USA 
United Kingdom
In the so-called war for talent, the smarter companies (we are told) will invest a decent amount of money and time in their employer brand.
Investigate the culture. Distill the research. Build a compelling, emotional story about purpose, impact and belonging. So, that on first contact with aligned candidates, applications are an absolute shoo-in.
Yet, for millions of job seekers, the lasting impression many companies leave is, well… none at all. The rest is silence.
You spend your valuable time optimising your CV and crafting a punchy and precise cover letter for a specific role and you don’t even get the courtesy of a “Thank you for expressing your interest…” letter.
Which leaves the candidate completely in the dark as to whether anyone actually saw their application, let alone why they didn’t get an interview. The sense is that you might as well not have bothered. And when it happens multiple times, it can be hugely discouraging, maddening even.
Trying to find a job that enables you to pay those rising bills that aren’t about to go away anytime soon can be a desperate, lonely, grind. So a little bit of recognition around that would’t go amiss.
Or so you would think.
According to hiring platform Greenhouse, more than 14 million job applications went completely ignored in just a single quarter last year. Such commonplace ‘ghosting’ is more than a frustration for candidates, however, it is a potentially dangerous and growing liability for an employer’s brand reputation.
And, given the numbers involved, it appears to be standard industry practice.
Accountability for ghosting
Recognizing the damage it can cause, major job platforms are stepping in to shine a light on employer responsiveness. LinkedIn, Indeed, and Greenhouse have introduced tools designed to highlight which companies are treating candidates with respect - and which are not.
LinkedIn is rolling out 'responsiveness insights' that indicate whether employers are actively reviewing applications. Indeed has expanded its 'responsive employer' badges to include details like median response times; while Greenhouse has gone even further, testing a set of four badges that verify an employer’s adherence to respectful, communicative, prepared, and fair hiring practices.
Such transparency efforts aren’t just cosmetic. They create internal accountability, forcing companies to confront their hiring practices.
“Inside that company, you have some recruiting leader who's saying, ‘I want to treat people well. We should be sending out rejection emails and not ghosting folks,’” said Jon Stross, Greenhouse’s president and co-founder.
When job seekers can see which companies are consistently ghosting applicants, it puts reputational pressure on employers to improve. After all, they’re not immune from a bit of ghosting themselves.
The hidden costs of ghosting
For HR leaders, the implications of poor candidate communication extend beyond bad reviews on Glassdoor. Ghosting erodes trust, discourages top talent from applying, and damages a company’s employer brand in a way that’s hard to quantify but impossible to ignore.
According to Greenhouse, half of all applicants report being ghosted after an interview, which isn’t just a failure of etiquette and manners, it’s a failure of strategy.
A negative candidate experience no longer gets ignored. Candidates share their experiences on social media, in professional networks, and on employer review sites, influencing perceptions of the company far beyond the initial applicant pool.
Hiring Managers: State of Hiring and Retention
What are your peers doing to fill roles during shortages? What’s the current state of hybrid work and return-to-office? What are the biggest challenges facing hiring managers?
We unpacked the data to bring you answers to your most pressing questions.
Did you know…
Nearly half of hiring managers say they’ve recently changed their offer package to entice new employees.
72% of hiring managers say the current state of the workforce has impacted their hiring.
40% of hiring managers say they've had to expedite hiring to fill roles
Download this report to:
Learn How Your Strategies Compare - Get an inside look at how your hiring manager peers hire and retain talent.
Build More Competitive Offers - Use the latest data to ensure your offer packages align with market trends.
Optimize Your Retention Tactics - See how employers balance pay increases with flexibility and other incentives.
In a job market where 46% of workers say they’d leave a job if remote work were no longer an option, according to Pew Research Center, employer brand plays a critical role in attracting and retaining the right talent.
AI and the applicant flood
Of course, part of the problem is volume. AI-driven tools have made it easier for candidates to apply for hundreds of jobs with tailored resumes, creating an overwhelming flood of applications for hiring teams. But while technology has accelerated the pace of applications, it can also be part of the solution.
Indeed’s mobile app for hiring managers, for example, enables faster, on-the-go communication with candidates. Automated messaging systems can handle the basics: acknowledging receipt of applications, updating candidates on their status, and sending polite rejection emails when necessary. Greenhouse’s badges even reward companies for using such tools effectively.
Why candidate experience matters
In today’s job market, where top talent has more choices than ever, candidate experience isn’t a ‘nice-to-have, it’s a strategic imperative. Even companies already committed to good hiring practices are finding value in external accountability.
The bottom line is simple: ghosting candidates is more than bad manners. It’s bad business.
Companies that invest in respectful, transparent hiring practices aren’t just doing right by applicants, they’re building a stronger, more resilient employer brand in the process.
And in an increasingly transparent job market, where platforms like LinkedIn and Greenhouse now enable candidates to see who the worst offenders are, it’s an investment that pays dividends.
