(Communicate with kindness and avoid ghosting. Image source: www.pxhere.com)
Have you come across a job description which aligns with your skills and interest?
Do you remember feeling accomplished after your interview?
Have you ever been told ‘we will get back to you shortly’?
Sometimes ‘no news is good news’, but I am sure, ‘no news’ is the biggest nightmare for any job seeker.
When there is ‘no news’ you decide to follow-up with an email, yet no response.
When there is ‘no news’ you decide to call them, yet no response.
When there is ‘no news’ you decide to send a gentle reminder on LinkedIn, yet no response.
When there is ‘no news’ and 'no response', then welcome to the world of ghosting.
Personally, ghosting has been a new experience. I was recently head hunted by a leading MNC which lead to an engaging interview with a standard ‘we will get back to you shortly’. But what really followed was no response upon repeated follow up and ghosting.
I have recently completed my Ph.D and as is my luck I am the class of 2020. Worldwide, graduates of the class of 2020 have diligently acquired technical and transferable skills in preparation for pursuing dream jobs. Unfortunately, the class of 2020 along with many seasoned professionals are facing pandemic induced economic recession, hiring freeze, mounting debts, unemployment and also ghosting.
This made me question why does one face ‘candidate ghosting’ from prospective employers? Do recruiters and employers also face ghosting by employees and prospective job seekers? As I began delving deeper to understand the causes of ghosting, I have realised there are various contributing factors:
1. In-house hiring
Although laws mandate any organization to publicly advertise for the position, it does not mandate that only candidates who apply through the official advertisement would be interviewed. Majority employers have established recruitment of internal candidates. This means that a current employee is able to leverage advantage of applying within the organization to switch from one domain to another. Although external candidates would be contacted and most likely interviewed, it might only be to satisfy the legal mandate.
2. Unexpected hiring freeze
In a capitalist economy, hiring within an organization primarily depends on availability of demand, supply and financial liquidity. For instance, no one had foreseen a catastrophic health crisis leading to global economic instability and budget freeze. This basically has translated to reprioritizing available financial resources to keep the organization afloat and evade new personnel onboarding.
3. Errors in the application process
Any active job seeker can vouch that each targeted job application involves tremendous effort. Every application involves meticulously tailoring the resume, writing an engaging cover letter and most importantly addressing the appropriate person. In running this rat race, sometimes we might make an error in the application process. One misjudgement, one unheeded error, one misstep at an interview and we fall prey to ghosting.
4. Organised chaos
During the course of the application process, the job seeker encounters various people starting with the recruiter, human resource personnel, and interview panellist. Each one has their desk filled to the brim and try their best to remain organised. However, in the event of a break in the chain of communication, a job seeker’s application could get lost in this organised chaos and inadvertently experience ghosting.
5. Lack of professionalism
Just as an employee invests time in applying, likewise the recruiter, human resource personnel, and interview panellist have to equally invest time to find the appropriate applicant. Employers too fall prey to ghosting when some employees are dissatisfied with the work culture, fear repercussions, ill-informed of the cost of onboarding and serving notice periods. Whether the employer is ghosted by the employee or a job seeker is ghosted by the employer, it always demonstrates a severe lack of professionalism.
Ghosting is two sides of the same coin, where the candidate and the employer actively play both the victim and the perpetrator. As we brace ourselves for jolts amidst abundant crises, let us avoid ghosting, communicate with kindness and strive towards effective professionalism.
