This is an anonymous post from an Elpha member.

Very confused through a wishy-washy interview process- advice?

Daine179·Jun 27, 2022

hey everyone!

I am hoping to get some insight/advice on an interesting interview process that I'm currently in. I started interviewing with a company I felt really excited about over a month ago and made it through the final round, which happened almost 3 weeks ago. I felt that all of my interviews went very well and that I really connected with each interviewer for the most part, which really started to get me excited about the possibility of joining their team. The interviewer from my final interview told me they were moving quick and that I would be hearing from the hiring manager within the next few days. After a week went by and I didn't hear anything, I followed up with the hiring manager for updates. The next day (Thursday) I heard back that he was meeting with his team that week, and would have updates by Tuesday at the latest. On Monday I noticed that someone from his team looked at my LinkedIn profile (so clearly it was being talked about). He never ended up getting back to me Tuesday, so Wednesday morning I followed up again. He then replied to me on Thursday, saying that he did have some updates and may have some time to connect at 2pm that day. I told him I was available then, and then never heard from him. I followed up again on Friday, saying I never heard from him and just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything and that I was eager to hear an update before the weekend. Now it's Monday afternoon, still no news, and I'm feeling extremely frustrated. This whole thing has been very confusing because A) they were very quick to move me through the process up until the final round, B) the hiring manager had been very responsive even to the point of checking in with me up until this point and C) why would he say he has updates and wants to connect if I was getting rejected, but also why would they treat a candidate this way if they did want in fact want to hire me? I honestly had made peace at first that I probably wasn't getting this job, but the wishy-washniness of their behavior and elusive communication is keeping me attached and very curious as to what's going on. All I want at this point is to have an update so I can move on! Any insight out there as to what to make of all this? Thanks in advance!

BrianaBrownell·Jun 27, 2022

Here's what I think happened: They sent an offer to someone and are waiting for them to make a decision.

Daine179·Jun 28, 2022

yeah makes sense :/ thanks!

Monet87·Jun 28, 2022

Sorry you are going through this! Super frustrating. It’s always hard to know what’s going on on the other side, but my guess is they really liked you and you’re probably second in line. They probably had a very close decision and offered the other candidate the position. Sometimes Hiring Managers will speed up rounds with candidates if other candidates have offers and they need to move quickly. My hunch is that something like this happened, and the other candidate is negotiating but hasn’t officially accepted yet. If that falls through you would be next in line. They are probably hesitant to tell you anything until that candidate formally accepts or declines. I say this as a hiring manager and I know it’s super frustrating. What I will say is that if you were very close to an offer, stay in touch and be professional. If you’re still really interested, make it clear that you are open to additional positions that come up down the line! Oftentimes hiring is based on direct fit (ie candidate A has A skill we really need right now) but that doesn’t mean you have different skills that could help round out the team for the next role that opens up.

Daine179·Jun 28, 2022

thank you so much for this! definitely makes sense.

Sherie25·Jun 28, 2022

How companies treat you during the process is indicative of how you will be treated when joining. A simple call to say hey we offered the job to another and are waiting, or you are in the mix but there are 10 others we are interviewing - would be kind. Kindness matters and it's kind of clear that you are not the one. I would send a note to the hiring manager and let them know that you enjoyed the time spent with the team and hoped by now to know that you are still in consideration or not. Ask them to respond by end of week with some clarity- word it softly, and then if you hear nothing move on.Good luck! the right employer will communicate with you good or bad on how much it matters that its you.

Daine179·Jun 28, 2022

I agree. Thank you!!

Tabetha140·Jun 28, 2022

It’s not you. It’s happened to me several times. And it’s crummy to be in this holding pattern. Yes they might have an offer to someone or they realize they can’t afford the position and have to retract the job req. I’ve seen this a lot lately. Even when I go back to LI months later, they didn’t hire someone for that role.

Daine179·Jun 28, 2022

Thank you for your response here! And yeah, those are the two scenarios I was thinking :/