Candidate ghosting just the new normal?

QuietConnector

We’ve seen a significant increase in candidates ghosting not just early in the process, but after final interviews, even after accepting offers. In a few cases, we’ve onboarded someone only to have them disappear before day one. Is this just the reality of a competitive market where candidates have more options or is it something we’re doing wrong? What’s helped you reduce this kind of dropout?

PeopleOpsAnna

We struggled with this too during our last hiring wave. One thing that really helped was speeding up our process. We now aim to make a hiring decision within 7 working days from the first interview. We also switched to using short, personalised Loom videos to deliver updates and offer details. It creates a sense of connection and shows that we’re not treating them like a number. That personal touch has made a real difference even candidates who decline still thank us.

TalentScout22

Speed is absolutely part of it but I think clarity is just as important. Many ghosting cases happen when expectations aren’t set clearly. We now send out a 2-page candidate guide after the screening call. It outlines timelines, who they'll meet, and what the final offer package will roughly include. Since we started doing that, ghosting after round two dropped by 60%. People ghost less when they know what to expect.

ElenaHRstrategist

Let me offer a broader perspective here. Ghosting, especially late-stage ghosting, is a reflection of a disconnect in trust and trust is a multi-touch experience.

What I’ve observed is that candidates don't ghost randomly. They ghost because they no longer feel seen, respected, or certain that the process is serving their goals. And that can happen even if you’re moving fast or using the latest tools.

We conducted a review of our candidate journey and found three pressure points:

The post-interview silence: Even 3–4 days of silence after a second or third-round interview caused candidate anxiety. They felt ghosted by us, even if we weren’t technically doing so.
Mismatch in tone: The interviews were warm and human, but the follow-up emails were cold, generic, or robotic. It created a jarring shift in tone that undermined the emotional connection.
Lack of ownership: Candidates didn’t always know who was responsible for updates. If they had questions, they weren’t sure who to turn to.

We addressed these by:

Implementing what we call a ‘candidate concierge’ a single point of contact throughout the process.
Switching to tone-consistent messaging. If the interview was casual and warm, so is the follow-up.
Setting ‘silence caps’. If we can’t make a decision within 3 days, we still check in with an update.

In a tight market, candidate experience is your brand. If your brand is anxiety, silence, and canned emails don’t be surprised when people vanish.

Jules_TechTalent

Let’s not forget candidates ghost because we do too. If a company ever took 3 weeks to reply to my CV, then rushed me into a final interview in 48 hours, I’d question the process.