Recently, an Abel recruiter got a call from a distressed hiring manager. He had an excellent role to fill at his accounting firm and couldn’t understand why he was experiencing more “ghosts” than actual applicants. After reviewing several great resumes, he reached out to schedule interviews, very excited at the prospects. Despite calls and texts to stay in touch with the candidates in the days leading up to the interviews, the two candidates did not show up. No call, no text- just ghosted. This behavior was detrimental in more than one way. A lot of time was spent waiting for ghosts to arrive at interviews that never happened. The hiring manager was also starting to experience FOMO (fear of missing out) on the applicants he could have been interviewing instead!
His company was new to using staffing agencies and didn’t know what to expect, but he sure was hoping ghosting wasn’t a part of it. The Abel recruiter assured him that ghosting was bound to happen occasionally, however there is a lot that Abel Personnel can do to limit how much they have to experience it. Our candidates need to go through a variety of steps. Their follow through indicates whether there is serious interest in pursuing a position or not.
“We coach our candidates on best practices so they can be the most successful.” The recruiter explained. “The candidate won’t be considered for future assignments with both Abel or any client companies if we experience ghosting at the time of their interview; Our extensive network allows us to draw from candidates that have demonstrated their dependability and accountability.”
Opportunities can come from any open door; this is why we suggest to never ‘burn a bridge’, even if you are not offered the job or decide you wish to withdraw your application. Abel Personnel suggests you avoid the following “spooky” practices when interacting with an employer or with a staffing firm:
| 1 | Not responding to a request for an interview prompted by your resume. If a better job opportunity emerged while your resume was being considered, just let the caller know. Don’t waste their time trying repeatedly to be in touch with you. That better opportunity may be too good to be true, and you’ll have lost this interview, too. |
| 2 | Blowing off a first (or second) interview. Such behavior will render you “dead” to the interested company, whose long memory will assure you are never asked in again for an interview. |
| 3 | Not responding to a job offer. Many people were involved in preparing and approving that offer, so you will have created a team of detractors that may “haunt” you for your career, as you and they move between companies in your industry. |
| 4 | Failing to show up on your first day of work. Maybe you determined that the required commute time was too long, you were better off staying in your current job, or you took another job. Your no-show will be long remembered, and possibly shared among staffing recruiters in your industry in their efforts to lessen their embarrassment by retelling your “horror story.” |
| 5 | Abandoning your job. After your employer gets over their worry that you had become too ill to be in contact or “met with foul play,” the stigma of your actions could result in their later refusal to deal with you in your new capacity or to work at all with your new company. Be courteous; give notice if you are offered another opportunity. |
Ultimately, the hiring manager was excited to see a future of less ghosting with the help of Abel Personnel’s advice and extensive network. Before they ended the call, the Abel recruiter joked, “And Abel Personnel can guide you through the tricks and treats even beyond the spooky season!”
As you ponder your Halloween costume for this year, you might not find yourself gravitating toward the classic ghost attire. It’s hardly a shocker that in 2022, ghost costumes didn’t make it to the coveted top ten spot on the Halloween costume list (that title was firmly claimed by witches).
