The Old Joel on Software Forum: Part 3 (of 5) - Potential Employer

Potential Employer - Potential Customer

I just got my first and probably only rejection letter in the mail from a job I applied to. The reason I say only is not because I am that confident that every other job I applied for (about six) is going to interview/hire me, but rather because it seems well out of the norm to get feedback from potential employers. I guess I have come to expect that submitting a resume often means throwing it into a black hole.

I was pleasantly shocked when I got the rejection letter. Sure, it was a form letter explaining the position has been filled and wishing me luck in my search. It had a hand written (or maybe stamped) signature of a real human being. My moment of upset lasted about two seconds and my impression of this company went way up. Companies should not forget that you are not only some desperate Joe wanting to get a paycheck, but also a potential customer of their products.

When you apply to companies, do you see much feedback from your submission? Do you think there is just too much resume submission to make feedback impractical?

[ Hope this isn't too off topic, but I know there are a lot of skilled professionals/consumers looking for jobs on this forum. This really extends to many interactions with companies. There is nothing I love more than a company forum or email form that explains "your submission will not be replied to" and odds are will go to /dev/null. A little human service is much missed in our modern age. ]

m
Tuesday, November 18, 2003

If you have interviewed (in person or on the phone), you should definitely expect a rejection phone call or letter. If you have only sent in your resume, most places won't send you a rejection.

runtime
Tuesday, November 18, 2003

I got a personal phone call rejection from one company. The guy didn't reach me at first but waited until he could talk to me rather than just leave a message. I thought it was a nice touch.

The norm seems to be to not hear anything from the company unless you get an offer, even after an in person interview.

anon
Tuesday, November 18, 2003

>I was pleasantly shocked when I got the rejection letter.

I think it's basically good sense to follow up on such an important decision. Apparantly most companies think so too, chances are if the company you are apply for is well run best practices dictates that they will probably give you a personal reply one way or another. It's very scary for companies in general: how do you deal with 4,000 resumes for that little beginning level web job you posted in the Toronto Sun?

Li-fan Chen
Tuesday, November 18, 2003