Why interview no-shows are a problem
Applicants skip interviews for a variety of reasons. Some might get another job offer and forget to let you know. Others feel awkward about canceling if they decide the job isn’t a good fit, or they may decide not to show up because they feel there’s been a lack of transparency in the hiring process.
No matter the reason, an interview no-show wastes your time and impacts your productivity. You prepared interview questions, prepped your team and placed other work activities on hold only to be stood up. Any time spent waiting for the candidate is lost. If you have other staff members sitting in on the interview, it wastes their time, too.
It also cuts down on your options for hiring. Say you schedule five interviews, but only two candidates show up. If neither of those candidates seems like a good fit, you’re stuck scheduling more interviews or having fewer options.
Why job seekers are ghosting employers – it’s not what you think
Both US job seekers and employers agree that ghosting in recruitment is a growing problem that is here to stay. Organizations can see that the ghosting trend is increasing – 77% of employers say ghosting became more common among job seekers in 2022 compared to previous years – but what they may not understand is why job seekers are ghosting in the first place.
According to Indeed’s Ghosting in Hiring Report, employers believe job seekers are skipping interviews for the following reasons:
- The candidate received another offer
- The job wasn’t right for the candidate
- The candidate didn’t feel comfortable communicating their decision to withdraw from the hiring process
- The candidate was unsure of how to pull out of the hiring process
- The pay offer was too low for the candidate
Job seekers, on the other hand, cite the following reasons for ghosting:
- The job was not the right fit for them
- The company culture or values didn’t align with their own
- The benefits aren’t competitive
- They received another job offer
- The pay offer was not enough
While there is some overlap between pay and receiving another offer, employers may find it beneficial to note that company culture and benefits (or lack thereof) are two primary reasons job applicants cite for not showing up to an interview.
The mismatch between employer and applicant perceptions about interview ghosting extends to what each party believes would prevent the ghosting in the first place.
Indeed’s Ghosting in Hiring report showed that employers believe higher pay, better pay transparency and better benefits would help prevent interview no-shows, while job seekers say improved communication from the employer, a shorter hiring process and flexible hiring scheduling options would help prevent them from ghosting.
Understanding why applicants ghost and what they believe would help prevent them from ghosting may help employers break the ghosting cycle.
The benefits of breaking the ghosting cycle
Both companies and candidates can benefit from fewer job seekers ghosting employers during the hiring process. These benefits may include:
Increased transparency and trust
Job seekers are looking for better transparency from companies. Clarity about job expectations, pay and benefits and clear communication regarding the steps involved in the hiring process may help build trust with candidates.
These transparent practices may also help to reduce applicant anxiety, encourage better engagement from job seekers and enhance the company’s reputation.
Better use of everyone’s time
Reliable interview processes streamline workflow efficiency for Human Resources (HR) and Talent Acquisition (TA) teams. Additionally, fewer interview no-shows can mean less time and money spent on recruiting.
More opportunities to interview candidates who are the right fit
Employers can use tools like Indeed Hiring Events, which help fill a variety of roles quickly by using automation to screen for and evaluate active job seekers who are visiting Indeed. Indeed Hiring Events allow candidates to schedule interviews in minutes. They receive automated calendar invites, plus text and email reminders to boost interview attendance. Employers can also use screener questions and assessments to identify candidates with the experience and skills that match their job description.
When candidates reliably show up for interviews, employers may increase their chances of meeting candidates who are genuinely interested in and committed to the role. Hiring managers can then evaluate whether the applicants have the right skills and experience as well as are a good culture add for the organization.
Best practices for preventing an interview no-show
Adopting best practices for preventing candidate ghosting during the interview process may decrease your organization’s number of no-shows and help you access the benefits of a hiring process where candidates reliably show. To help you, we listed key best practices below.
Set up interviews quickly
When you find an impressive applicant, go ahead and schedule the interview. Job seekers are more likely to go through with an interview if they hear back within 48 hours of applying. Their enthusiasm may decrease as more time drags on.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, job seekers who are currently unemployed submit an average of 13.67 job applications. You’re potentially competing with many other companies for those employees. Striking quickly with fast interview scheduling and a streamlined hiring process can help you attract preferred candidates.
Be transparent about pay and benefits before the interview
Since applicants seek more transparency from employers, it’s important to list the salary and benefits clearly so applicants can feel confident that the job will provide what they are looking for. To better understand what to include, consider using a tool like Indeed’s Hiring Insights.
The data used in the Hiring Insights reports is distilled from Indeed’s internal data, which includes over 295 million resumes and 32.5 million jobs worldwide. This helps your organization conduct market research and see how you stack up against the competition through reports personalized to the job title.
Come to the interview prepared and informed
Prepare for each interview by previewing resumes, saving notes and tracking candidate status. You can find collaboration tools like shared notes and structured interview templates through Indeed Interview.
To help you streamline the hiring process and hire at scale, consider using Indeed’s Hiring Events to aid in your preparation, track candidate status and save your team time. On average, employers save four hours per job opening using Indeed Hiring Events.[1]
Each person involved in the hiring process should be clear regarding the role, responsibilities, salary and benefits of the job to provide clarity for the job seeker. This preparation helps enhance the candidate experience, especially if there are multiple interviews across different departments.
This preparation may also help reduce the number of instances where the employer ghosts the applicant. Indeed’s Ghosting in Hiring report showed a sharp rise in job candidates who reported being ghosted after a second or third interview: 40% in 2023 compared to 30% in 2022.
Create an engaging candidate experience by offering flexible scheduling
Highly qualified candidates often have multiple interviews and may have to fit an interview around their work schedule. Offering flexible interview scheduling makes it easier for those candidates to attend.
You might try offering after-hours or weekend interviews to reduce the chances of a scheduling conflict and handling interviews via video chat to reduce candidate ghosting by making them easier to attend.
Organizations can also use Indeed Hiring Events to engage candidates throughout the hiring process using tools to help automate interview scheduling, messaging and key reminders. For employers, Indeed keeps the hiring process simple by allowing you to schedule, evaluate and organize candidates all in one place.
Use Indeed Interview to offer virtual interviews
Virtual interviews are a great way to reduce interview no-shows. In fact, job seekers are
Using video conference software such as Indeed Interview helps reduce the constraints of traveling to an in-person interview and allows for a wider reach to candidates who may not be local.
The platform also offers tips for conducting successful virtual interviews and inclusive video interviews to help you enhance the candidate experience. In fact, jobs that use interviews on Indeed are on average
You can easily set up virtual interviews through the Employer Dashboard on Indeed, which syncs with many popular calendar applications. Once the interview is accepted, reminders are sent to the candidate leading up to the interview.
Be selective about who you choose for interviews, but consider untapped talent
Screening candidates using pre-configured and customizable screening questions and assessments can help you find candidates who are a good fit and more likely to follow through. It’s not always about a perfectly crafted resume with impressive accomplishments.
Consider an applicant’s soft skills and how they align with the role and add to your company culture. Widening your net of applicants to include untapped talent, such as candidates without a degree who are still highly qualified, can give you more applicants to consider before scheduling interviews.
Asking questions before the interview can give you an idea of their career goals and whether or not they can add a unique perspective to your team.
Transparent communication can help you identify candidates who are interested in the role and align with your salary offer
Schedule extra interviews
Ghosting will happen. When it does, it’s good to be prepared to handle candidate no-shows. If interview no-shows are a consistent problem, consider scheduling more interviews than normal.
Look at your no-show statistics compared to the number of people you typically interview to decide how to increase the number of interviews you hold. This accounts for some candidates not showing up, so you still have plenty of options.
Set interview expectations
Be open with job seekers about your expectations for them to show up or notify you if they can’t attend the interview on time.
You might try letting them know it’s a competitive hiring process, and while you wish to remain flexible, they will only be permitted to reschedule a limited number of times.
When hiring at scale, Indeed Hiring Events allows applicants to select the best time for them. Applicants and employers can also make use of the Employer Dashboard to schedule interviews.
Make interviews more appealing
Job interviews are stressful for some candidates, which could lead them to skip. Try to add fun elements to get candidates engaged and excited when meeting you whether virtually or in person.
Coffee shop interviews, company tours or special demonstrations are examples of ways to make your interviews more dynamic and hype up the interview process. Putting them at ease by making it a low-pressure interview process can encourage people to show up if nerves are an issue.
Communicate and confirm interviews
According to a 2023 Indeed Survey with Censuswide, 23% of US job seekers say they have ghosted due to poor recruiter communication. Strong communication on your part encourages job seekers to reciprocate – if they don’t hear from you or don’t get the information they need, they might feel like they don’t need to communicate well either.
After scheduling the interview, send a follow-up email with important information about the interview process. Consider using automated reminders, screenings and RSVPs to confirm interviews using a tool like Indeed Hiring Events.
Using an automated system lets you maintain the momentum of your hiring process by allowing you to confirm appointments, send calendar invites and quickly reschedule or schedule backup interviews with alternate candidates.
Stick to the scheduled interviews
Sometimes work conflicts come up during a scheduled interview time. However, sticking to your scheduled interview time makes candidates feel valued. When you reschedule, it shows them that something else is a priority. Schedule interviews carefully to ensure you can stick to them.
Make yourself known as an attractive employer
When job seekers have multiple options, they often closely compare employers. Making your company stand out in a competitive job market can significantly reduce candidate interview no-shows.
To stay competitive, you might try building a strong company culture that supports and satisfies current employees. Happy employees not only reduce turnover, minimizing the number of interviews you need to conduct, but can also attract new talent.
Having a good employee value proposition (EVP) also helps you retain current employees and attract new candidates. Your EVP is your total benefits package and includes things like career development opportunities, flexible schedules, gym memberships and other monetary and nonmonetary perks of the job.
Lastly, it’s important to recognize that ghosting can go both ways. If your organization becomes known for ghosting candidates, that damaged reputation may cause it to lose the trust of future applicants.
Communicate with candidates about changes and encourage them to do the same
Candidate availability can change quickly. Let your candidates know that you understand their availability can change. Ask them to let you know if they accept another offer or change their mind about interviewing. Give them contact information to make it easy.
Even though you miss out on the interview, getting a notification from the candidate gives you more time to schedule with another candidate.
As the employer, it’s also your responsibility to contact candidates and inform them of any changes, whether you have hired a different candidate or the job is no longer available for another reason. Doing so shows you respect the candidate’s time.
Read More: 7 Rejection Letter Samples to Send Unsuccessful Applicants
Get feedback from no-shows
If you’re dealing with the interview no-show issue consistently, reach out to candidates who ghost you. Ask them what changed their mind about the interview and why they didn’t attend. The issue could be with the candidate, such as getting another job offer first or not feeling prepared for the interview.
You could also gain insight about your company that helps you improve the hiring process. Perhaps they had a negative interaction with someone at the company while scheduling the interview or felt the overall culture wasn’t a good fit. Use that feedback to make your company more attractive to future candidates.
Prevent ghosting in recruitment – be proactive about preventing no-shows
Candidate ghosting is a trend data shows is here to stay. By understanding the underlying reasons for interview no-shows and what applicants look for in employers, you can help your organization avoid some of the negative effects that come from this disruption to the hiring process.
To help you handle ghosting from job seekers, consider using an automation tool like Indeed Hiring Events. Indeed Hiring Events offers one platform for scheduling, sending reminders, screening applicants, setting up virtual interviews, offering rescheduling options and improving transparency and communication between your organization and the qualified candidates you seek.
