3 ms·

Agreed. We hear this a lot. Maybe I should revise the post to be more clear on this point... everyone wants to give this feedback, but it's an HR minefield.

fecak 14y ago
Recruiter here. I think managers do have a careful balance between helping candidates (providing full disclosure as to why they rejected) and potential exposure (being sued or coming across the wrong way), so they tend to err on the side of caution. But having dealt with many managers, they too are in a time crunch, especially if they are being fed lots of unqualified or unvetted candidates (the numbers game you allude to) and also fear the risk. This is more prevalent in the contingency recruiting market. The manager should have the incentive to provide great feedback to the recruiter, as the recruiter will hopefully hit the target better on future candidates if they are aware why their candidates are being rejected. The recruiter has little incentive to share that feedback with candidates other than goodwill and keeping the relationship strong with the candidate. I always try to get feedback from managers for my own purposes and for helping my candidates improve, but it isn't always as easy as you'd think.
- darrellsilver 14y ago
  Thanks for the insight. I'd definitely love to learn more. Frankly, I'd like to hear a thorough challenge to my central thesis in this essay that "The recruiter has little incentive to share that feedback with candidates other than goodwill and keeping the relationship strong with the candidate." I continue to find that employers want a way to provide more feedback, though are currently prevented from doing so. Someone with more insight into being a successful recruiter surely has a deeper understanding than mine, on this and other issues like the "numbers game" element.
  - fecak 14y ago
    I'm happy to provide more insight, but not sure exactly what you are referring to in asking for a challenge to your thesis but then using my quote as your thesis? I may have missed something, clarify and I'm happy to respond. I find it interesting that you find employers want to provide more feedback. A mere 30 seconds before writing this reply to your comment, I received an email from a client saying "We looked at the resume and don't think he is a fit for our team". That's it. If this manager wanted to help the candidate, he could mention what skills are missing. If the manager felt there was a problem with the resume, he could have mentioned that. If the manager wanted to help me hit the target better next time, he could have mentioned what was missing. I think what you are referring to is feedback after interviews mainly, but this very bland, 'not a fit' feedback is exactly what is most commonly provided to recruiters. If given ample free time, managers will provide more detailed feedback, but that usually isn't the case (particularly in the start-up world). I do have clients that are more willing to write a few sentences, but I can tell you that the norm is 'not a fit'. I don't find managers are in any hurry to help candidates do better next time, which does little to improve the overall ecosystem. If a candidate missed questions on a specific area in programming or a concept, that would be helpful for the candidate to know. I wish more managers wanted to provide more feedback, but for now it is a minority.
    - darrellsilver 14y ago
      I think we see more engagement from hirers (both the hiring manager and potential colleagues) because we're coming at the process as educators. I've certainly seen some share of "not a fit", but that rate goes down once there's an interview, or even a phone screen.

fecak 14y ago

Recruiter here. I think managers do have a careful balance between helping candidates (providing full disclosure as to why they rejected) and potential exposure (being sued or coming across the wrong way), so they tend to err on the side of caution. But having dealt with many managers, they too are in a time crunch, especially if they are being fed lots of unqualified or unvetted candidates (the numbers game you allude to) and also fear the risk. This is more prevalent in the contingency recruiting market. The manager should have the incentive to provide great feedback to the recruiter, as the recruiter will hopefully hit the target better on future candidates if they are aware why their candidates are being rejected. The recruiter has little incentive to share that feedback with candidates other than goodwill and keeping the relationship strong with the candidate. I always try to get feedback from managers for my own purposes and for helping my candidates improve, but it isn't always as easy as you'd think.

darrellsilver 14y ago
Thanks for the insight. I'd definitely love to learn more. Frankly, I'd like to hear a thorough challenge to my central thesis in this essay that "The recruiter has little incentive to share that feedback with candidates other than goodwill and keeping the relationship strong with the candidate." I continue to find that employers want a way to provide more feedback, though are currently prevented from doing so. Someone with more insight into being a successful recruiter surely has a deeper understanding than mine, on this and other issues like the "numbers game" element.
- fecak 14y ago
  I'm happy to provide more insight, but not sure exactly what you are referring to in asking for a challenge to your thesis but then using my quote as your thesis? I may have missed something, clarify and I'm happy to respond. I find it interesting that you find employers want to provide more feedback. A mere 30 seconds before writing this reply to your comment, I received an email from a client saying "We looked at the resume and don't think he is a fit for our team". That's it. If this manager wanted to help the candidate, he could mention what skills are missing. If the manager felt there was a problem with the resume, he could have mentioned that. If the manager wanted to help me hit the target better next time, he could have mentioned what was missing. I think what you are referring to is feedback after interviews mainly, but this very bland, 'not a fit' feedback is exactly what is most commonly provided to recruiters. If given ample free time, managers will provide more detailed feedback, but that usually isn't the case (particularly in the start-up world). I do have clients that are more willing to write a few sentences, but I can tell you that the norm is 'not a fit'. I don't find managers are in any hurry to help candidates do better next time, which does little to improve the overall ecosystem. If a candidate missed questions on a specific area in programming or a concept, that would be helpful for the candidate to know. I wish more managers wanted to provide more feedback, but for now it is a minority.
  - darrellsilver 14y ago
    I think we see more engagement from hirers (both the hiring manager and potential colleagues) because we're coming at the process as educators. I've certainly seen some share of "not a fit", but that rate goes down once there's an interview, or even a phone screen.