Two readers have written me recently to comment on their
experiences with a job hunt.
In one instance, the reader has been searching for a
full-time position for several months. In the other, the reader has been
looking for additional part-time work to supplement what she's already doing.
In each instance, the reader asked about the responsibility of the hirer to
follow through with communication.
The part-time position hunter has responded to posts on
social media boards seeking professionals with her credentials to come work for
the firm. She has responded by email to the posts expressing an interest and
asking for more details, waited weeks, and heard nothing positive or negative.
On at least two occasions, the full-time job seeker has
found himself fortunate enough to be asked in for an interview as one of the
finalists for a position, was told he would be informed of the search
committee's decision or progress within the two weeks following his interview,
and more than a month later has heard nothing from either search committee.
"These aren't the first instances," writes the
full-time job hunter. "In the past I've made it as a finalist for a
position and never heard anything one way or another." He's only found out
that a hire was made by Googling the institution and seeing the new hire for
the position he'd applied for on the organization's website.
Each reader asks if it's ethical for a company not to
keep job applicants informed of their status one way or another, particularly
if the company representative said it would follow up with information.
It may not be uncommon, but it is bad form for an
organization not to let an applicant know when he or she didn't get the job.
It's particularly bad form to bring an applicant in for an in-person interview
as a finalist for the position, and then never follow up one way or another.
Sure, there are times organizations take their time
letting people know out of concern that their top choice for a position might
not accept an offer. They want to keep their options open in case they have to
go further down their ranked list of candidates. That's fair and fine.
At some point, however, simple courtesy dictates letting
someone know when he or she didn't get the job. Simply shifting to silence and
hoping the applicant gets the hint shows no grace and exhibits no sense of
professionalism.
But when an organization's representative specifically
tells an applicant that he or she will be contacted about the outcome of the
search, then the right thing is to keep that promise. If there was never any
intention to let the runners up for a position know, then making a false promise
crosses ethical lines.
Each of the readers wants to know if it seems too
"pushy" to contact the potential hirer to ask the status of a
position, even though each suspects the answer is that he or she was not the
chosen one. No, it's not too pushy. It's simply unfortunate that organization
representatives too easily forget how a simple gesture, no matter if it's
relying on disappointing news, would go a long way toward exhibiting thoughtful
professionalism.
Jeffrey L. Seglin, author of The Simple Art of Business Etiquette: How to Rise to the Top by Playing Nice, is a senior lecturer in public policy and director of the communications program at Harvard's Kennedy School. He is also the administrator of www.jeffreyseglin.com, a blog focused on ethical issues.
Do you have ethical questions that you need answered? Send them to rightthing@comcast.net.
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