Not getting a callback? That just means you’re not giving employers a reason to hire you
If I had a nickel for every time a job seeker told me, “I’m doing everything right! Why am I not getting hired?” I’d be writing this column from a Southern California beachfront house. Most job seekers aren’t doing everything right. They’re doing what’s comfortable and easy, and what self-proclaimed career coaches tell them to do.
I find many job seekers treat their job search like a hobby, something they tinker with when the mood strikes, usually between scrolling through social media and complaining that the hiring system is “broken.”
No two employers assess candidates the same way, so there’s no universal hiring system. Individual employers design their hiring processes according to what they feel is in their best interests, which is for them, not the job seeker, to determine.
Especially in today’s job market, “doing everything right” means meeting the demanding expectations of an employer whose keen business acumen considers employees as human capital investments and expects every hire to add value to their business that justifies their compensation. If you aren’t getting hired, it’s not because the mythical hiring system is broken; it’s because you aren’t positioning yourself as someone an employer needs to maintain, ideally increase, their profitability.
To protect their egos, job seekers complain that employers don’t know how to hire. By blaming everyone and everything but themselves for their lack of success in their job search, they’re telling themselves (read: their ego) that it’s not their fault; it’s the recruiter’s, the employer’s ATS, or [whatever].
The “it’s broken” excuse is a sedative for the unsuccessful.
The likelihood of a high school football player making it to the NFL is about 0.2 per cent. For hockey players aspiring to the NHL, it’s about 0.11 per cent. Do you hear the thousands of athletes who don’t make the cut, screaming that the scouting and drafting system is broken? Professional sports teams are successfully filling their rosters with elite athletic talent. The system works for the NFL and NHL; it just doesn’t work for those who weren’t fast or strong enough to be drafted.
Imagine the stress and pressure of trying to secure a surgical residency or being selected for a major airline pilot training program. In both cases, the application and selection process is intense, resulting in the majority of applicants being rejected. Is the selection process for a neurosurgeon “broken” because a straight-A medical student didn’t get selected by their first-choice hospital? No, not at all. The application and selection process is designed specifically to select only the “best of the best.”
Today, AI is constantly moving the goalposts. AI isn’t just a tool anymore; it’s a viable alternative to back-office functions. In tech and white-collar sectors, entry-level roles once considered “safe” are being automated.
Increasingly, human roles are reserved for those able to deliver a healthy return on investment on their compensation investment that, for now, machines are unable to match.
Job seekers who are searching for a job by the “traditional rules” are the ones who aren’t getting traction. I see this often: recent graduates with impressive academic credentials wondering why their inbox is empty. They did what they were told to do but they neglected to develop real-world skills through internships, side projects and informational conversations.
Conversely, experienced professionals are struggling because they’re failing to adapt their career story to a job market that prizes agility and digital fluency over decades of “doing things the old way.”
Given that employers are hiring great candidates every day, job seekers need to ask themselves: What are successful job seekers doing right?
• Networking over applying: They go beyond simply submitting their résumé. In a world of AI-generated applications, human connection is the only thing that scales. They create, maintain and leverage professional relationships to bypass digital gatekeepers.
• Proving their value with data: They don’t merely claim to “manage a team”; they specify the exact cost savings or efficiency gains they achieved for their employer.
• Lifelong skill development: They prioritize acquiring knowledge and skills, knowing, for example, that if they don’t become proficient with AI collaboration tools, they’ll become obsolete.
Resisting how employers choose to hire for their business is a monumental waste of energy. It’s their business, their turf, and they’re taking on the hiring risks. You don’t have to like that they use AI filters, demand six rounds of interviews or prioritize “cultural fit,” but you do have to adapt to the new world order.
As I pointed out, hiring processes differ from employer to employer, so there’s no universal hiring system that’s broken. However, universally, employers don’t care whether you believe or are being told you’re doing “everything right.” Employers only care whether you’ll create value for their business that’s worth paying for.
The takeaway: Not getting hired isn’t evidence that an employer’s hiring process is “broken.” As an outsider, you have no visibility into what goes on inside. However, it’s safe to assume an employer would fix their hiring process if they were concerned it wasn’t attracting the candidates they need to maintain and increase their profitability.
Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers advice on searching for a job.
The views, opinions, and positions expressed by our columnists and contributors are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of our publication.
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