"I Did Great on the Interview: Why Are They Passing?"
04/26/23 Edition Stephen Says Column

Dear Stephen,

I recently interviewed for a sales position at a manufacturer. The interview lasted over an hour, and I thought it went great. It’s for an A&D sales rep job, like the one I have been doing at this company’s competitor for 4 years now. . . I was recommended directly to the company from a client (a designer at #Gensler) for the opening they have.

I interviewed with the regional manager over lunch, and she was engaging. I could see myself working for her. She asked me great questions which I answered, and I had questions of my own: I shared some of my success stories and even dealer principals I thought I might give as references. I felt like the chemistry was good and at the end I politely closed her and told her I was interested in the job.

She told me any next steps would involve a corporate HR recruiter who would need to interview me, after which there was an assessment and some additional requirements, but finally it would be “one step at a time.”

Then, a little over a week later, I got a very nice email from her, well written and personal, saying she was passing! She wished me well in my career and thanked me for my time…  I was so surprised! In fact, I still am. I thought the interview went so well, it had a good flow to it, and she acted so attentive and interested. Where could I have gone wrong? I wonder what I could have done better, or differently. I guess I’ll never know.

My question is: have you ever heard of this? The interview goes great, according to the candidate. . . but then they never get the job!

Signed,
Rejected! 

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Dear Rejected,


I hear this story almost every day.

Smart managers know how to make an interview a positive experience for the candidate -- which means you shouldn’t be able to read them. It’s not your fault. It’s just the way it is. Even if a hiring manager feels you are not right 5 minutes into the interview, they want to be courteous and respectful of the time you took to interview with them.

The job of a professional manager is to make the best impression of their company to you during the interview. Why is that? Well, you can end up at a dealer, or maybe a design firm (if you are a designer), or may even become a future customer. . .  There’s also the chance that maybe you are not right for the job right now, but they may call you back a year from now. Their job is to represent their company’s brand in the best light always, not to be rude or challenging to you, or make you feel bad or unqualified by the end of the interview.

Good managers understand the art of the giving a good interview.

I appreciate some of this explanation may not make you feel any better for being rejected, but at least this answers your question as to why you could not “read” that situation. . . and it’s not the job of someone, or a company, to tell you why you were rejected. That rarely happens, and I know it’s frustrating, but that’s just the way it is.   

Oftentimes it’s a matter of there being a more qualified candidate than yourself. Most candidates overlook that, their ego makes them want to know what they did wrong, and 9 times out of 10 you did nothing wrong there is just someone who is a better fit for the position at the given time.  

It’s logical that a person would want to know why they were rejected but I have learned that it is counterproductive to give candidates specific reasons as to why they didn’t get the job because it usually leads to long, unfulfilling, and inconclusive discussions. If I say the reason is you didn’t have enough experience, the immediate come-back from the candidate may be “what do you mean, I’ve got 12 years’ experience: it’s right on my resume!” And when I try to explain, the candidate challenges my explanation. It can go on and on. Like, I said, it’s counterproductive.

So, dear Rejected, there’s no simple answer to your question. (I wish there was as it would certainly make my job easier). Just continue to go into interviews well prepared and with a positive attitude and eventually you will get the job of your dreams.


Signed,
Stephen


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