Is this how hiring is nowadays?

12 Comments

1. AnonymousJuly 9,2024 at 9:05PM UTC

   As a recruiter I have had to deliver news like this in the past. Unfortunately, business needs change while candidates are interviewing. Sometimes the responsibilities for the role evolve, budgets change, and companies have to pivot.

   I don't think you can expect this as a norm but it is the reality of evolving businesses.

   Sounds like you got some great initial interest. Hope you're able to find a great opportunity that aligns with what you're looking for!

2. Joan Williams, Senior Talent Acquisition SpecialistJuly 10,2024 at 3:07AM UTC

   You didn't mention what leve you are.

   In my experience - unless it's at a very senior level where they will be using an executive retained search firm - most companies usually try to fill a position themselves first before putting it out to an agency.

   The main exception to this would be an extremely niche position that they've tried to fill previously, couldn't and wound up going to an agency.

3. AnonymousJuly 10,2024 at 4:26AM UTC

   The same thing happened to my son. He has had several job interviews where they say they really like him. It gets narrowed down to him and one other person, they tell him that they are pretty sure he’s going to be hired. They have even had him fill out paperwork for the job, then they pivot and hire the other person. This has happened so many times that I’ve lost count. It’s very defeating and he gets depressed. He even called back a few of them to ask why they decided against him to see if he can fix it for next time. Their answer was, they just thought the other guy was a better fit. It is difficult out there, good luck

4. AnonymousJuly 10,2024 at 12:07PM UTC

   There may be more to this specific scenario than what the company is sharing and is able to share with you. They may be on the verge of a buyout or job eliminations that have changed what they need to more of a short-term solution.

5. Sarah BojorquezJuly 10,2024 at 12:57PM UTC

   Every company does it differently, there isn't one way that it is done. That being said, my company does use agencies as well as direct recruitment, It sounds like an agency submitted a candidate more suited to their needs and they went with them.

6. AnonymousJuly 10,2024 at 1:10PM UTC

   I'm sorry this happened to you (the lay off and the interview experience). There isn't one way of companies doing things. Some seek on their own, some use an agency, some use both.

   It is draining to invest your time in your search (from thousands of applications to a lot of time interviewing- or both). Keep your spirits up. The best advice I received was to treat it like a game (which can be tough esp. if finances depend on securing something). Get your approach and message to a solid level and plug away. Don't put your eggs in one basket. They're showing you their true colors. (Rejections don't have to feel weird).

   A lot of companies these days are feeling the pressure to make the right call for hiring - esp. since many of the employees (including hiring managers) are still burned out or experiencing analysis paralysis.

   As an aside- I interviewed for a place that I could tell from their interactions on the many virtual team calls that they all needed about a month off and counseling to reset. Needless to say while I needed the job and knew I could do it, I wasn't upset when they decided to "pause and go in another direction." 5 months later, they still haven't hired someone.

   Trust the timing. Good luck.

7. Angela P.July 10,2024 at 1:47PM UTC

   Your lucky you even got an email, this job search will be like nothing you have ever experienced. My advice is get a therapist now so that you have professional help dealing with the stress of constantly being rejected as the labor market continues to soften.

8. Maggie SoldanoJuly 10,2024 at 2:33PM UTC

   Unfortunately, it’s an employers market so they throw out a line with loose expectations to “see what kind of response we get”. THEN they decide what they’re looking for based on the people they meet.

9. AnonymousJuly 10,2024 at 4:37PM UTC

   That's actually further than most people get so try not to sweat it. I've been a temp for 3 years and I've been deemed not good enough to be hired now (interesting after 3 years right?). Save yourself some stress and try not to figure out "how it's done". You'll never find that answer. Just know it's not based on anything you do or have to offer. You're just going to have to get lucky. All you can do is plug away. I've applied for over 90 jobs in the past 6 months and have only gotten generic "we've gone with someone else" email 3 times. The rest haven't even bothered with that. We don't live in a society that cares about individuals so you have to unfortunately try not to take it personally and radically accept you are just a piece of paper in a hat and if you're lucky they'll pick you out of that hat.

10. SophJuly 10,2024 at 9:37PM UTC

    I mean, you can always ask if the role is officially open and budgeted for. It sounds like they weren't sure which direction they wanted to go in.

11. AnonymousJuly 11,2024 at 3:44PM UTC

    Often when a company has a new role to fill, or a replacement they test the market and speak to candidates even before they are ready to. And then after testing the market they might decide that the want to outsource the search to a firm to fill. Let it go, in any job search you will hear the word no, even after interviewing. Expect your search to take 6 months or more these days as many companies have dumped their internal talent teams for cost reasons and now use agencies. Good luck in your search.

12. AnonymousJuly 15,2024 at 1:40PM UTC

    Unfortunately yes. I was in a similar position to you last year, got laid off, took a short break, had multiple round interviews with 5 companies in June that took up much of my time. Weeks go by and I don’t get any offers, all while being told I was a final candidate, they were so excited about me for this role, I would hear back very soon, etc. eventually finding out they either went with someone else, didn’t hire for the role at all, pushed it to an agency… the excuses go on. Sometimes these listings aren’t even real roles that are open (companies just put up fake ones to look like they’re hiring or to have a list of candidates when they are in the future) and you end up wasting your precious time applying to them. I’m only telling you my experience so that you don’t make the same mistakes of building your hopes up and getting very invested quickly just to be let down over and over. It was an absolutely miserable experience and took me nearly a year to find a new role (which is a contract, not even a full role with benefits). There’s barely any laws around hiring practices and Companies basically just do whatever they want with no regard for anyone but themselves. It’s incredibly disappointing, disheartening, disrespectful - I could tell you some horror stories I experienced in the last year working with these inhuman HR reps or recruiters who seem really nice at first but ultimately don’t give a damn about you or anything else. Hoping you can keep your head up, develop a thick skin and ultimately have better luck than I did!