Re: [tlug] CW: Josh, put down your coffee [was: Ghosted?]

[James Tobin <jamesbtobin@example.com>]

On Wed, 30 Jul 2025 at 12:43, Josh Glover <jmglov@example.com> wrote:

> Strange. Why would a hiring manager not want their interviewers to be as good as possible? Making a bad hire is one of the most expensive mistakes you can make.
> Or are you referring to a hiring manager asking that you not coach candidates? Again, I’d prefer meeting someone who is able to demonstrate the best of what they have to offer. In fact, that’s how I train interviewers: our job is to create an environment where the candidate can be at their best, then look for evidence that they’d be successful in the role (and/or company—I’ve interviewed plenty of people who weren’t suited for the role I was hiring for but that I recommended for other roles at the company, some of whom we ended up hiring).

[JTOBIN] I no doubt asked this question—but it was about 15 years ago now! :-)
At the time, I chose to stop recruiting for that manager (and
employer). In effect, I walked away.

Some hiring managers don’t like candidates who are smarter than them
(or headhunters for that matter), or they may have hidden motives—like
wanting to bring in friends, people from overseas offices, or
candidates they already have in mind.

Another possibility is that the employer is working with a third
party, like a consultancy. In those cases, the manager might be trying
to get free advice from candidates to validate what the consultancy is
doing, or they may be keeping interviews going just in case they get
permission to replace the consultancy later on.

With modern platforms making it easier for employers to post jobs
(which may be fictitious) and receive direct applications, there's
less incentive to engage headhunters—unfortunately, this often leads
to more ghosting, as the hiring process becomes less personal and more
transactional.  A good headhunter acts as a gatekeeper—helping to
verify which roles are genuine and worth a candidate’s time.

> Yeah, that’s not a bad way of putting it. Except, as Seinfeld famously noted, you’re unlikely to end up naked at the end of a good interview. That’s frowned upon. ;)

[JTOBIN] Indeed.  There was also an episode of the office too with
James Spader as Robert California, where he gives a bizarre and
intense monologue essentially framing everything in life—including
business—as being about sex.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iB8fGVK_k3c