Are All These Job Postings I See Online Actually Real?

Applying for a new job can be a labor-intensive process that seemingly takes place in a vacuum. No matter how organized you are, no matter what personal goals you set and meet (e.g, five applications a week), no matter how many people in your network you tap, sometimes the response is silence. What’s happening out there in the job void? Are any of these jobs real?

Whether or not you can see the evidence, the first thing to understand is that probably 95% of job postings are legitimate. Here’s why:

• Recruitment is a major expense and posting job openings is part of that budget. The bill from job board vendors like LinkedIn, Indeed, and Monster may not be excessive on their own, but when added to every other recruiting expense it can add up fast. Most companies aren’t going to record an expense in their general ledger unless it’s necessary.

• Job postings trigger a deluge of resumes, cover letters, phone calls, emails, etc. The administration required to manage this sudden increase draws time and resources away from other work and can be extreme if a business is recruiting for many positions at once.

• A company that employs “phantom” job positions for whatever reason risks irreparable reputational harm. I’m not saying phantom jobs don’t occur, but they’re not the norm.

If the jobs are real, how come you haven’t heard back from anyone? The second thing to understand is that most employers will communicate with you, it may just take longer than you want. It can be frustrating to be put in “hurry up and wait” mode when you need money coming in and you’re being as aggressive as your circumstances warrant. Unfortunately, employers operate on their schedules, and many factors may delay or extend the job process.

• A primary reason companies move quickly or get picky is who has the leverage in the labor market. Leverage moves in cycles. One-year employers have the leverage, the next employees do. Now, in the post-pandemic marketplace, the pendulum has swung back to companies that have the luxury of taking excessive steps to make sure they hire the right person. Nobody wants to invest in a new hire that turns out to be a “quiet quitter.” The process may be longer and more drawn out. There may be more interviews or more staff involved in making the hiring decision. Whatever the case, companies are taking their time.

• Even if companies aren’t deliberately taking extra time, interviews take time! Most recruiters, especially at large desirable companies, manage many open positions at once. Scheduling a single interview with a candidate and applicable staff can be a puzzle with no edge pieces. The higher up the ladder participants reside, the more difficult it is for the recruiter to lock them into a date and time. If they need to drop out for any reason and request a postponement, then recruiters have no choice but to start over. Multiply those realities across many open positions and the sheer workflow guarantees the process moves like a horse and buggy instead of a sports car.

• The opposite can also be true. Instead of recruiting candidates and the staff required to hire them, company recruiters can be flooded with requests from many people who want to get in on the hiring process whether they really should be or not. The math here is basic. The more people involved means the scheduling takes longer and reaching a consensus at every stage takes longer. Consequently, the time it takes for a company to let you know your status takes longer.

• Many companies have recruiting policies that favor internal candidates but also require (or encourage) a certain number of external candidates for consideration. This prolongs the hiring process as companies interview their internal candidate first.  

• A company may extend an offer to their favored candidate only for the recipient to fail the background check. Now the process starts over. That’s why you may suddenly be asked to come in for an interview by a company that you thought you might never hear from again.

• In the same category, but worse, sometimes companies hire somebody and their new hire doesn’t show up on their first day. No-shows may be inconceivable, but it happens, and the hiring process starts over.

• ·      Some jobs are “evergreen jobs” because of their high turnover so their job postings run  24/7/365. For example, movie theaters employ many students (high school and college) on the front lines – box office, taking tickets, ushers, and concession stands. During summer and holidays, there are many applicants and during the months students are in school recruiting is more challenging. Thus, theaters will have rolling open positions.

As a job seeker, there isn’t a lot you can do to make the needle move faster. However, keep these tips in mind.

• Follow up with the recruiter (once) within reason. Be sensitive to the positions described in this post. They are stretched thin and managing many different positions and people. Don’t make their lives more difficult or the gatekeeper will close the gate.

• If you want to “speak to the manager” that is your right. If you don’t know who the hiring manager is, you can use a resource like LinkedIn to find out who they may be and reach out to them to see if you’re in the mix and get a status update. The same anti-stalking rules apply.

• If you have a job offer from your second choice and have already interviewed with your first choice, you can leverage the offer to get an answer (or even another offer) out of them.

• Be proactive. Accept that different job processes have varying time frames and you always risk never hearing back from a company to which you apply in a timely way or at all. Keep moving! Keep applying! Your dream job is out there.

Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.