A relatively new and surprising phenomenon in the labor market today: is employers ghosting by applicants. It has been a relatively new phenomenon popularized when applied in dating but is now increasingly used in professional settings to baffle and frustrate recruiters and hiring managers. The term “ghosting” is the emergence of a candidate from an interview process without prior warning or explanation. So, why does it happen more and more during interviews? I will discuss the reasons behind this trend and how it affects the recruitment landscape and provide strategies for recruiters and candidates to navigate this challenging scenario.
What is Candidate Ghosting?
It is not anecdotal; many organizations do face candidate ghosting. A recent survey showed that 76% of employers faced candidate ghosting at one point or another in the hiring process. A particular steep slope exists in industries that major in volume recruitment, such as retail, hospitality, and customer service, in which candidates tend to vanish into thin air after conducting initial interviews or even after acceptance into the organization. So, what’s driving this behavior? There are several key factors at play here:- Competitive Job Market: Now that the job market is tipped in favor of the candidate, the latter has more choices than ever before. This puts more leverage behind them, automatically giving them a more accessible opportunity to leave a job if it does not meet their expectations.
- Lack of Engagement: Some applicants ghost employers when they feel disengaged or undervalued. Candidates may lose interest if the recruitment process is marked by a lack of communication, transparency, or speed.
- Poor Candidate Experience: Candidates’ experience during the recruitment process greatly determines whether they continue or ghost. After all, 60% of job seekers report abandoning the application process due to an unfavorable experience.
Ghosting Impact in Recruitment and Talent Acquisition
Ghosting in job interviews has extreme implications for the recruiter and the organization. For an organization, the immediate implication is on the recruitment timeline. When candidates go ghost, hiring stalls, and critical roles are left unfilled. This can be especially devastating in high-turnover industries or those experiencing exponential growth. Those are not all the effects:- Higher Recruitment Expenses: Job interview ghosting increases recruitment costs because the resources allocated to finding and engaging new candidates must be multiplied. According to SHRM, the cost per hire is, on average, $4,129. These costs can shoot up when the candidates ghost.
- Pressure on Talent Acquisition Teams: Ghosting becomes even more problematic with the high volume recruiting challenges. Talent acquisition teams must juggle candidates in various stages, tire themselves out quickly, and become less efficient.
- Negative Impact on Employer Brand: When candidate ghosting occurs repeatedly, it creates a negative reputation for an organization. A company with a hiring process seen as ineffective or frustrating to hire from will have difficulty attracting top talent later on.
Why Do Candidates Ghost Interviews?
Given the possible reasons for ghosting in recruitment, here are several common reasons why some candidates ghost interviews:- Lack of Communication: Candidates also drop out if they need to be kept in the loop. A survey reported that 81% of the candidates expected to get regular information about the hiring process. As such expectations go unmet, candidate ghosting ensues.
- Better Opportunities: Candidates often receive multiple job offers concurrently. They will ghost an interview if they find a better opportunity elsewhere instead of withdrawing officially.
- Unfavorable Interview Process: An interview process that takes too much time, is ununderstandable, or needs more human touch may dissuade applicants. For example, 60% of those who apply for jobs drop the process because they hate the experience of online application forms.
- Apprehension of Rejection: Some candidates ghost simply because they fear saying “no.” This is especially true of younger job applicants who have never experienced professional communication.
Ways Companies Can Minimize the Risk of Getting Ghosted
Reducing candidate ghosting is an effective way to start where the ball is in the employers’ court. Below are some practical strategies:- Maintain Communication: The best way to maintain a constant flow of interaction with candidates would be through communication, including giving timely feedback, clear expectations, and keeping the candidate updated about the processes.
- Streamline the Recruitment Process: An overly long or cumbersome interview process might be enough to turn off a candidate. Make it easier by fewer steps or less time passed between rounds of interviews and final decisions.
- Improve Candidate Experience: Consider having a good candidate experience, one that entails appreciation, flexibility, and respect for time for candidates. There is a very high chance that with such great experience, the chances of candidate ghosting could be lower.
- Leverage Technology: Automated tools, such as AI-driven chatbots, can engage candidates immediately and constantly update them.
Mitigation from the Applicant of the Job
While much of the commentary about ghosting in recruitment has revolved around its impact on employers, it’s equally meaningful to look at why candidates feel they need to disappear. Ghosting in recruitment from a candidate’s perspective For a candidate, this could become the pragmatic act in response to:- A Broken Hiring Process: When the hiring process is too prolonged, opaque, or generally degrading as an experience for the candidate, they may decide it is not worthwhile to use their time to decline an invitation to discuss further formally.
- A Better Deal: If a candidate receives a much more appealing offer, they may wish to notify other potential employers that they are no longer needed, however, in fear of how the organization might react to their honesty.
- Scared of Rejection: Candidates ghost because they would assume that the company did not want them, making them uncomfortable about requesting feedback or closure.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Why do candidates ghost interviews?
Candidates may be ghosting interviews due to a lack of proper communication, lousy experience, better job opportunities, or discomfort with professional confrontation.2. How can companies prevent candidate ghosting?
Companies can reduce candidate ghosting by improving communication, streamlining the hiring process, improving candidate experience, and using technology for better engagement.3. Is ghosting only a candidate issue?
No, ghosting in recruitment impacts not just candidates but also employers. Although it is often seen as an issue of ghosting candidates, employers can cause ghosting by creating undesirable and demotivating recruitment experiences.
Key Takeaways
Ghosting in job interviews is a multifaceted issue built on several bases: dynamics in the market, requirements by the applicants, and company practices. Here are three takeaways:- Improved Channels of Communication: The likelihood of candidates ghosting is minimal if they are made aware of the progress in the recruitment process and are updated on every step of the hiring process.
- Good Candidate Experience: When the recruitment process is smooth, respectful, and efficient, candidate ghosting will also be minimal. On the other hand, your employer’s brand will increase.
- Use Technology for Efficiency: Use AI and various bots, such as chatbots, to maintain engagement with candidates in the hiring process and send updates to candidates within the shortest time possible.
recruitninjas
Cynthia David is a Principal Product Marketing Manager for Adobe Document Cloud, focusing on Acrobat, Acrobat Sign, and Acrobat Services. She has background in messaging, marketing campaigns, communications, social media, events, content marketing, and partnerships. She is passionate about understanding customer needs and connecting with customers.
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