yourself in the position of the hiring manager for a moment. The hiring manager is under pressure, understaffed and is looking for that person to fill that role. They have spent a lot of time putting together a job description and highlighting the companies’ culture. With all that done they interviewed numerous people for the role and chose you as the most suitable person for the position. At this stage, you should not ghost them. This person holds you in high regard so don’t go turning them against you and burn bridges.
Pause for a moment and respond
A lot of companies are guilty of not responding to applicants due to a large volume of candidates. Most reputable companies would respond one way or another to all those who have applied. If they don’t it is a poor reflection on the company.
If you are invited to the latter stages of the interview process and feel it isn’t for you then simply say so. Otherwise, it reflects poorly on you. All it takes is a simple email or call that you are no longer interested in going for this position that you are moving your career in a different direction. The few minutes it takes to reply is well worth it. You never know where you could cross paths with these decision makers again.
Offer Feedback
It can be very annoying for job seekers to not get any feedback after being rejected for the job. Knowing where you fell down on is important to help you learn and improve for the next interview. Companies appreciate the same honesty from candidates. If there is something that didn’t sit with you properly during the interview, then be sure to say it so at least the company can work on fixing it going forward.
Don’t close the door
When rejecting the company let them know that this opportunity isn’t for you. But that you would like to stay in touch and be considered in the future for other roles. Consider connecting with them on LinkedIn to keep in contact and to be able to network with them in the future.
You never know when you might cross paths again. They may know the person in the company you are hiring for in the future. Also, it is just out of common courtesy to reply back to employers and not ghost them.
