Be Professional And Considerate
While its likely the applicant will be disappointed no matter how you frame the rejection, using professionalism and consideration can diminish any negativity they may feel toward you or the company. Consider using the Sandwich Method where you deliver less welcome news between two positive messages. For example, you might start by letting the applicant know youre impressed by a specific skill or experience, tell them youve chosen to move forward with another candidate and then finish by thanking them for their time and wishing them the best of luck in their future endeavors.
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Donts & Dos Of Rejecting Candidates
Dont try to fabricate reasons on why the candidate wasnt selected and dont try to be overly polite for fear of offending the candidate. Thats not fair to the individual.
Do spend some time to give the candidate feedback so that he or she can improve him or himself. Be as honest and authentic as you can while not being crude. In Zarinas experience, she remembered giving feedback to a candidate she felt a personal connection with while she was working at SAP a few years ago. Although the candidate had every skill and competency that was required for the job, she was unduly apologetic. Zarina gave her a phone call and told her that she would never get the job at subsequent interviews if she continued being so apologetic. The candidate sent Zarina a beautiful note thanking her for the feedback. When she saw the candidate a while ago, she said that the piece of advice was life-changing for her.
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Redirect To Other Positions
People who apply to specific job positions often lack the level of experience or complete skill set desired to fill a certain role, yet command a professional presence that hiring managers find valuable. In these instances, encourage them to apply to other positions within the company they may be better suited for. For example, candidates with a strong marketing background may have skills that better support the position of a marketing assistant than a writer. Candidates who lack management experience may do better as part of a team instead of leading a team.
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Principles To Write Polite Rejection Letters
Generally speaking, better job rejection emails create a better candidate experience. Every candidate will respond differently to rejection. However, there are some general best practices to abide by when writing your own job rejection letters and emails. When using these job rejection emails samples to write yours, remember:
How Long Should An Interview Rejection Letter Be
In general, an interview rejection letter should be concise and no longer than a single page. When writing your first paragraph, its important to get right to the point in letting the candidate know they were not chosen for the position.
While it may seem nice to start off with positive feedback, this can give false hope of a job offer as the applicant scans the letter. A few paragraphs explaining that your company decided to go another way and that you appreciate their time is sufficient, and you may also include a paragraph of interview feedback.
*Decipher/FocusVision on behalf of Indeed
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Recruitment Pipeline Email Templates To Enhance Candidate Experience
In a candidate-driven market, delivering a stellar candidate experience is more important than ever.
Regardless, you hire a particular candidate or not, how they are treated throughout the hiring process straightaway impacts their decision to go ahead with the offer or not.
According to research, 80% of candidates say that positive candidate experience during the hiring process has influenced their decision to accept a job offer.
While there are lots of ways to amp up your candidate experience, one of the quickest is enhancing your email communication.
Since email will likely be the first and most frequent interaction you have with applicants, shouldnt it be a great reflection of your company and culture? As a recruiter, youre likely sending similar emails daily to different candidates on a daily basis.
So, having a set framework for those common messages will make it far more manageable to reach out to candidates with targeted and relevant information. That is theyll get the responses theyre eagerly waiting for throughout the hiring process.
So, we have drafted some awesome recruitment pipeline email templates you can use right away to enhance the candidate experience.
Should I Reject Job Candidates By Phone
For candidates who undergo stringent interview proceedings that include first, second and third interviews, its important to provide rejections over the phone. This shows that you respect them and appreciate all the time they took to attend interviews on multiple occasions.
When a job only requires a single interview or the candidate has been advised that multiple people are up for the position, an interview rejection letter or email is a suitable choice. Additionally, you can include a line that the candidate can contact you directly for interview feedback if they choose to do so.
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The Importance Of Writing A Rejection Letter
Writing a post-interview rejection letter is a kind and professional way to address your job applicants. It helps you keep an open communication channel, and you can later reach out to them for future positions. A candidate feels valued and respected when they receive a well-thought-out rejection letter.
Every task you perform reflects back on the company and may affect your company’s brand image. Sending a post-interview rejection letter is an excellent way to maintain your brand in a positive and influential way, just as writing a rejection letter before an interview gives a better impression of the company to the candidate, too.
Writing a rejection letter gives you an opportunity to add value to your candidates. You can give them tips on how to send their résumé or the best way to present themselves for an interview. For instance, you can highlight sections in their résumé they need to work on or refer them to online platforms that can help them improve how they answer interview questions.
What Is A Rejection Letter
A rejection letter is an official document sent to candidates who werent considered the best fit for an open position after applying or interviewing. However, it can also be sent in response to applications that werent selected for any reasonthe employers discretion is final.
Rejection letters typically contain the following basic details:
- Contact information for hiring or management staff
- Job title or position
- Date of application or interview
- Reason for rejection
Rejection letters can vary in length depending on how much information you wish to share with a given candidate. You can also include tips for improvement in a polite manner. Some employers prefer to send rejection letters via email, while others opt to send a rejection letter by postal mail for its sense of professionalism.
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How To Write The Perfect Candidate Rejection Email
A perfect candidate rejection email can help any recruiter do the following:
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Provide critical information as soon as possible.
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Give the job seeker emotional closure.
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Protect your organizations reputation and improve candidates perception of it.
How to write a candidate rejection email that will not only let candidates know the sad news but also create a good impression about your company? How do you politely reject a candidate through a candidate rejection letter or email? Follow these steps.
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Job Rejection Email Template 2
Subject: Interview for < Name of the Role>
Body:
Dear < Candidate Name> ,
Wed like to thank you for taking the time to go through the process. We are glad that you took interest in the role and our company.
I am writing to let you know that we couldnt go ahead with your application for this role.
We do highly appreciate you taking the time to interview with us and encourage you to apply for other openings at the company in the future.
Sincerely,
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Rejection Letter For An Applicant Who Will Not Get An Interview
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Dear < Applicant’s First Name> , I would like to thank you for taking the time to apply for the < role title> at < company name> . It was great to find out about your achievements, skills and qualifications. There were a large number of applications for this particular role, and it was difficult to choose between the many experienced and quality applicants and we regret to inform you that you were not selected by our team to go forward. However, we will still be keeping your details in the event that other openings arise in future, which we believe you would be a better fit for. Thank you once again for your interest in < company name> and we wish you all the best in your job search. Best Regards, |
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How To Send A Rejection Letter After An Interview
What should you include in a job rejection letter? Check out these helpful tips and use our rejection letter sample to create your own template.
Once youve selected the top candidates you want to move on to the next phase of the hiring process, theres another important step you need to take: sending a rejection letter to the applicants who were not selected.
An interview rejection letter is a customary form of communication that informs job candidates theyre not moving forward in the hiring process. Rejection letters after interviews are generally sent within a two-week period, and they typically consist of one to two paragraphs that are concise and to the point. If a candidate is highly skilled but not the best fit for the role youre currently filling, a rejection letter is also an excellent opportunity to let them know youre impressed with their background and would like them to apply in the future.
Read on to learn more about the process of sending rejection letters.
Make It Short And Sweet
No one wants to read a novel about why they arent getting a job. Keep your rejection letter short and sweet. One to two paragraphs that include all of the critical information will suffice. Let them know that they wont be moving forward, that you appreciated their time, add any additional information that you feel is necessary, and then move on. If they reach back out for more information, try to keep that quick and concise as well.
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Why You Shouldnt Ignore Sending A Candidate Rejection Email
Explaining why you are rejecting candidates is never a bad idea. Well tell you why. A well-drafted email to your rejected candidates shows that you value the time and effort they took to apply for a job in your organization. In fact, it can help build and sustain a lasting relationship with those candidates. There are three cases that might happen:
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If they were skilled but lacked experience, for example, they might apply again in the future.
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Alternatively, if they were late in your application cycle or are were more suitable for another position, you could contact them when another opening arises.
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If your candidate reached the last few stages of your hiring process, you could recommend connecting on social media to stay in touch.
However, if you know you won’t be reconsidering a candidate in the future, it’s best to be honest and avoid alluding to potential prospects. In addition, including a brief personal comment will boost the likelihood of making you look like a nice person.
Get Support From Your Network
Its natural to need a bit of support or need someone to talk to after getting a tough rejection letter or disappointing phone call saying you werent chosen for the job.
So if you feel itll help you, reach out to your personal or professional network, or a family member, and tell them what youre going through.
Sometimes, simply sharing whats happened in recent events can take a weight off and allow you to recover faster so that you can reflect on what to do differently next time and start preparing for that next opportunity.
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Rejection Email After Interview Sample
Interview rejection emails generally follow the same format as interview rejection letters. However, they may be a bit shorter and more concise. Heres a good example of a rejection email sent following an interview:
Dear Cody,
Thank you for taking the time to meet with our team about the Marketing Manager position at ABC Company. Unfortunately, after careful consideration, our team chose to move forward with another candidate.
Please know that ABC Company receives multiple resumes for each position, and its often difficult for us to choose between several high-caliber candidates. Now that we have learned more about your experience and accomplishments, we will keep your resume on file and contact you when a position opens up that suits your profile.
If you would like specific feedback about your interview, feel free to reach out to me directly. Thanks again for your interest in ABC Company, and I wish you good luck in all future endeavors.
Dear Cody,
As mentioned during your initial interview, ABC Company interviewed multiple candidates for the Marketing Manager position. After careful review of your resume and consulting with our additional team members, we have decided to go another direction and offer the position to another candidate.
Some positive points that caught my attention in your initial interview were your past experience in management, your education and your impeccable attention to detail. All of these aspects should serve you well in your job search.
Template #2 To Candidates Rejected Post
Subject: Your application to < YOUR COMPANY NAME>
Body:
Hi < CANDIDATE NAME> ,
Thank you for considering our company and taking the time to attend the interview. We truly appreciate your effort.
Unfortunately, we would not be able to take this forward. We had a diverse pool of exceptional candidates just like you and found someone who closely matched our requirements. We were excited to meet you and found your profile quite impressive. We urge you to keep a tab on our < CAREERS PAGE> and apply to our future job openings.
From our end, we assure you that we will get back to you when we spot the closest suitable role for you.
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Candidate Rejection Email Template: After The Final Interview
Email Subject Line: Your application to
Hi ,
It was a great pleasure to meet you and we really appreciate your interest in a career with .
Your skills and accomplishments impressed us. However after careful consideration, we wanted to let you know that we have chosen to move forward with another candidate for the position because they have more exposure to that more closely matched our hiring needs.
Our team was impressed by your skills and experience. Especially . While it’s a ânoâ for now, we think you could be a good fit for other future openings and will reach out again if we find a good match.
Thank you for your time in interviewing with us and we wish you all the best in your job search and future professional endeavors.
Kind regards,
If you are looking for more time saving recruitment email templates, make sure to check out our Time-saving Email Templates for HR & Recruitment Teams resource. This includes templates for every stage of the hiring process such as first touch sourcing email templates, recruiting email templates, interview email templates, hiring email templates, onboarding email templates and new hire announcement templates.
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Sample Email To Keep Candidates Warm
Sometimes the recruitment process can drag on, and you’ll need to stay in touch with applicants to let them know what’s happening. In this sample email, we provide clarity on dates to keep candidates warm, enabling them to plan.
While it’s easy to offer an apology, you don’t need to. However, depending on the length of the delay, you can encourage candidates to contact you if their plans have changed.
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What Not To Do When You Reject A Candidate
If you work in recruitment, rejection pretty much comes with the territory
Its never a nice job having to tell someone their application has been unsuccessful especially if you dont have too much previous experience in having to turn people down for a position.
However, its undoubtedly a vital part of the whole hiring process. And taking a little extra time to let people down in the right way can speak volumes about your business not to mention help make your recruitment more productive.
For examples of what to avoid, here are some of our top tips on what not to do when rejecting a candidate for a role:
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