Revealed: Why you have been ‘ghosted’ by an employer after a job interview – and what you should do about it
- Two career experts have explained what to do if a recruiter ‘ghosts’ you
- This can occur as recruiter’s clients often alter what they’re looking for
- Sometimes HR departments also take weeks to approve job roles or applicants
- But they said it’s important to stay confident and ask for feedback by calling
Two career experts have revealed what to do if a recruiter or employer ‘ghosts’ you in the days or weeks following a job interview.
HR Professional Tanya Southey and Career Coach Thai Ngo told Australian company Seek there are a number of reasons why this occurs and it’s more common than people think.
They said companies often change what they’re looking for or take longer to respond because they’re waiting to hear back from the HR department to approve the role.
The two experts said there’s nothing wrong with following up with a phone call or email if you’re expecting to hear about a job outcome and encourage doing so.
Two career experts have revealed what to do if a recruiter or employer ‘ghosts’ you after conducting a job interview
Why does it happen?
Unfortunately being ‘ghosted’ by a potential employer is common when job hunting and happens regularly.
Tanya said recruiter’s clients often alter what they’re looking for in an employee, or in rare cases the role can be removed completely.
Sometimes you may not hear back simply because the recruiter has no news to share.
‘As a former recruiter, I know sometimes recruiters ghost because they are also awaiting an answer from the client – they are the middle man between the company’s HR and the applicants,’ said Thai.
He added that ghosting often occurs as recruiters don’t have time to provide feedback to each individual applicant, and the fact that recruiters also aren’t able to provide constructive criticism.
What can you do about it?
If the recruiter ghosts you and doesn’t contact you, Tanya said it’s perfectly fine to call them.
‘A quick phone call is often your best chance of getting the feedback you need to move forward – texting and emails are easily overlooked’ Tanya said.
‘Try asking for feedback in a way that recruiters would find harder to resist – for example “i’m really trying to improve my job seeking game, so if you had time to give me one thing you’d suggest I work on, I’d really appreciate it”.’
If the recruiter or employer does ‘ghost’ you, Tanya said it’s perfectly fine to call them
What to do next
While not hearing back from recruiters about a job position can be disappointing, it’s important to not lose self confidence.
Thai recommends framing the experience in a positive manner and praising yourself for making it through to the interview stage.
Tanya also suggests making use of your networks and turning to colleagues for advice and guidance.
‘If you have a great mentor, or former colleagues that can remind you of your strengths and help you identify areas to work on, make use of them and ask for feedback and support,’ she said.
The ‘most important’ thing to remember if you’ve been ghosted is that although they didn’t contact you, this doesn’t mean you weren’t an excellent applicant.
Shift your focus on how you can best stand out during the next job interview.