If you work in recruitment, you know the moment when a candidate suddenly stops responding. No reply to your email. No answer to your call. Just silence. This is ghosting, and it happens on both sides of the hiring process.
Recent data shows that 61% of job seekers have been ghosted after an interview, while 76% of recruiters report being ghosted by candidates. This creates frustration for everyone involved.
Why ghosting candidates happens
The reasons behind ghosting are not always about bad intent.
For recruiters, the workload has increased significantly. Industry data shows recruiter workload jumped 26% in the final quarter of 2024 alone. At the same time, AI-powered application tools have enabled mass applying, with 38% of job seekers now submitting applications to dozens of roles.
This creates a perfect storm where recruiters face overwhelming volume while candidates wait for responses that never come.
When candidates do not hear back, they assume rejection and move on. When recruiters cannot respond to every applicant due to volume, communication gaps become inevitable. The result is a cycle where both sides feel ignored and undervalued.
How ghosting candidates impacts your work
Ghosting is not just about hurt feelings. For recruiters, it means restarting searches, losing time invested in candidates, and potentially missing hiring deadlines. It also damages your employer brand. Candidates who feel ignored are less likely to recommend your company or apply again in the future. Nearly half of candidates say they would avoid engaging with a company based on frustrating interview experiences.
For candidates, ghosting creates anxiety and wastes significant time. They invest hours preparing for interviews and following up, only to receive silence. This experience shapes how they view your organization long after the hiring process ends.
5 practical tips to avoid ghosting candidates
1. Set clear expectations to avoid ghosting candidates
Candidates want to know what to expect. Tell them upfront about your hiring timeline, the number of interview rounds, and when they will hear back from you. If your process typically takes six weeks from application to offer, share that information early. This simple step reduces anxiety and prevents candidates from assuming they have been forgotten.
When you need more time than expected, send a brief update. Even a short message acknowledging the delay shows respect for their time and keeps them engaged in the process.
2. Use automation to reduce candidate ghosting
You cannot personally respond to every application, but you can ensure no candidate feels invisible.
Set up automated emails that acknowledge receipt of applications and outline next steps.
TalentsForce Notification features can help you stay on top of candidate communications by providing real-time updates on key recruiting actions, so no candidate falls through the cracks.
These automated touchpoints serve a dual purpose, first, they reassure candidates that their application was received, and second, they free you to focus on meaningful conversations with qualified candidates rather than administrative follow-up.
3. Organize your day so no candidate feels ghosted
When you juggle multiple open positions and dozens of candidates, it is easy to lose track of who needs a response.
A clear visual system helps you see your workload at a glance and prioritize follow-ups. TalentsForce's Task Management organizes your daily recruiting activities, including upcoming interviews, pending tasks, and feedback requests.
- Clear view of your tasks
- What events happen next
- Your current jobs
- Update on the progress
4. Close the loop, even with rejections
Many recruiters avoid sending rejection messages because they worry about uncomfortable conversations or simply lack time. However, leaving candidates without closure is more damaging than a polite rejection. When you decide not to move forward with a candidate, tell them. A brief, respectful message takes less than a minute and preserves goodwill.
Consider creating email templates for common rejection scenarios. This allows you to send personalized but efficient messages that acknowledge the candidate's effort while providing closure.
Candidates consistently report that receiving any response, even a negative one, is better than being left to wonder.
5. Track your pipepline for bottle neck
The Report & Analytics dashboard provides a visual overview of your recruiting pipeline, helping you identify candidates who may have been waiting too long for a response.
This visibility prevents situations where candidates wait weeks for feedback simply because their status was unclear or buried in your inbox.
Moving forward
Ghosting will likely remain part of recruitment as long as both sides face high volume and limited time. However, the tips above can significantly reduce how often it happens. The key is consistent, respectful communication that keeps candidates informed at every stage.
When you treat candidates the way you want to be treated in your own job searches, you build trust that extends beyond a single hiring process. Candidates who feel respected and informed become advocates for your employer brand, even if they do not get the job.
Contact TalentsForce team to learn how we make it easy to keep candidates engaged throughout the hiring process.