Why Haven’t I Heard Back After The Job Interview?

Continuing my “why” series, it’s time to tackle the most asked question on this blog.

Consider this scenario: you’ve gotten the interview. You think it went well. They told you they’ll get back to you with their decision.

So you wait. And wait…. And wait…

Why are employers so bad about geting back to you after the job interview? Is this a bad sign? I’ve already written several posts about this situation, including a discussion on how long you should wait before following up, and some rules on how to follow up after a job interview.

But let’s just deal with the “why” of it for now. Why is it taking so long to hear back?

These are the most likely scenarios:

1. You’re not going to get the job. I know, this is exactly what you didn’t want to hear, but it might be the most likely reason.
2. Some employers are just slow. Have you ever applied for a government or public sector job? The mountains of bureaucracy involved can be immense. Don’t underestimate the glacial speed at which some organizations move when it comes time to make decisions.
3. Maybe the position is not available. I can’t tell you the amount of times I’ve had clients tell me they’ve interviewed for a position only to find out it had already been filled. Sometimes an employer is big enough that one hand doesn’t know what the other one is doing.
4. Maybe they’re just filling a quota. There are tons of instances where an employer is simply advertising and interviewing for an opening just to say that did, when, in fact, they are going to end up hiring the person they had in mind all along.
5. Maybe the person who interviewed you isn’t the same person who makes the final hiring decision. You might have been interviewed by one person, or by a team, but either way, in the end the decision is made by committee. If it’s one person interviewing and that same person makes the decision, then the decision can come fast. But if it’s decision by committee, then that could take a while to hash out.
6. Maybe you’re their second choice, but they expect their first choice to turn them down. They’re keeping you on the line just in case.
7. Maybe they no longer want to hire anyone, much less you. Sometimes the actual act of seeing who’s out there to fill a given position makes an employer change their mind and decide it’s not worth it after all.

Related posts:

1. Ask Brian- How Long Should I Wait Before Following Up After An Interview?
2. The Virtual Job Interview – Job Interviews Via Skype
3. Why You Didn’t Get That Job- Part 2

Book Review: Job Searching with Social Media For Dummies

Thanks to Joshua Waldman, I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy of Job Searching with Social Media For Dummies. I don’t usually do book reviews on this blog, but this is an important topic. Social media has completely transformed the world of recruitment and job searching in the last 5-6 years. Any modern job seeker needs to at least be aware of the social aspects of job searching… and mastering these tools can be key to landing the right job quicker.

Job Searching with Social Media For Dummies is aimed at the average job seeker. It assumes that the reader has at best a medium understanding of the internet. It assumes you at least know what blogs are and probably have a LinkedIn profile. So, if your mother wonders “what a blog is” then this might be a bit advanced for her.

But if you’re familiar with social sites, Google, Twitter and all that, then this book offers some comprehensive strategies that are key for a social media job seeker. It will help you understand how to:

• Manage your on-line reputation, which can be key, key, key. Do you just assume, “Well, I’m a nobody, so I’m not on the internet.” Big mistake! You need to know what an employer will find if they search for you.
• Effectively utilize your existing online networks.
• Use LinkedIn as the driving force to manage your professional online professional brand.
• Make Google work for you, not against you.
• Use Twitter to build an online reputation.
• Manage your time online.

All in all, the book is comprehensive and pretty excellent. In it’s more in-depth sections, it goes into social tools even beyond LinkedIn and recommends advanced strategies like keyword marketing and CRM contact databases. I think the book could have touched more on the more advanced tools that are out there (especially for creative professionals and those in the media) such as Wix, Weebly and portfolio repositories like figdig.com. But all in all, this is a “For Dummies” career guide that has been sorely needed for some time now.

You can order it from Amazon here.

 

Related posts:

1. Can Facebook Harm Your Job Search?
2. Kickstart – Social Networking For Jobs?
3. Social Networking Sites As Job Search?

Why Didn’t I Get The Job? Here’s The Number 1 Reason:

Well, it’s time to finish my “why” series (why #1 here) (why #2 here).

That leaves us with the big question: Why didn’t I get the job?

I mean, you thought the job interview went well. It went SO well! The employer seemed enthusiastic. You even heard through the grapevine that they’d probably hire you. And you were qualified! Oh, you were so qualified for this. This job was right up your alley!

So why didn’t you get the job?

In my 15 years working with clients on their job search, I’ve found there are plenty of likely reasons why you might not have gotten hired:

• There was someone more qualified. You might even have been the best person they had interviewed so far, at the time of your interview. But then someone came along and blew you out of the water.
• The employer changed what they were looking for over the course of the interviewing process. You might have been perfect for what they thought they wanted, but later on, they decided to go in a different direction.
• You were mistaken. You thought the interview went well. You thought you were impressive. But perhaps you had this all wrong. You have to be honest with yourself in evaluating these things.
• The job wasn’t really yours to win. They were just interviewing to say they had. Really, they had someone else in mind all along.

But you know, over the years, the number one reason… by far… that I’ve seen for why otherwise perfectly qualified people don’t get the job is simple:

They Just Didn’t Like You.

I think that when it comes to job search, interviews and hiring, a lot of people underestimate how much personal relationships come into play. Obviously, the hiring manager is trying to determine if you can do the job and do it well. But they’re also deciding on something a little more subtle, but no less profound: can this person work well with my existing team?

Even simpler than that, they have to decide: do I want to work with this person day in and day out.

So sometimes, it really is a matter of, they just weren’t that into you. And I bet if you could somehow get people to be honest about it… I bet way more than 50% of the time when someone seemingly perfect for the job doesn’t get hired, it comes down to a personality call.

So if they just didn’t like you, just didn’t think you’d fit, there’s really nothing you can do. And you can’t take it personally, really. I mean, who’s to say they’re wrong? Who’s to say you wouldn’t have been a bad fit? Who’s to say you wouldn’t have gotten along with them?

If you suspect you didn’t get the job because you just didn’t click personally, think of it like dating: there are other fish in the sea. And there are other jobs you are qualified for that will end up being a better personal fit.

Related posts:

1. Why You Didn’t Get That Job
2. Why Didn’t I Get The (Job) Interview?
3. Dead-End Job Search? Why Not Go Where The Jobs Are?

SAT/ACT teachers (Doral/Sweetwater)

We are the recognized learning center expert offering supplemental education to our nation’s schools with over 30 years of experience and over 300 centers from coast to coast
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• No homework to correct
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• Flexible hours, it’s an ideal supplemental job that’s even better than tutoring on your own.
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Requirements
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Bachelor’s degree is a must.
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Be able to score high in the section that will teach (600 for SAT and/or 28 for the ACT)
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SAT/ACT teachers (Doral/Sweetwater)

We are the recognized learning center expert offering supplemental education to our nation’s schools with over 30 years of experience and over 300 centers from coast to coast
<br>
• No homework to correct
<br>
• No lesson plans to develop, everything is ready for you.
<br>
• Flexible hours, it’s an ideal supplemental job that’s even better than tutoring on your own.
<br>

<br>
Requirements
<br>
Bachelor’s degree is a must.
<br>
Be able to score high in the section that will teach (600 for SAT and/or 28 for the ACT)
<br>

SAT/ACT teachers (Doral/Sweetwater)

We are the recognized learning center expert offering supplemental education to our nation’s schools with over 30 years of experience and over 300 centers from coast to coast
<br>
• No homework to correct
<br>
• No lesson plans to develop, everything is ready for you.
<br>
• Flexible hours, it’s an ideal supplemental job that’s even better than tutoring on your own.
<br>

<br>
Requirements
<br>
Bachelor’s degree is a must.
<br>
Be able to score high in the section that will teach (600 for SAT and/or 28 for the ACT)
<br>

Reading & Math teachers (Doral/Sweetwater)

We are the recognized learning center expert offering supplemental education to our nation’s schools with over 30 years of experience and over 300 centers from coast to coast.
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• Work with a variety of students at all grade levels on an individual or one-to-one basis.
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• No homework to correct.
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• No lesson plans to develop, everything is ready for you.
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Requirements
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VALID TEACHER CERTIFICATION BY FLORIDA’S DEPT OF EDUCATION IS A MUST.
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Tutors Needed ASAP (Dade County)

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Childcare Program Coordinator – part time (Delray Beach)

Dynamic teacher to oversee children’s learning activities, with children ages 5-12, in a family literacy program located in a Delray Beach elementary school. Mon-Thurs, 4:30-8:15 pm year-round. Bachelor’s degree and experience required.

Work-From-Home Ghostwriting/Editing

First, and most importantly, we would like to mention how high the pay is. A hard worker can realistically earn anywhere from $2000-$4000 USD a month. This is a legitimate, hard job, but the pay is good, it’s contract work (so there’s no taxes withheld), and it’s not commission based (or anything odd). The workload is extremely heavy, and the quality of work you are expected to produce is incredibly high. That said, this job will pay orders of magnitude better than anything comparable for legitimate, at-home work. Before applying, ask yourself: why should I deserve this position instead of the 10,000 other candidates? Then, tell us why you should get it.
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Exceptional candidates will have a significant qualitative background and will relish the idea of making money at home doing interesting work and being exposed to PhD-level analytic research. Comfort with APA 6, is a must. We will *not* train APA editors. If you don’t know APA 6 front and back, don’t bother applying. This is a work-from-home position and our ideal applicant must have exceptional researching, writing, and APA editing skills, as well as be capable of handling an intense workload under pressure. This applicant must be a self-starter who has access to scholarly articles and is comfortable with conducting in-depth research, writing, and APA editing in short periods of time and with limited guidance. An excellent grasp of grammar, eloquent writing style, great communication skills, positive attitude, around-the-clock and IMMEDIATE availability (we mean this literally, as we expect daily status reports and are on G Talk constantly!), immaculate attention to detail, high tolerance for long hours and tedious work, and a diligent work ethic are all necessary to apply for this job.
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This qualitative analyst position would entail primarily working on projects in our dissertation consulting, academic journal article assistance, and format/style editing divisions:
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* Doing online library research and writing literature reviews for academic journal articles, dissertations, or internal research for projects that our principal researchers are working on;
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* Fixing up grammatical issues, content consistency, flow, logical reasoning, etc for dissertations or academic journal articles of our clients
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* Planning qualitative methodologies for research studies (doctoral dissertations, mostly
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The costs and benefits of the positions are summarized below –>
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Great Parts of the Job:
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• You can make an astounding amount of money working from home, if you’re a self-starter and can manage and prioritize deadlines. If this worked out over the first couple of months (during which you’d be going through a lot of training in qualitative and research methodology), we would be almost immediately willing to send you as much work as you could handle. You could surely be making over $1,000 per week of work if you were capable of keeping a moderate/large workload WHILE MAINTAINING STELLAR QUALITY IN YOUR PROJECTS. We pay our outside contractors on a per-project basis, from $85-$250 per project, depending on length and difficulty.
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• You can work in your pajamas if you wish…and you can make your own hours in a sense so long as EVERYTHING is done on time and to an extremely high standard.
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Challenging Parts of the job:
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• The workload can be tedious, and the revision process (getting the work just right, dealing with feedback can be lengthy if the original quality of your work isn’t adequate. As noted directly above: ***The standard/quality of the work must be very high, (diligence is key), and there are often several revisions we’d require after reviewing the work, etc. The assignments (and academic work/publishing in general) can be VERY tedious and require a VERY detail-oriented person****
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If you have the qualifications we need, i.e. you are comfortable and precise with writing high-quality work in short periods of time, are outstanding at APA editing, take direction well, and have a GREAT attitude, you can email us at the link provided. Please include your CV (in the body of the email rather than as an attachment for our ease of review, if possible), writing experience, a writing sample, and *most important* one paragraph about why YOU should be given the opportunity, what makes YOU so worth hiring. In the subject line, please specify, “Qualitative Analyst Position.”
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We’ll respond back to good candidates within 48-72 hours with next steps and samples of the type of work we do and what would be required of you. We want to bring on new qualitative analysts to begin working immediately. Our trial process to bring on new contractors involves 1 paid trial project (only paid upon successful completion), to gear the quality of your work and your fit with our team.
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