How Ghosting Candidates Hurts Your Employer Brand
The article explains that ghosting in recruitment—where either candidates or employers abruptly cease communication without explanation—damages an employer's brand by creating frustration and uncertainty, often caused by outdated applicant tracking systems and poor communication practices, and suggests updating to modern software like ApplicantStack to automate responses and maintain clear, timely communication with candidates.
Ghosting isn’t just a frustrating occurrence in the dating world – it’s become an all-too common practice in recruitment, and it can hurt your employer brand. Consider some of the following ways ghosting can cost you in the hiring process, and how to avoid it.
What Is Ghosting?
Ghosting refers to an abrupt end to previously established communication, without explanation or follow-up. It can happen in any type of relationship, but in the hiring process, it can happen on both sides of the table. It may look like:
- A candidate who doesn’t show up for an interview
- A company who makes promises of a job then doesn’t respond with a formal offer
- No response, even automated, to a resume or application submission
- Either party not responding to emails
- A recruiter dropping a prospective candidate without explanation
- Promises to follow up that never happen
Contributing Factors to Ghosting
In theory, every employer looking to hire has a robust and infallible recruiting system. In practice, that’s not always true. Several factors may contribute to your ghosting of applicants, even if that result is entirely inadvertent.
Outdated software
Companies that rely on applicant tracking software may be one step ahead of the curve, assuming the software still fills the company’s current needs. If you’re trying to force something old and outdated into the current market, you may find that your system causes more problems than it solves.
Updating to a more current solution, such as ApplicantStack, offers built-in automation solutions to modern recruiting problems. Hiring managers can respond to applicants via email or text message within the software, so there’s always a record of communications. Applicants can choose how they want to receive notifications. This effort cuts down on the dreaded response blackout, where the candidate wonders if anyone is receiving their communication, and the company thinks someone else has already responded.
Uncertainty
Sometimes companies put out a call for new positions based on future projections. “The company may be restructuring or switching up its project priorities. There may be a new manager in the group, or economic uncertainty may motivate a pause in hiring,” writes CTO Mark A. Herschberg. For those doing the hiring, this uncertainty may lead to some communication falling through the cracks. Those who remain at the company may feel disappointed about the changes, and avoid sending rejection emails they weren’t expecting to send.
Uncertainty may also look like a change in timing. People assigned to a priority project with hiring needs may be rerouted to something else, causing a delay. Ideally, someone would reach out to the candidates and say “I’ll get back to you,” but often good intentions don’t mean much if they’re not followed up by action.
Technology
Technology, according to Psychology Today, “may contribute to the tendency to ghost: Research suggests that the high volume of potential prospects on dating apps may make each individual person appear more disposable.” Casting a wide net for applicants via the most common job posting sites may contribute to the same phenomenon in recruiting. The sheer volume of applicants reduces people to a faceless set of resume facts, and may prompt a similar reaction: a response to the application just isn’t worth the manpower.
Consequences of Ghosting in the Hiring Process
Ghosting can have heavy consequences, including:
Damage to your brand
Just as your company can cast a wide net for applicants through the internet, your company’s reputation can be damaged on those same job sites. Candidates who feel slighted often have no qualms posting about their experiences, and ghosting is among the most insulting. A Reddit thread discussed being ghosted in later stages of the hiring process. One poster said, “Clearly these companies do not respect the candidates applying. Really the only reason here. Everything else is just an excuse to save face.” It doesn’t take very many negative posts to cement your company’s hiring practices as fact. The work to undo that reputation takes a lot more effort. How many talented candidates might you miss out on in the meantime?
Bad faith
You can’t control someone’s emotional response to being ghosted, even if it was unintentional on your end.
“People respond to being ghosted in many ways, from feeling indifferent to deeply betrayed,” according to Psychology Today. “Others believe that ghosting is emotionally troubling given that it offers no sense of closure.” Even if someone doesn’t publicly post about their experiences, their relationship with your company may be irreparably damaged. You may close the door on future hiring and networking possibilities.
How to Avoid Ghosting
- Make your expectations clear: From the beginning, write clear and concise job descriptions. Avoid using clichés like “looking for a rockstar” or “team players wanted” to narrow your pool of applicants to real possibilities. Be specific in your requirements, the job responsibilities, and the salary.
- Explain your process: You may even want to explain how the hiring process works in the job posting. For example, “Once we receive your application, you’ll receive an automated response. Within 3-5 business days, you can expect to receive an email explaining the next steps if we are interested in moving forward or if you aren’t the right fit for us.” Even if you don’t choose to post this, include some information in the automated response so candidates have some idea what to expect.
- Evaluate your hiring processes: Both candidates and hiring personnel alike may be frustrated by company policies that introduce delays into the process. If all communication must be initiated by HR, be sure you have adequate HR staff to handle both daily tasks and timely hiring communications. Or, consider how to involve others in the hiring process to facilitate effective communication with candidates.
Even unintentional ghosting can have far-reaching effects on your company’s brand. Consistent poor communication can make you appear disrespectful and unprofessional. With some thoughtful evaluation of your hiring practices, you can avoid missed connections and damaged relationships and find the talent you’re seeking.
With ApplicantStack, automating the parts of the recruiting process that tend to fall through the cracks eliminates the risk of ghosting. Consistent communication that requires no manual effort is your best line of defense against this common problem impacting jobseekers.
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