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How to reject a candidate well
14 Nov 2024by Mary Wessel
How can you turn down candidates in a way that will leave them feeling positive about your charity?
Any interaction you have with a candidate can influence what they think about your organisation – but none more so than at the ego-denting, receiving-a-rejection stage. So, it’s crucial that you do it well.
Do it badly (or even worse, not at all) and candidates might share their poor recruitment experience on social, potentially putting off others from working at your organisation.
But it can go beyond damaging your reputation as an employer. After a bad job application experience, 50% of candidates will not purchase goods or services from a company. If a rejected candidate is left feeling negative, they might not want to support your charity in any way at all – be that fundraising, volunteering or even just promoting your work.
Here are some pointers to help you reject candidates – for paid or volunteer roles – with respect and leave them feeling positive about your organisation.
Make sure you tell them
If there’s one golden rule, it’s that you tell them you won’t be moving ahead with their application. And that’s whether they’ve attended two rounds of interviews or have simply sent you their CV. Research shows that 79% of applicants wouldn’t apply to a charity that had previously ignored their application.
Any application, of any length or format, has taken someone time and effort. Contacting them shows you respect the effort they have given the role and your organisation.
Contact them in good time
Notifying unsuccessful candidates is probably not the most urgent item on your to do list, or your favourite task. But make sure you do so in good time. Even if you haven’t even met them for an interview, contact them as soon as possible after a decision has been made: don’t leave them hanging on.
The exception is if you’re in the final stages of selection and have a strong second choice. In that situation, it’s sensible to hold fire telling them, in case your first choice turns down the role. If that happens, then you can offer it to your second choice. And if not, then make sure you contact the candidate as soon as possible, so they’re not left waiting.
Be clear and concise
There’s a chance that the candidate won’t read much beyond your rejection, so include the most important information in the first paragraph of your email. While it might feel uncomfortable to send, a clear, definite message is often the kindest. You could use phrases such as: “Unfortunately we won’t be taking your application further” or “We’re sorry to say we won’t be progressing your application.” Be straightforward, be clear, and personalise your message.
Focus your feedback on evidence
If the candidate has been interviewed, you might want to include some feedback. Make sure this is informative, helpful, and based on evidence. For example, you might share that you had a very strong pool of candidates to choose from, that there was a particular skillset that they didn’t clearly demonstrate in the interview, or that you went with a candidate whose experience more closely matched your needs.
The NCVO suggests that you: “provide feedback if requested. Focus on evidence, for example:
- The criteria we were looking for were…
- The evidence of meeting the criteria you displayed was...”
If you were impressed by their knowledge or specific experience, you might also like to say so. Constructive feedback can be empowering and help candidates on their future job search.
Ask for feedback on the recruitment process
You might want to ask candidates how they experienced the process. They may have insights that can help you improve the way you recruit. It also shows that you value their opinions and that you care about the way you treat potential employees.
Encourage them to apply for other roles
It might be that the candidate isn’t right for this role but could be for others. If so, include a line encouraging them to keep an eye out for other vacancies and say that you’d be happy to receive an application from them in the future. It might be that after they’ve built up more skills or experience, they could be great for your team, so keep the door open to applicants who are potentially a good fit.
Always say thank you
Say thank you, acknowledging a candidate’s interest in your charity and the time and effort they’ve put into applying for the role. This is especially important if they’ve attended an interview (and all the prep and emotional energy that can involve). You might also want to wish them well in their job search. Being kind and respectful will go a long way and will leave candidates with a positive impression of your charity.
Mary Wessel
Mary Wessel
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