to hate employers who say this?

[MagicStarz]

I apply for a job, take a day of annual leave to attend an interview, buy new clothes for said interview, prepare for questions, pay for petrol to get there etc etc.

I then get an email a few days later saying they regret to tell me I have been unsuccessful, and they employed someone who has more experience.

They knew how much experience I had before the interview, as everything is listed on my application. I can't help but feel it's a waste of an interviewees time to invite them in for interviews, if you are going to go for someone with more experience.

I wouldn't mind so much if they said it was because someone else interviewed better, or they felt they'd be a better company fit. But saying it's because I don't have as much experience is a cop out, and shows they're just trying to fulfill a quota to say they interviewed x people for the role.

But that's why they interview, to see if the experience is actually as listed on the cv, get practical examples, ask scenario questions, see if personality / atiitudes match those of the company, and get a feel for the potential employee. Then make an informed decision not just from a two page document.

Sorry you didn’t get the job.

In my experience sometimes candidates are brought in even if they haven’t got the same level of experience as others shortlisted because the employer sees something in their application that might make them an interesting prospect, but it might not play out in the interview and they go with someone else.

I was once rejected after an interview for which I'd travelled a couple of hundred miles, because I didn't have experience in a very particular thing which not only wasn't on my CV but also wasn't mentioned on the job advert and they never asked me about in the interview!

I think sometimes it's just a nicer way to say you didn't fit their mental image of the ideal person for the job but they can't quite put their finger on why.

Also hate, it was so close between you and another person. What the point of saying that?!

It can go the other way. I was offered a job and was told that I was the least experienced candidate they’d seen but that was the only one they thought would be a good fit (translation: boss was a psycho and they reckoned the candidates with actual experience be out of there in 2 minutes flat). Sorry you didn’t get the job but I doubt anyone would waste their time interviewing a candidate that they thought was completely unsuitable; it’s more likely that you didn’t stand out from the other candidates and that at least one of them had more experience so pipped you to the post. Or maybe you didn’t get the job for another reason and they’re just saying that as it’s easier.

The worst one I had was when I applied for a school I train at and was told "we tried to hire both of you but there wasnt enough space, so we went for the other candidate"... so I was good enough you would have hired me but not good enough you did

I would try not to take it so hard but I agree it's shit. Usually it comes down to someone in a managerial role who cannot make up their mind or is seeking a very specific type of personality. I was on the other side of this, interviewing people for a role with another colleague who was a bit more senior to me. We saw a lot of people and I would say I would have taken 80% of the people who applied for a role, but my colleague was a very picky person who would find problems when there weren't any. We ended up interviewing I think like 30 people for 1 role and we had received 100s of CVs in a couple of weeks. This was in London, for a no skill job with shit pay that required a degree. I still don't know what her hang up was, but I think a lot of it was based on the person having the right look. It was really shallow and she was the type to sit on Pinterest all day. Finally the owner of the business started to get annoyed and asked her if she chose someone, and we just called someone randomly that we interviewed a couple weeks back because the person we interviewed had been on a reality show.

The only solution I know to this is to develop skills and go for roles that are hard to fill (i.e. IT). If not, you have to deal with really extreme competition/shallow behaviour by people who hire.

In my experience sometimes candidates are brought in even if they haven’t got the same level of experience as others shortlisted because the employer sees something in their application that might make them an interesting prospect, but it might not play out in the interview and they go with someone else.

I remember interviewing for a role using an agency. They sent through CVs and I chose five or so for interview, of those one really stood out as having great and relevant experience. One particular one I rejected for interview as she had no relevant experience. However the agency persuaded me to interview her anyway as they highly recommended her. I insisted it was pointless but agreed.

And in the interviews the one with the great experience was awful, and the one with no relevant experience was wonderful. I offered her the job and she ended up being utterly brilliant at it and got lots of promotions.

So experience isn't everything. That doesn't mean that you weren't good in the interview OP, it might just mean that this time the one with more experience was equally good.

I think it’s the legally safe cop out to blame it on experience. Employers are scared of legal action against them if they give feedback incorrectly (similar to when they give references which nowadays consist of dates you were employed and not much more). So they give a completely non excuse as it’s safer.

I have taken on employees with less or no experience but have taken them on because of their attitude or enthusiasm and as such was willing to invest in time training. In fact I would go so far as to say some of the best employees I have had have been the ones I had to train.

Likewise I agree it’s dissapointing to be told what they have said in your position, but equally you could have been just the person they were looking for.

Something I would always recommend doing is be gracious in your response, thank them for taking the time to see you and perhaps even ask to be kept in mind for future roles. I say this because I have also gone back some time later and hired people who interviewed well and came across well, but just so happened that they weren’t the best candidate at the time.

I’m sorry you didn’t get the job and want to wish you lots of luck for the future.

I've given people with less experience the job because they seemed a better fit. And may have been more likely to stay.

I've also not given people with more experience a job because they seem annoying or said something to indicate they'd be awful to work with.

If they gave it to the person with more experience, it doesn't mean they didn't consider you op. If you are getting interviews then you have a chance of getting a job. Don't be disheartened. Keep going you'll find something.

What would people like said though out of interest for those saying employers shouldn’t say they came really close?

I have interviewed a number of times now, and did so this year for a Personal Assistant (like a carer but not quite for disabled people). The role doesn’t need experience or qualifications and it can be really hard choosing.

There have been a couple of times I’ve been really torn between two and told them that - because I want them to know they did really well, it wasn’t their interview/answers.

I’ve been told that before when being told no for interviews and preferred that to a generic you have been unsuccessful if it was genuine.

So how should employers say it if it’s the truth?

Absolutely thank them for taking the time to meet with you, and DO ask for further feedback. Twice a few months later I’ve had companies come back and offered me equivalent roles

I think it’s the legally safe cop out to blame it on experience.

This. Especially since, call me a cynic, but I believe it's extremely common that the real reason the company chose the candidate they did was down to race/sex/age/etc.

Also hate, it was so close between you and another person. What the point of saying that?!
I got told that once. The would be employer phone second wagon the phone firc45 mins saying how wonderful I was and was just piped to the post. I just 'yeah, whatever but he told me another job but a better prospect with a higher salary would be comig up in 3 months and to apply.
I did and got the job. Sometimes they mean what they say!

It is annoying and it seems like they are just using you to make up the numbers. Sometimes they have already decided who is getting the job!

Sorry you are going through this, and I wish you well. Hope you get a job that suits you soon.

What Tiny said in the first reply and what LillyGoLightly said.

I also think it is good to hear if it was really close. It is good to thank them and say to keep you in mind if another role comes up - sometimes it does, or sometimes the first candidate doesn't work out for some reason. It can of course be a generic answer, but it can be true. There have been quite a few threads on here in the last month or so where it has been debated as to how an employer can only take a CV / application form at face value and needs to then specifically question the candidates about understanding / skills / achievements /actual input into roles vs "being employed by". It might be that other candidates had more experience on paper, but until interview, they didn't know what the quality of that employement time was. On this occasion it turned out to be good, but in another round of interviews, your (less time but better quality) experience might have beaten the other candidate's (longer time but less quality) experience. They don't know until interview.

but I believe it's extremely common that the real reason the company chose the candidate they did was down to race/sex/age/etc

It really isn't. Employers don't want to make a bad hire so they'll recruit the best candidate (in their opinion) who can do the job, not be a problem and stay longterm. Recruitment is an expensive, time consuming process - I don't think any employers do it unless they have to.

I used to give comprehensive feedback to unsuccessful candidates. I don't now - I couldn't take the abuse and the candidate insisting they were right for the job. One, they don't know "the job" as well as I do, and two, they don't know the calibre of other candidates. I now just give the anodyne " we found a candidate who was a better fit for the role."

Good luck in your job hunting OP

My rejections pretty much all said something along the lines of the standards of applicant were very high which made me laugh a bit as it’s almost as though they’re rejecting you and also implying you’re not that good.

Keep at it op, I landed my dream job in the end, it’s just got to be the right fit for you both!

It is annoying and it seems like they are just using you to make up the numbers. Sometimes they have already decided who is getting the job!

This is true very often they will take people they know or internal candidates but go through the motions to cover themselves.

One of the more interesting reasons I was given for not being successful was I was too outgoing... Hmmm, perhaps best that I didn't get the role! And no, I'm not a gregarious person in the slightest. Just a confident professional capable of giving accurate and concise advice.

Surely you understand that anyone can write anything on their CV, they interview at length (or ask key related questions) what they have put on their CV is accuarate.

Experience isnt everything. You both probably performed equally well, but they had to use experience as a decider.

When I got my role there were 2 identical roles. I had experience, the other woman that got the other job had none, but a brilliant interview. She beat people with experience. I am now here manager after getting promoted and during the handover our manager, who interviewed her said she did amazingly well and has lots of potential and beat lots of people with experience.

Alot of the time its worth seeing those with less experience.

OTOH had the person with more experience not applied for the job, you might have got it instead !

Ask if they have a policy to reimburse travel expenses.