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What You Should Do When You Don’t Get the Job

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Even in today’s candidate-driven market, it’s possible to be turned down for a job. Getting passed up for a job opportunity is part of life, and it can be a great learning experience along the way to help you hone your interviewing skills in the future. Almost every job seeker will be denied for a job at some point in their career, and it can really be destructive to your job search if taken the wrong way. If you get that dreadful rejection message in your inbox, here is what you should do when you don’t get the job.

Ask for feedback

The first thing you should do, whether it’s over the phone or through an email response, is to ask for feedback. Sometimes, hiring managers or HR will voluntarily provide feedback on why you didn’t get the job. But more often than not, you will just receive a vague email that goes on the lines of:

“Thank you for your interest in <insert company name> for the <insert job title> position. I am writing you to inform you that we have ultimately selected another candidate that best matches the job requirements for the position. We appreciate your time, and we wish you luck on your future career endeavors.”

Pretty unhelpful, right? This is your opportunity to respond thanking them for the opportunity and asking for feedback. This feedback will be crucial because it can help you change how you prepare for interviews in the future. It can also help you identify what hard skills you should add to your repertoire this year.

Ask to connect with the hiring manager on LinkedIn

While you are requesting interview feedback from the hiring manager, ask if you can connect with them on LinkedIn. Express your interest with the company and let them know that you will be open to other opportunities in the future. Connecting with them on LinkedIn allows you to stay engaged with them and the company, so you stay at the forefront of the hiring manager’s mind when they need to add a new team member.

Keep your chin up – it may not be your fault

When you ask the hiring manager for feedback, you may realize that it may not have been your fault. There are dozens of reasons why you may have been passed up for the job, reasons completely out of your control. They may have promoted an internal employee, or your salary requirements were not within their pay range. Ultimately, it may not be your fault and can sometimes be entirely out of your control. However, you won’t know until you ask!

Work with a recruiter

So, now you know a few things you should do when you don’t get the job. If you really want to take your job search to the next level, partner with an experienced recruiter. Our team of dedicated recruiters at Johnson Service Group will champion you throughout the entire hiring process. We will work with you to find a job that suits your needs and skillsets. Reach out to us today, and let’s find you a new career in 2020.

Partner with a Recruiter

Is it Professional to Offer Advice to Your Interviewer?

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interview feedback

Throughout your career, it’s not uncommon to experience dozens of different interviewing processes. After all, the average Baby Boomer holds roughly 12 different jobs throughout their career. And for Millennials, the average worker holds six different positions by the age of 26. As a result, most candidates have experienced a handful of turndowns throughout their job search.

When faced with a turndown, it’s wise to ask for advice from the interviewer or hiring manager on how you can improve in the future. However, what if the shoe is on the other foot? Is it professional to offer advice to an employer you interviewed with when you do not accept the job offer?

Is it professional or appropriate?

As a candidate, you have every right to provide interview feedback to a prospective employer. However, it can be challenging to provide honest feedback after a job interview. It is difficult to offer constructive criticism without worrying about offending someone or possibly even burning a bridge. But how does an employer know there is an issue or speedbump in their interview process if nobody tells them? They may be utterly unaware that part of their process is turning away great candidates, like yourself.

Whether the interviewing process is slow, or they have poor communication, an employer may not know there is an issue if they don’t receive feedback. In today’s tight labor market, employers must streamline their interviewing process and ensure everything goes smoothly. If you offer professional, honest feedback, many employers will be thankful for your input in today’s environment.

How to do it correctly

So, now that you know it is appropriate to provide feedback after an interview, how do you do it professionally? Here are a few tips for delivering your feedback the right way:

Provide feedback in a timely manner

If you want to share your thoughts on how the employer could improve their hiring process, do so promptly. Whether you get the job or not, you must wait for a decision to be made. However, don’t wait for weeks or even a month to give them feedback. Do so shortly after they made a decision. Hiring managers are busy, and to be honest, if you wait too long, they may not remember you or how your interview went. So, if you decide to share your experience, do so shortly after the conclusion of the entire process.

Be precise and clear

With your feedback, be direct and concise. You do not need to sugar coat your thoughts, yet you want to keep your input professional and positive. For example, if you declined a job offer because the employer took too long to decide and you accepted another opportunity, let them know. As long as your feedback is honest, beneficial to the employer, and delivered professionally, you should feel confident in sharing your experience. Never single anyone out or berate the company. Remember, the goal here is to provide advice, not to leave a bad taste in the mouth of a hiring manager.

Overall, delivering feedback to an interviewer is just as tricky as it is for a hiring manager to give to a prospective candidate that failed to receive an offer. But if you genuinely believe that you can share your experience to help an employer improve their process in the future, go for it. If you want to provide feedback but are still uncomfortable with doing so directly to your interviewers, there are sites like Glassdoor that allow you to anonymously share your interview feedback. Just be sure to follow these guidelines, to ensure you deliver your message in an appropriate, professional way!