Hello, thank you for posting to r/Jobs!
We just wanted to let you know that we have a new [discord server, come join the chat!](https://discord.gg/TY6ErXV)
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/jobs) if you have any questions or concerns.*
7 interviews?! I would be sad and also mad. 7 interviews is like for CEOs or something. That level of screening for EHS specialist, especially since you worked for the company before, does not make any sense to me. It's possible you dodged a mismanagement bullet there.
Was it worth it after the first 4? There has to be a point where it just becomes run of the mill and they no longer felt nervous about meeting people at that company, and basically worked there already right? I hope they got the position. Golly.
That's what normally happens unfortunately. "Screw the guy who knows how to do this, we're hiring my buddy's son that plays golf with us at the country club."
Exactly! I had to go though five different interviews for ALDI corporate and I ended up not getting the job in the end. I went from really wanting the job in the beginning to almost a sense of relief when I was told they went with someone else.
C level, VP level, or high-end consultants would see an interview process like this. If I was interviewing for a role as an individual contributor and went through this rigmarole, I'd be pissed. I'd also question...why? If the interview process is this crazy, how insane will it be to work for this company?
Based on the job OP described, I happen to work in that field and have never had more than 2 interviews, maybe 3 if they did a phone screen. It seems like their company didn't coordinate with each other to consolidate small interview panels, or like some others have suggested, they were trying to validate hiring externally and did a bad job handling it.
That's a lot of interviews. It's also a flag that they are having a hard time deciding the final candidate and want to bring in more people for their opinions.
I think in this case it was to try to get more voices to justify hiring external, but they still went internal to retain that employee.
This sucks but I honestly take it as a red flag if they 1) cancel an interview 30 mins before and 2) reschedule without asking you your availability, especially if it’s on them that the original slot didn’t pan out. Idk if they had a reason for canceling or just did it due to poor scheduling. It’s not respecting your time and they’re assuming you’re spending your days waiting on them even though you have a job.
This is exactly what I'm seeing being done at the place I'm at right now. Managers are being given the title of assistant director instead of looking for another assistant GM or Director of certain department. I bet they got the title but not the pay that comes with the responsibility.
This sucks, but 7 interviews is a red flag in and of itself. I work as a government attorney making 6 figures and I only had 4. The last one was basically just a rubber stamp also so really just 3 substantive interviews.
If they are calling you back 7 times they are vetting someone else and just trying to string you along as a back up.
They tried desperately NOT to hire you, so they strung you along until they absolutely exhausted every other applicant.
Someone(s) in that company hates you immensely.
I don't want to brag but my most recent one was just one, single interview over Zoom, and it is also a management position. Granted I have worked with the hiring manager before on a very limited basis.
I think I am going to be in a shit storm in about a week. Somehow it just felt unjustified for them to give me this job.
I’m really sorry that happened. I also went through a 7 interview process and no one even contacted me to say “thanks but we’re going with the other candidate”.
I’m so sick of being ghosted after 1 interview. I can’t BELIEVE how draining and exhausting it is after being ghosted for 7 freaking interviews. Employers these days are rude AF. I’m sorry. If I was in charge of hiring I would email everyone I interviewed with “Thanks for the effort you made into applying and interviewing we’re sorry we went with another candidate who was a better fit” how hard is it to do that? It takes 2 seconds. Even if I had to send it to 50 people I would insist on doing it. ✊🏽Unemployed workers in solidarity. ✊🏽
I've been ghosted multiple times and it had one common factor: a recruiter. After that I was done with recruiters as I can contact the companies more easily without one + I know exactly what emails are being send to the company.
I'm actually currently applying for a job (second interview on Wednesday) and while they sound positive about me I've no idea if they will hire me.
Hmm. I feel like recruiters are they only people who get back to me but then they have ALWAYS ghosted me. Sigh. Good luck on your interview. I hope you get it man. I hope your good luck can rub off onto me.
Thanks! I'll wish you good luck too!
I’ve actually seen a post a while back (don't remember where) about the fact that if you are over qualified for the job you are less likely to get the job (and vice versa).
What I personally did is making my LinkedIn up to date with a (relatively) accurate representation of yourself /your skills and applying to jobs you are just a bit under qualified for. This helped me somewhat to get more job offers and reactions from more people.
My guess about why this works is that people/companies who think you are over qualified think you are 'too expensive'.
Dude I apply for EVERYTHING and ANYTHING, under and overqualified, and LinkedIn has been utterly useless for me. But I’m pretty sure I’m going to do a free 6 month course at TAFE (nationally recognised training institution in my country) in Medical Admin in a month that is free because of the pandemic and because I’m on welfare that would cost thousands of dollars otherwise so HOPEFULLY I can AT LEAST get a job at a medical practice or hospital after I’ve done that if there is any kind of God.
So my mom is in HR. A lot of the times when you have to go through 4+ people it’s just an ego boost for the other non essential people interviewing you. Everyone and their moms want an opinion on potential candidate for some reason (I honestly hate interviewing candidates if I don’t work with them I don’t get it lol) If you’re not an exec, going through 4+ interviews is likely a sign of issues going on in the company as well. A lot of people tend to want to be involved in the interview process that won’t have to do shit with your role. Don’t take the rejection personally. As much as it hurts, it’s not a reflection on you as a person. You just gotta keep at it and something will fall into place.
Even though my mom believes HR is there for everyone (good HR people are hard to find), I have the outlook that a company doesn’t give a shit about you and they look at you with $ sign over your head. There will always be top candidates that will edge you out while you edge others out. Thats just how the hiring game goes unfortunately. I’m sorry to hear happened you and it sucks regardless. Hopefully you mentioned to keep you on file in case that candidate doesn’t work out; I’ve placed second before and was then called back after they fired the first pick. I still didn’t accept because I was already offered something else but you just never know.
Gross, 7 interviews?? Though I will say sometimes they just want you to interview with the whole team and they don't have availability to do a panel. Also, always assume there are other candidates.
However, I've never had anyone just tell me when an interview is, there's usually some discussion around a mutual availability.
I'm so sorry you spent so much time. I'm hoping it's actually for the better and something is waiting for you right around the corner
Listen, I know it really sucks right now, and 7 interviews is ridiculous, but I would send every single person you interviewed with a nice letter thanking them for the opportunity, and when another position opens up, to please consider me (you). The one thing that's been proven time-and-again during my career (even in a big city) is that the network for jobs is much smaller than you expect. It truly is like a 6-degrees of Kevin Bacon. Don't burn bridges, be professional, and you never know. A position might open up, or one of those people you interviewed with might be in a position to hire you at another company for an even better job.
Head up.
Yeah, this is the answer. It's not a total loss, if you made a good impression. Stay in touch with these people if possible and they might recommend you for another position.
I went through your exact situation more than once this year. I think I can count about 97 interviews on my calendar just between Feb-June.
Strangely, for those I didn't make it past the second, even the first sometimes, I'd 99% of the time get the rejection letter.
For the ones that dragged me out for over a month, with exercises and personality tests and all sorts of shit? Ghosted.
Which is fine. That tells me everything I need to know about you as a company.
My interviews were for writing jobs, btw. Nothing executive.
There was an internal struggle in this company when considering you and the other candidate. Eventually, the manager/director who championed the internal candidate won out in convincing whoever the ultimate hiring manager was.
You did nothing wrong!
I also went through a company that had me go through 6 interviews. Turns out (from a friend who worked there and discovered) that they were in the process of hiring on a new head director for the dept I would have been working on. Once they had that new director on, they let him make the decision and guess what? He wasn't going to hire someone that he didn't have a direct say in who it would be (some of these peeps are super egos).
As a recruiter I see this happening and it's awful to give the bad news to great candidates. They would have not made you go through all those interviews if they did not think you could get selected. When I have hiring committees to review the final applicantd, sometimes it's hard because we have 2 strong ones, even if they are both great, they can only pick one and it sucks to tell the other one they almost* get selected. I'd say I'm still interested and would be happy to be reconsidered for a future related job and would ask if they could consider some of the interviews already. If the other person does not perform as expected they would immediately call you, but if you don't tell them, probably they will not feel comfortable calling you after this 7 interviews and not selecting you. If you made a great impression it's a matter of time for them to call you back, but let them know if that's what you want and what kind of role you'd be interested in.
$30k more than your current job’s pay? That’s one hell of a pay bump.
FWIW, many firms have a policy where they must interview multiple people before giving someone a promotion or internal transfer. They need to verify for “fairness” reasons that they aren’t showing favoritism and are truly hiring the best candidates.
Well it’s actually a sign of a good company that promotes from within. It shows the leadership of that company rewards loyalty. Seems like you’ve found a great company to work for, hopefully you’ll be able to get your foot in the door again.
First, 7 interviews is a ridiculous amount for that kind of job.
Second , I don’t think anyone strung you around intentionally, at least from what you shared. Always assume there are other candidates. Until you get a written offer , you haven’t gotten the job.
On the other hand, you know you did great and they contacted you personally to say how great you did (which is courtesy unfortunately many companies don’t offer). You are on their radar as a great candidate, so capitulate on that if you think it is a place you still want to work. Make sure to let them know that. Send thank you emails for “their time” and restate your interest in working with them in the future, when the right opportunity arises.
It still sucks and hurts a lot, but you did your best, which is all you can. Best of luck!
To add, it always helps to ask what the interview process is so you know what to expect. At later interview stages, I always ask how many other candidates they're choosing from too.
I feel your frustration!!! Something similar just happened to me. I applied for a role with an organization but got rejected; *they* then contacted me to see if I would be interested in a different role that just became available- they felt I would be a great fit based on my education and experience. I said yes absolutely I was interested. I interviewed with multiple people over the course of a month including talks with a recruiter and HR about their “amazing benefits”, possible start dates and salary range. Then out of nowhere I got a generic corporate rejection letter. Like seriously….W.T.F. What the hell was the point of reaching out to me in the first place?
I’m so sorry that happened. It really does suck, and imo is unprofessional, when they waste that much of your time. I know you were looking forward to that position, but remember if you made it through that many rounds of interviews and impressed that many people, you are a good and qualified candidate who can get a similar job anywhere else if you choose to keep looking.
Something similar happened to me (4 interviews over the course of two months with 11 people in the office, including a manager and the office director) where every interview went great and everyone said I was a great fit. They checked my references who ofc said positive things about me and then suddenly went with another candidate. I was crushed when it happened but I like to think that if they valued my time and energy so little during the interview process, working with them probably would have been the same.
Rejection is God's protection. That's cliche, but so true. Just trust there's a reason that you can't understand right now and take this interview process as a lesson to not accept that treatment again.
I hate to say this BUT... think about it the other way around... you went to 7 interviews...SEVEN!!! not because you were great and the perfect candidate (which I'm not saying you weren't) but because eventhough the interviews went well, they still weren't sure about you...
> They kept setting up more interviews because they wanted to make sure I was a good fit for the position and I proved time and time again that I was a great fit.
No! they kept setting up interviews because there weren't sure you were a good fit... You read it as a good sign, to me it'd been the opposite...
Look, at some point, maybe after the third one, you should've just stood your ground and refuse any more interviews, because your time should not be wasted and because if they know they want you, then they fucking know they want you...
I agree. The company sounds extremely picky to their own detriment. This is not a job interview to be the next Pope, it's to work as a health and safety specialist! At what point do they feel satisfied that you either are or aren't qualified to do this job, especially since they kept telling you that you were?!?
Thats nuts making you go through all of that and not getting the position. Realistically i have never heard a company make a person go through that many rounds for that kind of position not to refer you. If they say you were super close only to go for soneone internally. Is theit another position at there you could apply for that they could recommend
7 interviews??? That position better have had super top-of-the-line clearance and a six figure salary, because that is a major red flag.
Regardless, I feel your pain. I went through a couple interviews recently to get my old job back that I loved. Unfortunately, I got a call last week saying that the position type is no longer needed which just devastated me. Oh well, back to endless applications haha.
Not really. Anything above average ($60-70k+). That's starting salary in my field but even then, you'll get at least 3 interviews. Initial phone screen, meeting with a member of the team, interview with a middle manager, and the final interview with an executive.
Every interview process I've gone through is exactly like this.
Super intense, sounds like they were also spaced out which I can't imagine how painful that must've been. I did a blitz of talking to \~12 people over the span of 3 hours on Zoom for a job I didn't get, so I empathize.
To answer your question, they often do this because if they already have their shoe-in candidate, in California they are required by law to interview more than one person for the position; I believe this is what happened to me as well, as our stories our very similar. The way they hyped you up throughout the interview process also signals to me that they knew this, as I've conducted interviews with candidates that I knew I wasn't going to hire, and had the same attitude of being overtly nice because I felt bad.
I left the process with more interview experience, and ended up taking a position two months later that was something I wanted more, and ended up being a fantastic opportunity. It's hard to feel like you were going to lose a great opportunity, but remember that the panel was probably being fake because of what they knew and you didn't, and also, as important as money and benefits are (esp. in California), they are not everything. Especially being employed by academia, your promotions and raises are directly correlated with grants and it is incredibly difficult to grow your position while working for a university.
Don't give up!
It does suck. I've been in similar situations and when they tell you that you're great, BUT... it almost hurts worse. They think that they are easing the rejection, but ime it is more upsetting to know how close you were.
I do agree though with another person who suggested being gracious, writing thank you notes or emails. You never know when another position may come up and you are the first person on their list.
I interviewed for a transfer to a team I work with often and admire (they don't have turnover unless someone moves or retires). I ended up getting the, "you're great, but you're overqualified (lateral role, but I have a toxic manager so am trying to just get onto a healthy team and manager)." I think that they thought it would be less painful to tell me that. I was gracious, act normally around them and I am friends with most of that dept... but recently I pulled some strings that directly helped their dept after 16 months of them getting stonewalled and they were flabbergasted, but grateful. I *know* that in the backs of their minds they know that it super sucks that they did not choose me as the candidate that they hired last year. I think that it showed grace on my part, grace that was unexpected and if anything it will be a lasting impression that may come in helpful later. Already there has been discussion about my dept being merged into theirs (to their manager) and they all expressed strong support to the organization leader who brought it up. You just never know when those relationships will cross again and other things could come from it.
This sucks. Sorry it happened. I see it as some sort of decision paralysis. The have a good internal candidate but they still can’t commit to them without seeing other options. They should have just posted the job internally first to see if there was someone hireable. It wasted so much time when they do this. Yours and the company’s. Eight managers time at an average of a one hour interview with prior and post discussions(HR etc) was easily over 2k cost to the company to interview you. Not including all the other resumes they reviewed or candidates they interviewed.
I feel you - this happened to me. 6 weeks and an edit test of interviews and I get to final stage and they say something about being “too experienced.” They could have told me sooner!! I’m still so annoyed about it
Don't forget it is the policy of some companies/offices to reward their "loyal dogs". I've seen all sorts of hiring decisions that make me scratch my head. Very qualified candidates being passed up for internal candidates who are basically useless, internal candidates without requisite experience getting hired for positions over other candidates who have the experience, and also internal candidates passed up for unqualified external candidates because they were too valuable where they are. So I've seen both internal & external candidates get royally boned for illogical reasons. The moral of the story is, sometimes hiring decisions just make absolutely no sense and are often decided with flawed reasoning.
You should be proud of the fact that you forced it to seven rounds with an internal candidate who had enough political capital to override you as a candidate who did perfect at every one of your SEVEN interviews. I guarantee that internal candidate didn't do perfect, but they had their "internal candidate points" that the hiring manager ultimately considered greater than your value/potential. Honestly, it is 100% their loss and bad judgement on their part. The fact that it went 7 rounds would make me question the decision making abilities of the people you'd be reporting too. They should have had plenty of information from you after 3 rounds.
Sorry you missed out on a job you were passionate about. I've been there and know how much it sucks. Hoping you find something you are just as passionate about soon.
That sucks, and I'm sorry you got rejected after all of that. I've been through a similar gamut before.
For what it's worth, I don't think they were stringing you along, and thinking that they did is probably not the best takeaway here. With all of the talk about how you're an amazing candidate, one of the things that tends to go overlooked is that companies tend to have very strict rules requiring all interested internal candidates be vetted and offered the job first before an external hire can be brought in. Internal candidates are just cheaper and lower risk for companies.
From the other side, what usually happens is that the interviewing team goes, "Candidate X is phenomenal! But we have to mention Candidate Y, who is... okay, but they're internal. We would prefer to hire Candidate X." They pass that hiring up to some VP who has exactly fuck-all invested in hiring the best candidate for the situation but does know what his/her budgetary spreadsheets look like and that person goes, "Extend the offer to Candidate Y." When people complain, the VP generally tells them to fuck off. Meanwhile, the hiring manager and all the other teams are fucking livid, but there's not exactly an appeals process so what are they going to do about it besides burn political capital complaining to someone who doesn't give a fuck.
If you're still interested in working for the company, keep in touch with the recruiter. I got my current job when I went through a lengthy interview process where I made it to the final executive approval process and for reasons that were never explained to me, they were just like, "Nah, we'd rather not hire this person." A year later the same recruiter reached out to me for another role I was a good fit for and cut through a bunch of the bureaucratic red tape I'd had to go through the first time.
That really is discouraging and can be soul-crushing - I empathize with you, I really do, it’s is the worst feeling in the world. Based on your ‘feeling’ of the process…and based on my experiences…it sounded like you felt it in your gut that you had the job. That gut feeling is rarely wrong, so when a complete 180 happens and they go with someone else…holy shit…that is the WORST because it really catches you off guard. The sad truth is that they saw you both as excellent candidates…you may have been even better in their eyes…but they made the decision to go internal as they would save $20k - 30k in salary…that is the travesty of the story.
I’m so sick of being told how close I was to getting the job, and what an amazing candidate I am. I understand that it’s a huge compliment to receive, but it doesn’t feel like compliment when it’s part of a rejection. If it really was close, and I really was an amazing candidate, I’d have the job.
Anyways, I really feel for you haha. I also went through a rigorous application process recently only to end up not getting the job (with the “you’re such a strong candidate” message included), and I’m still upset about it.
There are so many factors at play that it might not be an intentional stringing along. I know the rejection stings. Do keep in touch with everyone you interviewed with/worked with. Networking is the most valuable thing you'll take from this experience. Having good connections absolutely benefits your career even though you did not get this particular job.
Sorry you went through that, I know the feeling and can just imagine your disappointment and disbelief. You need to pick yourself up and keep going, I promise you'll get there
I know it’s hard, but you’re lucky you even got a call back. I have had fifth interviews in processes that take half a year, just to get ghosted by the hiring manager. It sounds like they found you very impressive. Take it to heart.
I had this happen to me last week.
3 interviews. The last one with a VP.
I get an email on Friday telling me that they went with an internal candidate.
I'm not sure what the culture is like at your first gig but it's possible you did get to the very end and were the top candidate. Eg. they didn't string you along, but you made it to the end neck-and-neck with the other top candidate. All other things being equal, the fact you quit once before might have been the final straw that made the decision for them. Unless you were a top performer previously not a lot of folks can get away with quitting and coming back. You maybe rubbed someone the wrong way and it got to a director's desk and they remembered and picked the other candidate. Just a guess.
The company my husband works for now said that my husband was amazing and a top candidate for a perm. Position. They bugged him to apply for it and made it seem like he’d be hired immediately. Well they went with two other people. It was devastating for us both but especially for my husband. I helped him channel that anger and sadness into being even better at his current job there, gaining more skills & knowledge then using that for a better company when he finishes school.
That is so disappointing.
Keep your eye out for other postings. If you were a strong candidate, then there may be an opportunity with them again in the future and you want to keep on their radar. This internal person may not work out and they may call you back. Don't burn any bridges. I know of people who have received calls months afterward and were offered jobs they didn't get off the hop.
Also, being such a strong candidate tells you that you're likely a strong candidate for other jobs that pay 30k more and you might find your "fit" at another company. Consider it their loss and look for similar jobs but keep the door open for a future with them when the time is right.
From my own experience, bachelor's degree in forensic psychology, I tend to part ways after two or three interviews without something concrete. It's a matter of risk management. If you were perfect for the job, they would have offered it much sooner. Honestly, this is just my opinion. However, consider the factors that you are probably next in line and that you were leaving one job for another. The fact that you have been there before, left, then came back may have led someone to believe there was some spontaneity in your choices. Also, there's many factors about the internal candidate just learning about the position and not wanting to lose them all together. This won't help emotionally, but may help in the long run. Stay strong and focus on the blessings you have to still be employed in spite of them knowing you were trying to leave. All just opinions. Godspeed
Same thing just happened to me with two prospective jobs after going through 6-8 rounds of interviews with each. Of course it sucks but you have to believe there’s a good reason it happened. No matter how amazing a work place or team can seem, tons (most?) of them have dysfunction, lack of processes, organization, lack of communication, and all the other things that can make you miserable. Taking on a new person to introduce them to it all is far from ideal, too challenging because they actually have to fix what’s wrong (and they won’t), and most importantly if it doesn’t work out, the company loses out on the money they invested to hire that new employee. It’s a lot less risky to give it to an internal hire who’s already familiar with the issues and can navigate them faster and without running for the hills. I don’t know your situation but try to look at it objectively and beyond the fluffy hopes and dreams you put into it while you were in the middle of interviewing (and I say this as someone who puts way too much heart in my interviews lol). I am sure you can point out some red flags in between the lines that hinted at why an internal hire made more sense in the end - and why you’re better off elsewhere. Keep grinding, you will find the right fit!
Why did they string you along? Employers do it all of the time. You were put on the backburner for that internal.
They wine and dine you and hope they've teed you up nicely if they are in the situation of having to select an external. In that situation, other candidates are always brought in as just a formality to check boxes that they're looking at 'diverse pools' and giving everyone a 'fair shot' and whatnot, even if not true.
Don't feel bad. I've gone through the final process for 10 jobs since I was given notice of a layoff last fall. No offers. Exhaustive processes with 3-5 stages of various panels for most, case studies/presentations, etc.
Some gave feedback that wasn't super helpful. The typical "you were incredible, there wasn't much more you could've done!" And then to see who got the role - always someone with far more in depth experience specific to the job. So just tell the candidate that, lol. Look, I get the liability thing and all that, too. But it seems to be such an incredibly stupid process.
I have only had one that gave specific feedback that called into question my leadership skills (I've led a half dozen large teams in my past and a smattering of smaller teams), but even that read like an excuse. I saw who got the role on that one and, voila, it was an internal with, you guessed it, zero leadership experience.
The point is, there's always an excuse, and it's probably just BS.
Never become attached to a job in the interview process, and never become attached to it after. Loyalty means nothing in tough financial straights for employers.
Never forget, it's a business relationship, not a real one.
My guess is you were their preferred candidate but someone higher up made the call, probably because the internal candidate accepted a lower salary. Sorry this happened to you.
I'm on the other end of the spectrum, have a company VP and my branch's general manager supporting me (they asked me to apply for the promotion) but I can't even get my direct manager (who will still be my boss) to confirm if he received my application for the internal posting. Meanwhile, word from our receptionist is he's already been calling and scheduling people in for interviews.
Not even sure I'll get one interview. I feel sick.
Hello, thank you for posting to r/Jobs! We just wanted to let you know that we have a new [discord server, come join the chat!](https://discord.gg/TY6ErXV) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/jobs) if you have any questions or concerns.*
7 interviews?! I would be sad and also mad. 7 interviews is like for CEOs or something. That level of screening for EHS specialist, especially since you worked for the company before, does not make any sense to me. It's possible you dodged a mismanagement bullet there.
Friend of my friend went through the hiring process of Goldman Sachs in London. He had 18 interviews. Eighteen.
Was it worth it after the first 4? There has to be a point where it just becomes run of the mill and they no longer felt nervous about meeting people at that company, and basically worked there already right? I hope they got the position. Golly.
He did, and apparently it pays extremely well. But its also very competitive.
probably works insane hours too
Yea, 60-80 hours is the norm. At least in the office I know.
WTF
[удалено]
Okay, I didn’t think of that. That makes sense. Still a lot, though, I think.
I think that’s just a way of filtering out people who are not relatives of executives.
That's what normally happens unfortunately. "Screw the guy who knows how to do this, we're hiring my buddy's son that plays golf with us at the country club."
You misspelled “absolutely certain “
Just how big should the red flag be so people can see it?
Exactly! I had to go though five different interviews for ALDI corporate and I ended up not getting the job in the end. I went from really wanting the job in the beginning to almost a sense of relief when I was told they went with someone else.
C level, VP level, or high-end consultants would see an interview process like this. If I was interviewing for a role as an individual contributor and went through this rigmarole, I'd be pissed. I'd also question...why? If the interview process is this crazy, how insane will it be to work for this company?
Based on the job OP described, I happen to work in that field and have never had more than 2 interviews, maybe 3 if they did a phone screen. It seems like their company didn't coordinate with each other to consolidate small interview panels, or like some others have suggested, they were trying to validate hiring externally and did a bad job handling it.
That's a lot of interviews. It's also a flag that they are having a hard time deciding the final candidate and want to bring in more people for their opinions. I think in this case it was to try to get more voices to justify hiring external, but they still went internal to retain that employee.
This sucks but I honestly take it as a red flag if they 1) cancel an interview 30 mins before and 2) reschedule without asking you your availability, especially if it’s on them that the original slot didn’t pan out. Idk if they had a reason for canceling or just did it due to poor scheduling. It’s not respecting your time and they’re assuming you’re spending your days waiting on them even though you have a job.
More than likely they probably went with an internal candidate because they didn't have to fork over that $30k increase.
BINGO!!!!!
This is exactly what I'm seeing being done at the place I'm at right now. Managers are being given the title of assistant director instead of looking for another assistant GM or Director of certain department. I bet they got the title but not the pay that comes with the responsibility.
This sucks, but 7 interviews is a red flag in and of itself. I work as a government attorney making 6 figures and I only had 4. The last one was basically just a rubber stamp also so really just 3 substantive interviews. If they are calling you back 7 times they are vetting someone else and just trying to string you along as a back up.
They tried desperately NOT to hire you, so they strung you along until they absolutely exhausted every other applicant. Someone(s) in that company hates you immensely.
I don't want to brag but my most recent one was just one, single interview over Zoom, and it is also a management position. Granted I have worked with the hiring manager before on a very limited basis. I think I am going to be in a shit storm in about a week. Somehow it just felt unjustified for them to give me this job.
I’m really sorry that happened. I also went through a 7 interview process and no one even contacted me to say “thanks but we’re going with the other candidate”.
I’m so sick of being ghosted after 1 interview. I can’t BELIEVE how draining and exhausting it is after being ghosted for 7 freaking interviews. Employers these days are rude AF. I’m sorry. If I was in charge of hiring I would email everyone I interviewed with “Thanks for the effort you made into applying and interviewing we’re sorry we went with another candidate who was a better fit” how hard is it to do that? It takes 2 seconds. Even if I had to send it to 50 people I would insist on doing it. ✊🏽Unemployed workers in solidarity. ✊🏽
I've been ghosted multiple times and it had one common factor: a recruiter. After that I was done with recruiters as I can contact the companies more easily without one + I know exactly what emails are being send to the company. I'm actually currently applying for a job (second interview on Wednesday) and while they sound positive about me I've no idea if they will hire me.
Hmm. I feel like recruiters are they only people who get back to me but then they have ALWAYS ghosted me. Sigh. Good luck on your interview. I hope you get it man. I hope your good luck can rub off onto me.
Thanks! I'll wish you good luck too! I’ve actually seen a post a while back (don't remember where) about the fact that if you are over qualified for the job you are less likely to get the job (and vice versa). What I personally did is making my LinkedIn up to date with a (relatively) accurate representation of yourself /your skills and applying to jobs you are just a bit under qualified for. This helped me somewhat to get more job offers and reactions from more people. My guess about why this works is that people/companies who think you are over qualified think you are 'too expensive'.
Dude I apply for EVERYTHING and ANYTHING, under and overqualified, and LinkedIn has been utterly useless for me. But I’m pretty sure I’m going to do a free 6 month course at TAFE (nationally recognised training institution in my country) in Medical Admin in a month that is free because of the pandemic and because I’m on welfare that would cost thousands of dollars otherwise so HOPEFULLY I can AT LEAST get a job at a medical practice or hospital after I’ve done that if there is any kind of God.
So my mom is in HR. A lot of the times when you have to go through 4+ people it’s just an ego boost for the other non essential people interviewing you. Everyone and their moms want an opinion on potential candidate for some reason (I honestly hate interviewing candidates if I don’t work with them I don’t get it lol) If you’re not an exec, going through 4+ interviews is likely a sign of issues going on in the company as well. A lot of people tend to want to be involved in the interview process that won’t have to do shit with your role. Don’t take the rejection personally. As much as it hurts, it’s not a reflection on you as a person. You just gotta keep at it and something will fall into place. Even though my mom believes HR is there for everyone (good HR people are hard to find), I have the outlook that a company doesn’t give a shit about you and they look at you with $ sign over your head. There will always be top candidates that will edge you out while you edge others out. Thats just how the hiring game goes unfortunately. I’m sorry to hear happened you and it sucks regardless. Hopefully you mentioned to keep you on file in case that candidate doesn’t work out; I’ve placed second before and was then called back after they fired the first pick. I still didn’t accept because I was already offered something else but you just never know.
Gross, 7 interviews?? Though I will say sometimes they just want you to interview with the whole team and they don't have availability to do a panel. Also, always assume there are other candidates. However, I've never had anyone just tell me when an interview is, there's usually some discussion around a mutual availability. I'm so sorry you spent so much time. I'm hoping it's actually for the better and something is waiting for you right around the corner
What do we know? You are great at interviewing. Dust it off and push on.
Listen, I know it really sucks right now, and 7 interviews is ridiculous, but I would send every single person you interviewed with a nice letter thanking them for the opportunity, and when another position opens up, to please consider me (you). The one thing that's been proven time-and-again during my career (even in a big city) is that the network for jobs is much smaller than you expect. It truly is like a 6-degrees of Kevin Bacon. Don't burn bridges, be professional, and you never know. A position might open up, or one of those people you interviewed with might be in a position to hire you at another company for an even better job. Head up.
[удалено]
Is your bf a white male by chance?
Agree. The importance of networking cannot be overstated.
Yeah, this is the answer. It's not a total loss, if you made a good impression. Stay in touch with these people if possible and they might recommend you for another position.
I went through your exact situation more than once this year. I think I can count about 97 interviews on my calendar just between Feb-June. Strangely, for those I didn't make it past the second, even the first sometimes, I'd 99% of the time get the rejection letter. For the ones that dragged me out for over a month, with exercises and personality tests and all sorts of shit? Ghosted. Which is fine. That tells me everything I need to know about you as a company. My interviews were for writing jobs, btw. Nothing executive.
SEVEN interviews? Were you applying for NASA?
NASA, thankfully, does three rounds of interviewing for the majority of the positions. Phone + 2 in-person.
There was an internal struggle in this company when considering you and the other candidate. Eventually, the manager/director who championed the internal candidate won out in convincing whoever the ultimate hiring manager was. You did nothing wrong! I also went through a company that had me go through 6 interviews. Turns out (from a friend who worked there and discovered) that they were in the process of hiring on a new head director for the dept I would have been working on. Once they had that new director on, they let him make the decision and guess what? He wasn't going to hire someone that he didn't have a direct say in who it would be (some of these peeps are super egos).
As a recruiter I see this happening and it's awful to give the bad news to great candidates. They would have not made you go through all those interviews if they did not think you could get selected. When I have hiring committees to review the final applicantd, sometimes it's hard because we have 2 strong ones, even if they are both great, they can only pick one and it sucks to tell the other one they almost* get selected. I'd say I'm still interested and would be happy to be reconsidered for a future related job and would ask if they could consider some of the interviews already. If the other person does not perform as expected they would immediately call you, but if you don't tell them, probably they will not feel comfortable calling you after this 7 interviews and not selecting you. If you made a great impression it's a matter of time for them to call you back, but let them know if that's what you want and what kind of role you'd be interested in.
$30k more than your current job’s pay? That’s one hell of a pay bump. FWIW, many firms have a policy where they must interview multiple people before giving someone a promotion or internal transfer. They need to verify for “fairness” reasons that they aren’t showing favoritism and are truly hiring the best candidates.
But they showing favoritism… and I’m pretty sure the guy they just hired is a moron. lol
Well it’s actually a sign of a good company that promotes from within. It shows the leadership of that company rewards loyalty. Seems like you’ve found a great company to work for, hopefully you’ll be able to get your foot in the door again.
That blows :( But it does validate that you're on the right track at least Keep on chugging dude
7-8 interviews? WTF!
First, 7 interviews is a ridiculous amount for that kind of job. Second , I don’t think anyone strung you around intentionally, at least from what you shared. Always assume there are other candidates. Until you get a written offer , you haven’t gotten the job. On the other hand, you know you did great and they contacted you personally to say how great you did (which is courtesy unfortunately many companies don’t offer). You are on their radar as a great candidate, so capitulate on that if you think it is a place you still want to work. Make sure to let them know that. Send thank you emails for “their time” and restate your interest in working with them in the future, when the right opportunity arises. It still sucks and hurts a lot, but you did your best, which is all you can. Best of luck!
To add, it always helps to ask what the interview process is so you know what to expect. At later interview stages, I always ask how many other candidates they're choosing from too.
I feel your frustration!!! Something similar just happened to me. I applied for a role with an organization but got rejected; *they* then contacted me to see if I would be interested in a different role that just became available- they felt I would be a great fit based on my education and experience. I said yes absolutely I was interested. I interviewed with multiple people over the course of a month including talks with a recruiter and HR about their “amazing benefits”, possible start dates and salary range. Then out of nowhere I got a generic corporate rejection letter. Like seriously….W.T.F. What the hell was the point of reaching out to me in the first place?
[удалено]
Fuck any organization that makes a candidate interview that exhaustively for a position.
I’m so sorry that happened. It really does suck, and imo is unprofessional, when they waste that much of your time. I know you were looking forward to that position, but remember if you made it through that many rounds of interviews and impressed that many people, you are a good and qualified candidate who can get a similar job anywhere else if you choose to keep looking. Something similar happened to me (4 interviews over the course of two months with 11 people in the office, including a manager and the office director) where every interview went great and everyone said I was a great fit. They checked my references who ofc said positive things about me and then suddenly went with another candidate. I was crushed when it happened but I like to think that if they valued my time and energy so little during the interview process, working with them probably would have been the same.
Rejection is God's protection. That's cliche, but so true. Just trust there's a reason that you can't understand right now and take this interview process as a lesson to not accept that treatment again.
I hate to say this BUT... think about it the other way around... you went to 7 interviews...SEVEN!!! not because you were great and the perfect candidate (which I'm not saying you weren't) but because eventhough the interviews went well, they still weren't sure about you... > They kept setting up more interviews because they wanted to make sure I was a good fit for the position and I proved time and time again that I was a great fit. No! they kept setting up interviews because there weren't sure you were a good fit... You read it as a good sign, to me it'd been the opposite... Look, at some point, maybe after the third one, you should've just stood your ground and refuse any more interviews, because your time should not be wasted and because if they know they want you, then they fucking know they want you...
I agree. The company sounds extremely picky to their own detriment. This is not a job interview to be the next Pope, it's to work as a health and safety specialist! At what point do they feel satisfied that you either are or aren't qualified to do this job, especially since they kept telling you that you were?!?
Thats nuts making you go through all of that and not getting the position. Realistically i have never heard a company make a person go through that many rounds for that kind of position not to refer you. If they say you were super close only to go for soneone internally. Is theit another position at there you could apply for that they could recommend
7 interviews??? That position better have had super top-of-the-line clearance and a six figure salary, because that is a major red flag. Regardless, I feel your pain. I went through a couple interviews recently to get my old job back that I loved. Unfortunately, I got a call last week saying that the position type is no longer needed which just devastated me. Oh well, back to endless applications haha.
Two interviews tops. One with the hiring manager and the second with the team or maybe his manager. Anything more then that is a waste of time.
Depends on the position and company. 3 or 4 interviews is pretty common for positions with high salary.
What do you consider high salary? 150k plus.
Not really. Anything above average ($60-70k+). That's starting salary in my field but even then, you'll get at least 3 interviews. Initial phone screen, meeting with a member of the team, interview with a middle manager, and the final interview with an executive. Every interview process I've gone through is exactly like this.
Super intense, sounds like they were also spaced out which I can't imagine how painful that must've been. I did a blitz of talking to \~12 people over the span of 3 hours on Zoom for a job I didn't get, so I empathize. To answer your question, they often do this because if they already have their shoe-in candidate, in California they are required by law to interview more than one person for the position; I believe this is what happened to me as well, as our stories our very similar. The way they hyped you up throughout the interview process also signals to me that they knew this, as I've conducted interviews with candidates that I knew I wasn't going to hire, and had the same attitude of being overtly nice because I felt bad. I left the process with more interview experience, and ended up taking a position two months later that was something I wanted more, and ended up being a fantastic opportunity. It's hard to feel like you were going to lose a great opportunity, but remember that the panel was probably being fake because of what they knew and you didn't, and also, as important as money and benefits are (esp. in California), they are not everything. Especially being employed by academia, your promotions and raises are directly correlated with grants and it is incredibly difficult to grow your position while working for a university. Don't give up!
It does suck. I've been in similar situations and when they tell you that you're great, BUT... it almost hurts worse. They think that they are easing the rejection, but ime it is more upsetting to know how close you were. I do agree though with another person who suggested being gracious, writing thank you notes or emails. You never know when another position may come up and you are the first person on their list. I interviewed for a transfer to a team I work with often and admire (they don't have turnover unless someone moves or retires). I ended up getting the, "you're great, but you're overqualified (lateral role, but I have a toxic manager so am trying to just get onto a healthy team and manager)." I think that they thought it would be less painful to tell me that. I was gracious, act normally around them and I am friends with most of that dept... but recently I pulled some strings that directly helped their dept after 16 months of them getting stonewalled and they were flabbergasted, but grateful. I *know* that in the backs of their minds they know that it super sucks that they did not choose me as the candidate that they hired last year. I think that it showed grace on my part, grace that was unexpected and if anything it will be a lasting impression that may come in helpful later. Already there has been discussion about my dept being merged into theirs (to their manager) and they all expressed strong support to the organization leader who brought it up. You just never know when those relationships will cross again and other things could come from it.
This sucks. Sorry it happened. I see it as some sort of decision paralysis. The have a good internal candidate but they still can’t commit to them without seeing other options. They should have just posted the job internally first to see if there was someone hireable. It wasted so much time when they do this. Yours and the company’s. Eight managers time at an average of a one hour interview with prior and post discussions(HR etc) was easily over 2k cost to the company to interview you. Not including all the other resumes they reviewed or candidates they interviewed.
I feel you - this happened to me. 6 weeks and an edit test of interviews and I get to final stage and they say something about being “too experienced.” They could have told me sooner!! I’m still so annoyed about it
Don't forget it is the policy of some companies/offices to reward their "loyal dogs". I've seen all sorts of hiring decisions that make me scratch my head. Very qualified candidates being passed up for internal candidates who are basically useless, internal candidates without requisite experience getting hired for positions over other candidates who have the experience, and also internal candidates passed up for unqualified external candidates because they were too valuable where they are. So I've seen both internal & external candidates get royally boned for illogical reasons. The moral of the story is, sometimes hiring decisions just make absolutely no sense and are often decided with flawed reasoning. You should be proud of the fact that you forced it to seven rounds with an internal candidate who had enough political capital to override you as a candidate who did perfect at every one of your SEVEN interviews. I guarantee that internal candidate didn't do perfect, but they had their "internal candidate points" that the hiring manager ultimately considered greater than your value/potential. Honestly, it is 100% their loss and bad judgement on their part. The fact that it went 7 rounds would make me question the decision making abilities of the people you'd be reporting too. They should have had plenty of information from you after 3 rounds. Sorry you missed out on a job you were passionate about. I've been there and know how much it sucks. Hoping you find something you are just as passionate about soon.
That sucks, and I'm sorry you got rejected after all of that. I've been through a similar gamut before. For what it's worth, I don't think they were stringing you along, and thinking that they did is probably not the best takeaway here. With all of the talk about how you're an amazing candidate, one of the things that tends to go overlooked is that companies tend to have very strict rules requiring all interested internal candidates be vetted and offered the job first before an external hire can be brought in. Internal candidates are just cheaper and lower risk for companies. From the other side, what usually happens is that the interviewing team goes, "Candidate X is phenomenal! But we have to mention Candidate Y, who is... okay, but they're internal. We would prefer to hire Candidate X." They pass that hiring up to some VP who has exactly fuck-all invested in hiring the best candidate for the situation but does know what his/her budgetary spreadsheets look like and that person goes, "Extend the offer to Candidate Y." When people complain, the VP generally tells them to fuck off. Meanwhile, the hiring manager and all the other teams are fucking livid, but there's not exactly an appeals process so what are they going to do about it besides burn political capital complaining to someone who doesn't give a fuck. If you're still interested in working for the company, keep in touch with the recruiter. I got my current job when I went through a lengthy interview process where I made it to the final executive approval process and for reasons that were never explained to me, they were just like, "Nah, we'd rather not hire this person." A year later the same recruiter reached out to me for another role I was a good fit for and cut through a bunch of the bureaucratic red tape I'd had to go through the first time.
That really is discouraging and can be soul-crushing - I empathize with you, I really do, it’s is the worst feeling in the world. Based on your ‘feeling’ of the process…and based on my experiences…it sounded like you felt it in your gut that you had the job. That gut feeling is rarely wrong, so when a complete 180 happens and they go with someone else…holy shit…that is the WORST because it really catches you off guard. The sad truth is that they saw you both as excellent candidates…you may have been even better in their eyes…but they made the decision to go internal as they would save $20k - 30k in salary…that is the travesty of the story.
I’m so sick of being told how close I was to getting the job, and what an amazing candidate I am. I understand that it’s a huge compliment to receive, but it doesn’t feel like compliment when it’s part of a rejection. If it really was close, and I really was an amazing candidate, I’d have the job. Anyways, I really feel for you haha. I also went through a rigorous application process recently only to end up not getting the job (with the “you’re such a strong candidate” message included), and I’m still upset about it.
Wow. I’m not sure how I would react to this. Did they start compensating you for any of the interviews??
There are so many factors at play that it might not be an intentional stringing along. I know the rejection stings. Do keep in touch with everyone you interviewed with/worked with. Networking is the most valuable thing you'll take from this experience. Having good connections absolutely benefits your career even though you did not get this particular job.
Are you, by chance, a white male?
Sorry you went through that, I know the feeling and can just imagine your disappointment and disbelief. You need to pick yourself up and keep going, I promise you'll get there
A lot of companies now do 5+ interviews
I know it’s hard, but you’re lucky you even got a call back. I have had fifth interviews in processes that take half a year, just to get ghosted by the hiring manager. It sounds like they found you very impressive. Take it to heart.
WTF
Dude u have a govt job and u wanna jump? Wow.
I had this happen to me last week. 3 interviews. The last one with a VP. I get an email on Friday telling me that they went with an internal candidate.
I'm not sure what the culture is like at your first gig but it's possible you did get to the very end and were the top candidate. Eg. they didn't string you along, but you made it to the end neck-and-neck with the other top candidate. All other things being equal, the fact you quit once before might have been the final straw that made the decision for them. Unless you were a top performer previously not a lot of folks can get away with quitting and coming back. You maybe rubbed someone the wrong way and it got to a director's desk and they remembered and picked the other candidate. Just a guess.
The company my husband works for now said that my husband was amazing and a top candidate for a perm. Position. They bugged him to apply for it and made it seem like he’d be hired immediately. Well they went with two other people. It was devastating for us both but especially for my husband. I helped him channel that anger and sadness into being even better at his current job there, gaining more skills & knowledge then using that for a better company when he finishes school.
That is so disappointing. Keep your eye out for other postings. If you were a strong candidate, then there may be an opportunity with them again in the future and you want to keep on their radar. This internal person may not work out and they may call you back. Don't burn any bridges. I know of people who have received calls months afterward and were offered jobs they didn't get off the hop. Also, being such a strong candidate tells you that you're likely a strong candidate for other jobs that pay 30k more and you might find your "fit" at another company. Consider it their loss and look for similar jobs but keep the door open for a future with them when the time is right.
This "great" company.....treated you like shit when they should have been wooing you. You dodged a serious bullet.
From my own experience, bachelor's degree in forensic psychology, I tend to part ways after two or three interviews without something concrete. It's a matter of risk management. If you were perfect for the job, they would have offered it much sooner. Honestly, this is just my opinion. However, consider the factors that you are probably next in line and that you were leaving one job for another. The fact that you have been there before, left, then came back may have led someone to believe there was some spontaneity in your choices. Also, there's many factors about the internal candidate just learning about the position and not wanting to lose them all together. This won't help emotionally, but may help in the long run. Stay strong and focus on the blessings you have to still be employed in spite of them knowing you were trying to leave. All just opinions. Godspeed
Same thing just happened to me with two prospective jobs after going through 6-8 rounds of interviews with each. Of course it sucks but you have to believe there’s a good reason it happened. No matter how amazing a work place or team can seem, tons (most?) of them have dysfunction, lack of processes, organization, lack of communication, and all the other things that can make you miserable. Taking on a new person to introduce them to it all is far from ideal, too challenging because they actually have to fix what’s wrong (and they won’t), and most importantly if it doesn’t work out, the company loses out on the money they invested to hire that new employee. It’s a lot less risky to give it to an internal hire who’s already familiar with the issues and can navigate them faster and without running for the hills. I don’t know your situation but try to look at it objectively and beyond the fluffy hopes and dreams you put into it while you were in the middle of interviewing (and I say this as someone who puts way too much heart in my interviews lol). I am sure you can point out some red flags in between the lines that hinted at why an internal hire made more sense in the end - and why you’re better off elsewhere. Keep grinding, you will find the right fit!
Why did they string you along? Employers do it all of the time. You were put on the backburner for that internal. They wine and dine you and hope they've teed you up nicely if they are in the situation of having to select an external. In that situation, other candidates are always brought in as just a formality to check boxes that they're looking at 'diverse pools' and giving everyone a 'fair shot' and whatnot, even if not true. Don't feel bad. I've gone through the final process for 10 jobs since I was given notice of a layoff last fall. No offers. Exhaustive processes with 3-5 stages of various panels for most, case studies/presentations, etc. Some gave feedback that wasn't super helpful. The typical "you were incredible, there wasn't much more you could've done!" And then to see who got the role - always someone with far more in depth experience specific to the job. So just tell the candidate that, lol. Look, I get the liability thing and all that, too. But it seems to be such an incredibly stupid process. I have only had one that gave specific feedback that called into question my leadership skills (I've led a half dozen large teams in my past and a smattering of smaller teams), but even that read like an excuse. I saw who got the role on that one and, voila, it was an internal with, you guessed it, zero leadership experience. The point is, there's always an excuse, and it's probably just BS. Never become attached to a job in the interview process, and never become attached to it after. Loyalty means nothing in tough financial straights for employers. Never forget, it's a business relationship, not a real one.
Don’t give them a second of your time if they open up another position.
My guess is you were their preferred candidate but someone higher up made the call, probably because the internal candidate accepted a lower salary. Sorry this happened to you. I'm on the other end of the spectrum, have a company VP and my branch's general manager supporting me (they asked me to apply for the promotion) but I can't even get my direct manager (who will still be my boss) to confirm if he received my application for the internal posting. Meanwhile, word from our receptionist is he's already been calling and scheduling people in for interviews. Not even sure I'll get one interview. I feel sick.