To find it odd that I didn’t even get an interview?

[Weirdddd]

I applied for a job which I already actually do. It’s a very niche job, a small part of a fairly small sector. The job I applied for was what I do now at a large company, but for a smaller company that does the same thing. I applied for it despite it being over £10k less a year than I earn now as it would fit better with my family life (offered some remote working and flexible hours that I don’t get now).
I didn’t even get an interview! My CVs good, I have no doubts about that. I did a comprehensive cover letter specifying exactly how I meet all aspects of the JD/Person Spec and highlighted key achievements in this sector.
AIBU to think it’s a bit weird that I didn’t even get an interview? Just a generic ‘you have been unsuccessful and we will not be giving individual feedback’

AIBU to think this is a bit weird?

Its a highly regulated industry and they are hot on HR (Think government type role)

Any ideas why?

I’ve had this before OP - I was baffled I didn’t even get an interview as I met every single requirement on the person spec and it was for the exact same job that I do and have done for 5 years….I wondered if they have an internal candidate lined up and they don’t want too much competition. I’m not 100% how it works on the HR/recruitment side but it is confusing!

I reckon they already had someone lined up for the job role.

They got better applicants. Which isn’t to say you weren’t good (or even excellent), but if they got applications from X number of people who were a better fit than you, that would be that.

I’ve been recruiting to my team recently and I was genuinely surprised at the (very high) quality of applicants for some fairly mid level jobs. It’s tough out there and there are some excellent candidates in a range of fields looking for work.

Ah! Or this!

You might fit every criteria but there could be 40 other applicants that fit it better. Unfortunately fitting the criteria doesn't guarantee you an interview and doesn't mean that you are one of the top candidates.

Internal candidate most likely. Some companies advertise jobs that don't exist to create an impression of growth/success but doesn't sound like that's likely?

Sorry to hear. The job market is crazy competitive at the moment too..

As a recruitment manager I would be concerned as to why you wanted a job with such a large payout. I would be worried that you would leave us when you eventually missed the money. Did you highlight in your cover letter the reasons for wanting this job etc.

Thanks, probably an internal candidate.
I can’t really explain without outing myself or sounding like I have a massive ego but there’s probably a maximum of 4 people in 30 miles who would have actual experience in this very specific area, and I’m noticeably good at it (in terms of tangible achievements on paper) so I really don’t think there’s any chance I didn’t make it into a shortlist because everyone else was more experienced…
I wish they wouldn’t waste time or hopes advertising jobs that they already have a candidate for!

Maybe they assumed they couldn’t afford you!

If it’s such a specialist role and closed industry that only four people in your region could do it, do you have professional / networking contacts at the company you could get some feedback from? If not, I think it’s still worth asking for feedback from the hiring manager - in my industry it would be perfectly normal for somebody doing such a specialist role to make contact to ask, if they hadn’t already had an informal chat to gauge the lay of the land before applying, which most would.

I applied for a job where my cv matched the candidate and job spec exactly. Had the same response and was shocked.

This ^
I'd say the company didn't take your application seriously

I would say an internal candidate is the likely reason too.

I recently applied for a job where I met all the specified criteria.
Had an interview, was offered the job verbally at interview.
Received an email 2 days later to let me know they're going ahead with someone else.
Job hunting is the pits!

They probably didn’t want to have to match your current salary.

Only 4 people in the area are actually qualified and the pay is significantly less than you're current job?

They don't want someone with that actual experience because they're worried you'll ask for more money

At least they didn’t waste more time, and perhaps annual leave, interviewing you pointlessly. I had that once - it was immediately apparent when the previous candidate emerged from the interview that I was token competition.

I wish they wouldn’t waste time or hopes advertising jobs that they already have a candidate for!

This is the norm, especially for very specialist and senior roles, and particularly in regulated industries. The regulator will generally require a rigorous, formal recruitment process, which includes genuinely testing the internal candidate against external candidates to ensure they really are the best candidate. In my industry, it’s a condition of the regulator approving an SMF appointment that this is evidenced. We recently recruited a new UK CFO. Our Deputy UK CFO was primed for the role by the company to give him the best footing, everyone assumed he was a shoe-in - but he didn’t get it, because there was a more suitable and experienced external. Sometimes it actually goes that way, too.

There are so many good quality candidates seeking work just now. So many people meet or exceed criteria, essential and desirable. If you're not shortlisted it's simply that other candidates are of higher quality.

Either they already had someone lined up for the role, or they wanted to hire someone with less experience, who was less likely to push back on exploitation. You're probably better off.

I prefer candidates who can grow into the role rather than can do everything immediately.

If you are already highly proficient in the exact role, why would you want it? Where are the growth and learning opportunities?

I want a few key things that are non-negotiable but if someone had every other attribute I’d see them getting bored in 6 months.

If it's a government type role, they usually want quite specific wording to be met in an application. It's a rubbish way to sift but it's how they say the recruitment process is 'fair'. The civil service must miss out on external talent due to this as it's a skill in itself applying for these types of role.

Same here and heard through the grapevine that there's an internal candidate. I actually feel a bit relieved as she is a total nightmare! So this path is not for me...

Most people would find a sideways move for a large paycut to be odd.

I hired a role on my team lately (senior professional services role requiring a degree plus professional body accreditation, 10+ years experience, and specific industry experience). 57 applications, and 53 of those were really strong. I interviewed five which meant that 48 people who would have been able (on paper!) to do the job weren’t interviewed.

It’s unfortunate, but it can very often come down to numbers.