“What would make you–or what has ever made you–not call a candidate back?”

Lack of professionalism is a vast “gap” in HR. Face it; it is not only a hiring manager who is involved in the hiring process. Lack of personnel and skills and poor communication between departments is a major trouble factor in any organizational structure.

It could be one resume or 100s per day, does not really matter, every single person should get a respond.

However, if a “candidate” just waiting for responds from the company without calling or e-mailing after few days for an update is not seeking an employment too serious.

It is not against the “hiring game” process to call or e-mail HR with a simple question, such:

“Hi, recently I applied for such and such and I just wondering if you’ve received my resume and if not or if yes can you please guide me how can I contact your HR department and who should I speak with?!”

While communicating on the phone or through e-mail you can get a better “picture” about the company and its professional level. If “they” do not know or being rude, if resumes being lost and thrown away without responds, I personally would not want to work for and with this company. However, if “they” stated let me get your information, so someone could get back to you. You should wait at least a week and then contact them again if “they” did not respond.

So please do not hesitate for an update if no one contacted you. It is not begging for work, just a simple curiosity about your message.

So Obama is creating jobs right? How many people were fooled by the hope and change is my question? :-)

Quite simply one of the reasons candidates don't hear back is because a decision was never made. All cases must pass through multiple hands and sit on desks and never get looked at. Everyone is paralyzed with fear for their own jobs so no one will pull the trigger and make a decision.

My opinion on it: At the very least you should get a courtesy email- "Thank you for your interest in X, however we have decided etc.." Thats all it does not have to be personable or even very friendly.

Now if you are one of those lucky few who actually got an interview whether by phone or in person (especially in person) then yes you better damm get a response.

Yes being told "No we don't want you" sucks, it sucks no one likes being turned down. But what hurts more is just never knowing, Ok you don't want to hire me I get it but at least have the decency to tell me.

Hey People. I NEED HELP!!! I had an interview and the company called my references a week later. I called them to check on my status and they said that my application was complete and that how i have to wait for HR to call me. What does that mean? Did i get the job? they also said to call back in 2 weeks if they did not call me. So frustrated because i need a job and need to know if i will get hired or not.

A GOOD COMPANY USUALLY RESPONDS TO YOU APPLICATION ASAP (USUALLY,IN MY EXPERIENCE 2-3 WEEKS,SOMETIMES QUICKER) BUT CRAP COMPANIES DONT GET BACK TO YOU AT ALL !!...
I CAN NAME LOADS OF SHIT COMPANIES..ITS JUST IGNORANCE ON EMPLOYERS PART.

I agree completely!!

Why don't we have laws on this? If you can't handle the number of people applying don't post the job or hire someone who can! I hate in the few interviews I had that they say oh we will let you know next week or we got other people to interview. I never hear anything. Don't lie to me. I do followups ect. I understand you can't respond to ever resumes. At least respond to who you interview, or who apply in person. One company every time I apply through the companies website I never here anything However I apply through craigslist.com I get a response. Why it it that craigslist seems to have more current jobs in my field then Careerbuilder? I am in the National Guard and deploying in the fall. I want to know how can I deploy for the USA but not get a job from the USA? One job I found online last week I called on. They said the director(person who hires was out), and took a message. I called again this week same job. Why would you post a job then disappear? I hate when companies post jobs but do not post their name. What are they hiding? The days of filling out an application or send in a resume are gone. You have to play games. It is who you blow not who you know. A Bachelors now equals a High School diploma. We bail out big corporations and give tax brakes to companies that cut jobs. Were is my/our bailout? Today on the interest there is stories how BP is doing well. WTF 10 people died when the well exploded in the golf they should be in jail.

Someone should create a website where interviewees can post whether particular companies called back or not, and how the experience went. The overall statistics would likely give future applicants pause before applying to one place over another...and the employer conduct at the people level would finally become visible to all - including their own executive staff who may have no idea. :)

Applied for a job way back in Jan 2010, didn't receive a phone interview until March, had in-person interviews in both June and August, which I had to purchase airline tickets and rent a car to attend.
Throughout the process, I have received absolutely no update from HR as to whether I advanced to the next round until the next interview was requested. This is despite my multiple after-interview thank you letters.
It's now October, and I ran into an employee of their organization at a networking event only to find out that the company has since "frozen" the position.

There's an old saying, "Never burn a bridge because you may have to cross over it again." Company's should think about this because you never know when you'll see this applicant and/or his connections in the world again.

Indeed it is cold and unprofessional not to email back a brief "rejection" letter after an INTERVIEW. After someone took the time to get nicely dressed and groomed, spent money on gas, a new haircut, and took up valuable job searching time for an interview it makes sense just to get back to them.

Common courtesy is dead, there is no denying that.

I am an unemployed HR Director with 20 years of experience. I got laid off due to "complexing" and have been looking for the "right" job for over a year. I have been on both sides. I agree that it is very difficult to get back to everyone who submits an application/resume. Thus the use of phrases like, "Only candidates in whom there is an interest will be contacted."

I've had 2 face-to-face interviews in the last few months that seemed to go well. I sent my Thank-You notes; even sent an email 10 days later to reiterate my interest. Didn't hear a thing. I guess I got the clue about one job when I looked at a career website and the position was re-posted.

Follow up on a company's part is a PR opportunity. And if you're going to treat me this way as an applicant, then how will you treat me as an employee?

As an HR Professional I ALWAYS followed up with a candidate who interviewed. If an HR person has time to shop on line or chat on Facebook (not that they all do, but I've seen my share of goofing off in my 20 years and have goofed off as well), he or she has time to send a scripted email to an applicant or make a brief phone call. Giving bad news is never comfortable, but I can look at myself in the mirror every day because I know I did the right thing.

Patting myself on the back? You're ding-dang right! If being in HR has taught me anything it's that we are ALL expendable and I'm not too good sitting in my little HR office to at least respond to someone who is out there beating the pavement and taking their valuable time to interview with me.

Just my two cents worth...

I worked as a recruiter for a large company. We often interviewed many candidates in a week's time. We had a system in place to insure candidates received follow up letters after interviewing. It is just courteous and professional to respond to an individual that has given their time to professionally follow up. However, it is sad to say, some HR individuals can be very arrogant, unprofessional individuals at times. They do not realize it makes it harder on our profession as well.

I’ve applied to approximately 180 positions over the past 6 months, all directly through a company’s career site. I am finding that I am getting a rejection letter, albeit a form letter, about 20-25% of the time. The rest of the time I never receive any response. I should note that the vast majority of these companies are Fortune 500 and one would think they would have the infrastructure in place to keep candidates informed of their status (i.e. you’ve been rejected).

If it makes anyone feel any better, out of the 180+ jobs I’ve applied to, I have yet to receive one interview request, or even phone screen. Apparently 10+ years of experience, a graduate degree, and even a prior work history with the prospective employer are just not enough to get you noticed in this economy.

Employers may get thousands of resumes but they are not interviewing thousands of people. If someone takes the time to interview they should get a letter letting them know they are not getting the job but thanking them for the time they took and the interest they showed in your company.

Remember the time they took to interview for your company is time lost on a job they may have gotten. The least an employer can do is a simple thanks but no thanks.

Maybe it is time for an employer rating system for job seekers to rate an employer. Once an employers gets a bad reputation maybe they will improve. It may be best to not seek employment from rude unprofessional and discourteous employers.

These are all very understandable reasons... but if you don't get a call back can't you just contact the company and say something like:

"Hello this is Susie Jones. I interviewed last Monday at 5 p.m. and was just double-checking on the job?"

It sounds like an honest question and if they're professional they will give you a honest answer.

So can't you just call yourself to double-check? It would make you seem even more interested and persistant (but not pesty) if you do... am I right?

Just been taking in responses on this contentious subject, as the "interviewee". I finished a contract in London end of December 09 and have been looking for work since, as a Senior PA/EA. I have come to expect zero response rate from online applications made either through recruiting agencies or directly through the employer. This is just the nature of the beast in my opinion. At speculative CV stage, it's not too much of a mental hardship if applications are met with complete silence.

However, I heartily agree with most here that, if I make the effort to commute an all-round two and a half hour journey to the City for an interview (which I just have) in which I've taken the time to research the company, arrive promptly, look extremely polished (in fact immaculate!) act enthusiastic, ask all the appropriate probing questions...then I expect, no matter how small the company, or limited the "HR" resource, that the interviewer will take all the few minutes required to send a "blanket" email to those in the final outcome NOT considered for the role.

In this case I was informed by the lady whose role was to be vacated next week, so progress needs to be quick, that I would receive an answer today. I haven't, and have doubts I will at all; considering I even sent the obligatory "thank you" email after the interview, I feel a bit miffed to be honest.

I have been on the other side of the fence (again, small company) and no matter how snowed under, I took the time to put myself in the candidate's shoes and provide a timely answer.

None of us unemployed want to be in this position; rejection hits just that much harder because often it accompanies financial hardship, insecurity, anxiety, a huge question mark hanging over your employed future you would rather not have. So, in short, yes...if I make the effort to present myself professionally I take a pretty damning view of a company that doesn't just because the what's-in-it-for-me doesn't apply to an unsuccessful candidate.

As insightfully indicated, one "remembers" those companies where discourteous behaviour seemed appropriate to their dealings with candidates. It doesn't reflect well as a whole...no matter how anyone here objects.

To Bill's comment:From the recruiter’s viewpoint, there is no reason to call any applicant to tell them they didnt get the job.

Poor Attitude You never know if that applicant you didnt call back will obtain a position where he/she might need the services of a recruiter. Pretty short sighted

I am being called back for a 6th interview. I have had 1 phone interview with the owner ,1 in office interview with the owner, 1 breakfast meeting with the owner 1 4 hour interview with 6 staff members, had to take a 2 hour personality test then a 2 hour call with the person who is paid to discuss the results with me. The owner said he would call today but nothing. Would should I do to get closure?

I'm coming in late on this one - first time on this site, got here googling the question at hand - why don't they call one way or the other when they say they will...I was inclined to agree with those who say no response should be expected on initial application, but several posts have suggested any employer who is soliciting email resumes should find it relatively simple to auto-respond, and if they are not clever enough to figure out how, they may not deserve to have me. If they can't handle email traffic they should put an ad in the paper and accept applications by mail. Thats the way it used to be done and replies were pretty much commonplace. Now if you get an interview and they say they will call you back and don't, you would have to wonder if they had any intention of calling you back in the first place, which of course would mean they were willing to lie to your face, unless they wink when they say it. The post above says don'tquit looking even if you think you had a good interview, and that seems like good advice, but what do you do if you get an offer and accept it, only to have someone you gave up on call you with another offer? Do the hiring companies have any sense of urgency to select the right person, or do they expect people to turn around and un-accept a position in order to take a job with them? Really, communication with applicants is not just polite, it makes good business sense.

COMPLETELY understand not contacting all people who APPLIED for a job, but recently my wife had two in-person interviews with two different companies and never heard a word one way or another from EITHER. Certainly a short "thanks, but we're going in a different direction" call can't be THAT time-consuming. It's 30 seconds, people! Again, I would expect this of people who INTERVIEW, not everyone who APPLIES.

Interesting, also -- one job was through a recruiter. A couple days after the wife was promised a response there was a job posted on craigslist that sounded A LOT like the job she had just interviewed for. Right area of town, right size company, right responsibilies, even the right software package. Now we're just thinking the company wanted to get out of paying the recruiter and just tried to hire on their own.

well i went on an interview recently and the hiring mgr was 1/2hr late! then as he apologized he wanted to stop at the cafe for some food!? this is a huge corporation so I just rolled with it. then we sat in the cafe to conduct the interview. i was shocked. she asked maybe 2 behavioral questions and the rest of the time was spent explaining the job duties and small talk. I asked 4 questions that took her about 1/2hr+ to answer but I got the "HR or myself will call you next week either way" nothing ever happened. but at the same time I was still applying and going on job interviews so I didn't dwell on it. But i have to say out of all the job interviews only 5 companies out of 12 RETURNED A CALL TO LET ME KNOW I DID NOT MAKE THE CUT. I landed but come on. I guess its best practice to not respond to any applicants. And some of these companies I've gone on second interviews and again NO RESPONSE. its just how it is now a days so I guess we must accept as there is no such thing as courtesy today. Its a bad market, way too many people out of jobs, too much competition. There is no room for being courteous. We just gotta "roll with it" and "press on" and never look back.

What I have found is after you have dedicated time and effort to write your resume, get a good cover letter, show up for your interview and have the said interviewers walk you through their company, giving great feed back about your behalf ---

--- telling you later that they either decided their budget couldn't afford to hire me OR they outright tell you after providing security checks on their own budget that someone they thought walked off --- came back and so you don't have the position.

This has happened to me three times in the Memphis area --- and I'm about praying for work at the moment.

my problem is that i personalize this. i may have a great resume etc, but then so do others.
Great opinions from this page. Thanks. This gave me things to think about since i have issues too.

I actually agree with Job Seeker. In fact I think we should name names and hold some of these people accountable.

I recently interviewed with Oce Business Services. I will say it was a horrible unprofessional experience. What the interviewer doesn't know is that I have contacts with clients that he works with and I certainly wouldn't hesitate letting them know about my experience when I am able.

Networks and contacts can sometimes reach far and wide.

I've decided to take some action. I keep a file of names of hiring managers and there company and contact information.

There will come a day in my career when our paths will cross again. It might be as vendor/supplier - it might be salesperson from that company trying to land my account. Or it might be the actual hiring manager I interviewed with.

Some of them will be back in some way, especially if you are interviewing in the field you have contacts and networks with....it will happen....I always remember the people that are good and act professionally....and I never forget the sloppy ones that call themselves professional...

...and in this economy they may very well find themselves on the other side of MY desk.

Here is MY gripe and it is WELL FOUNDED.
After an interview (where only 3 candidates remain) I am told "We will let you know on Monday of next week either way". AND THEY DON'T.
That tells me that the company either a) doesn't care or know how to end an interview b)doesn't know time management techniques c) is simply poorly organized.

It is poor form and simply RUDE. NO excuse.

I don't think that it is reasonable to send a note to every applicant. But, I do think it is the decent thing to do to send a note if the person does *not* make the cut. This has nothing to do with business practices but is merely a common courtesy.

It's a relief to know that others have gone through the unresponsive interviewer. Twice I've been interviewed and told that I would be brought in for a second interview, and after months and repeated attempts to contact them I still never heard back.

It seems like most people on this thread can agree, the preliminary resumes can be ignored understandably. But to interview a person or tell them to their face that they will be contacted and not follow through is pretty bad hiring etiquette, especially in times like these.

I interviewed twice at a company that found my resume on Career Builder. I followed up a week after the second interview and left a message for the accounting manager, no response. Two days later I called her assistant, she said that she would get back to me with the status of the job I interviewed for, no response. Then a few days after that I finally called and asked for the HR Department to see if the job was filled or not, they would not let me even talk to them, the receiptionist put me on hold and checked with HR and came back to tell me the job was filled. Talk about unprofessional!!!!!!!!!! That place was patetic hiding behind the receiptionist like that, I am glad I didn't get hired to work for such a joke of a company.

It is hard when you feel you had what you feel was a good interview. I myself have been on many interviews where the interviewer states "We should know in a couple of weeks".

We are then taught to send a thank you letter to follow up with the employer.

I understand a business/hr manager cannot reply to all applicants, but if they have interviewed with someone it is more personal.

Especially if the person applying for the job follows up.

Job searchers, please understand that hiring managers and HR professionals are receiving ten times the amount of resumes than they would have a year or two ago. Their time is spread thin and it is difficult to respond to each resume or application. Don't expect to hear from every company that you've applied. The position may have filled and the manager has moved on. If you interview for a job, though, a good hiring manager will always follow up. Additionally, be mindful of several things. First, don't apply for a job for which you clearly are not qualified. Second, prepare for your interview. If you know nothing about the company you are interviewing with, it's an immediate red flag to the hiring manager. Finally, if a hiring manager indicates that she will contact you in two weeks and you have not heard from her, you should follow up with her. It may be that the process is taking longer than she expected. Remember, two years ago, job seekers were particular about the jobs they would accept. Today, managers are trying to find the "perfect" candidate rather than settling on a candidate.

Managers and HR "professionals". Your candidate pools are much larger and it takes more time to sort through the applications and resumes. Take this as a blessing that you are more likely to find a great candidate rather than one who simply "fits the bill". You shouldn't respond to each resume or application that you get, but you should ALWAYS inform candidates whom you've interviewed once the position has been filled. It does not take much time to punch out an e-mail to send to the candidate who wasn't hired. If you've interviewed many candidates, you can at least send a generic e-mail thanking the candidates and informing them that you've found a candidate that best fits your position. Remember, you may be on the other side of the desk one day.

I was actually told that I was one of 3 people for 3 positions and that I would be called no later than a Tuesday. Well, Tuesday came and went and I had to call several times before HR told me I did not get the job! I can understand if an employer does not specifically tell you that they will call you, but they were very specific and I had gone through 2 interviews and had to give a presentation. At that point, they are obligated to do what they say.

I agree with previous posters. I can understand not getting back to EVERY applicant. However, I have had interviews with business owners in which they specifically said that I was one of three left to interview, was very qualified for the position and was to be scheduled for another interview. Needless to say, several weeks, messages, emails later - no response. How hard is it to have a blanket rejection response that lets you off the hook. How rude and unprofessional?

Some of these replies truly show how behind the times some HR professionals and recruiters really are. It's a very simple process.

1) Post the jobs and have the applicants apply via email (ANYONE can get a free email account and send via coffee shop...no excuses)

2) Recruiter adds all emails to an auto responder service like Aweber.com or Getresponse.com

3) Resumes get reviewed and short listed.

4) People to be interviewed get called in for interview.

5) People that did NOT get selected to interview receive a nice email from the autoresponder saying "thank you for applying etc."

The HR pro writes ONE email to the unlucky, pushes send and has just provided closure to hundreds of people.

Comments like "my husband is out of work and I'm fielding 500 resumes per job offer....and I just don't have time" are ridiculous.

You simply haven't thought outside the box and truly have NOT put yourself in these peoples shoes.

Don't believe me that this will work? Contact me via email and I will do it for you!

foolsfortune2 @ hotmail .com

In the past 3 months, I have had 2nd interviews with two different nonprofit organizations for fairly high-level positions. I spent more than 5 hours interviewing with each organization (1st and 2nd interviews).

I sent everyone "thank you" emails after the 2nd interviews.

I never heard back from one. Now, 2 months later, they just re=posted the job.

For another, the hiring person had an underling email me back saying they were "checking their budget". Now - 6 weeks later, a friend (who works elsewhere) who initially recommended me for the position called me to say he'd spoken with the hiring person and they'd decided to hire someone else. No word from the organization at all.

I have a pretty thick skin and am trying not to take any of this personally, but it does seem like incredibly bad etiquette on their part. I've always followed through with interviewees when I've been hiring in the past. It seems like just decent respect for people.

Nobody in a livable world should be forced to put up with such rudeness.(ie: employers couldn't care less about prospective employees in general...) The message is loud and clear. You have to prove you need us more than we have to show we need you.

The rudeness demonstrates nothing but this. There's always enough time for decent manners. There's never enough time for double standards, and snide unproductive meta messages about who some people think everyone else is!

I hate to break it to everyone, there isn't enough time. Although I have a job right now, you never know I may be in the applicant shoes tomorrow. Keep in mind that recruiters like me are currently reviwing hundreds of applicant for one position. I will give you an example, I have a custodian job opening right now and I just opened it on monday. I currently have 680 applicants. Some with applicants with degrees. Can you imagine sending 679 emails, letters, or phone calls. The good thing is that our system will let them review how there application status, however I do find that individuals are to lazy to even log on to our site and relog in. Keep in mind with applications, review, phone calls on applicants, interviews etc., it is hard to keep everyone informed.

For those who were not called back and are still looking, we are interviewing around the country for a sales force for new technology. Contact us.

For those who were not called back, we are interviewing for sales persons for new technology. Contact us.

As an employer, I would like to know why Job Seekers do not show up for their appointments and do not call to cancel them.
Most that do this write in their resumes about how professional they are and dependable.

We are a small company and I received 500 resumes for one opening. There is no way I can respond to all of theses candidates yet I am sensitive to all of the applicants since my husband is also out of work. It hink more importantly HR professionals should send a letter out quickly once the candidate is interviewed and will not be hired. I think it is appalling that HR interviews an applicants, tells them they will be back to them in two weeks and then never contacts them again. They haven't sat on the other side of the desk for a long time to realize how that feels! At times I am embarrassed to be an HR professional when I hear about this!

I guess there is your answer thus far. One comment from the whining unemployed. The American Dream is a possibility, not a right folks. Find something positive out of your job search and positive will come back to you. Personally I am liking the time to fix all the things I have been meaning to get to and meet up with new and old friends. Networking I find is the most valuable tool in the job search.

Why don't we have laws on this? If you can't handle the number of people applying don't post the job or hire someone who can! I hate in the few interviews I had that they say oh we will let you know next week or we got other people to interview. I never hear anything. Don't lie to me. I do followups ect. I understand you can't respond to ever resumes. At least respond to who you interview, or who apply in person. One company every time I apply through the companies website I never here anything However I apply through craigslist.com I get a response. Why it it that craigslist seems to have more current jobs in my field then Careerbuilder? I am in the National Guard and deploying in the fall. I want to know how can I deploy for the USA but not get a job from the USA? One job I found online last week I called on. They said the director(person who hires was out), and took a message. I called again this week same job. Why would you post a job then disappear? I hate when companies post jobs but do not post their name. What are they hiding? The days of filling out an application or send in a resume are gone. You have to play games. It is who you blow not who you know. A Bachelors now equals a High School diploma. We bail out big corporations and give tax brakes to companies that cut jobs. Were is my/our bailout? Today on the interest there is stories how BP is doing well. WTF 10 people died when the well exploded in the golf they should be in jail.