The latest buzzword in HR circles these days is “ghosting”. Ghosting is when a new candidate applies for an open position and everything seems to be going great, it looks like they will get a shot at an interview. Then all of a sudden, like a ghost, all communication ceases. There are no calls, no texts, no emails or any form of letting the applicant know what happened and they find that that the position has been filled.
According to an article appearing on the HCA magazine website, many companies and recruiters are now bemoaning a rise in ghosting happening to them. When the job market was flooded with job seekers, applicants, after months of sending out resumes and getting no response would finally get a lead on a potential job or even make it to the interview only to hear nothing. Perhaps it’s a bit of workplace karma that job seekers are the ones doing the ghosting. Some will vanish in favor of a more promising opportunity elsewhere, without so much as a call or note letting HR recruiters know. The practice is now leaving organizations in the lurch.
According to Paul Wolfe, SVP / Head of Global Affairs at a global job site, this is definitely a sign of the times. “One interesting aspect to this trend is that recruiters might now be experiencing from candidates the very same lack of contact that many candidates have long complained about from recruiters!” Wolfe said.
One could almost say that it serves organizations and recruiters right for doing it to candidates for years. Matt Singer, VP of marketing for Jobvite said in a recent interview that companies can irreparably harm their brand by leaving job applicants in the lurch.
HR professionals and recruiters who ignore applicants after that person has put in the time and effort to connect rather than communicating with them, even if the answer is, “No,” such indifference can give a less-than-desirable reputation. This is true even with companies which are traditionally seen as a potential dream job for potential job seekers.
In today’s competitive job market, the best thing for HR professionals and job seekers to do is to keep common courtesy in mind. Letting the other person know what’s going on during the hiring practice is not just good manners; it’s good business.