Why do companies you are interviewing for routinely lie and lead you on?

Question

Maybe someone who knows human resources can explain something to me...

So I submit a resume. I get called for an interview. Answer all their questions perfectly. They say they are impressed with the qualifications, education, and experience. They say I fit their qualifications perfectly and will be getting back to me shortly.

A few days later I get an e-mail (not a phone call, but an e-mail) saying they are perusing candidates with better qualifications. What the hell is that about? They had my resume. They knew my background. I answered their questions with plenty of experience. Why the hell did they waste hours of my time, AND LIE TO ME, if I didnt fit what they are looking for?

Answer 1

One of two things are happening here.



1. You meet their expectations with experience, qualification, etc, but then they later find someone who not only meets but exceeds their expectations - and decide to go after him/her instead. You don't have the job until they offer you the job so when they say "they'll get back to you shortly" that means they'l be getting back to you with a yes or no - they haven't made up their mind and there is always a chance there's someone even more suitable to the role than you. With the economy the way it is, there are enough people looking for jobs that this is absolutely possible. They did not lie, nor did they waste your time beyond what is normal for the recruitment process. They find a very few candidates that meet their requirements, interview, and hire the best (if any are suitable).



2. You didn't do as well in the interview as you thought, and although your qualifications and experience are all exactly what you're looking for they do not feel you're a good fit for the role (personality, attitude, etc). That doesn't necessarily mean bad - I've turned away people who are not flexible enough for some roles while turning away those who are too flexible for others just for the nature of the job.



I don't know where you get the impression you've been lied to. They never promised you a job, and you could still very well have fit with the qualifications/experience/education they want and yet there still is someone even better than you for the job. Such is life and that's how job hunting and the recruitment process works. For everyone. If you truly are an excellent candidate, then it should be no problems landing a job after going through the interview and recruitment process a few times. It you're being interviewed and turned down more than half a dozen times then time to start brushing up on your interviewing skills as it's not just bad luck that someone even better than you is also being interviewed but something you need to work on in the interview.



When I have an opening, I try to snag 3-4 resumes of those who have the right education, experience, etc and interview all of them. Often, I'll end up making an offer to one of them but sometimes I won't make an offer to any (if I don't think any would actually be suitable for the role). Wasting someone's time would be bringing them in for an interview when there was zero chance of them getting the job. Sounds like you had a really good chance and it unfortunately didn't work out this time, but your time was NOT wasted.

Answer 2

Yeah... that's your typical HR. Those people are overpaid monkeys. The trick of getting hired into any company is getting around those people. Find someone on the inside and try to get in that way.



That e-mail you got is likely just their standard rejection letter they send out to everyone they reject to make you go away. You are lucky you got any letter at all. Most will just leave you hanging. Look at it this way, if that company is lying to your face in an interview, just imagine the lies that will be thrown at you if you actually worked there.



Some companies don't want to be professional. Which is likely the reason they have turnover in the first place. A question I ALWAYS ask in a job interview is, "what happened to the person that held this job previously." The body language alone by asking that question tells me a many, many things about that company.

Answer 3

How do you know for a fact that better qualified candidates did not come to their attention until after your interview was set up?? You say that you answered their questions "perfectly"....that is according to YOU. What did they REALLY think about your answers.....not what they told you they thought?

Answer 4

One time I was strung along for nearly a month. Three interviews. I drove nearly 3 hours each time. Then at the end they say they decided they were going to "hire internally" for the position. You mean you couldnt figure that out before you wasted a month of my time and my gas money?

Answer 5

Well, they may have thought you fit and then decided you didn't. Or else the next candidate blew them away. Or they thought someone else would mesh better. Or else they were lying because they didn't want to let you down while you were in the office.