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Staff Meeeting: recognizing job postings that are not real

(What questions would you like to see addressed in these Monday Morning staff meeting posts? Send us an email at: sharry@orcms.com)

Posted by Dr. Sean Harry

A reader recently sent us this question: “Any tips on recognizing job postings that are not real? Posting to make Co. look good seems to be popular these days…”

For those of you who are not familiar with this practice, sometimes companies post a position for which they already have a strong candidate “in the bag.” They are 90% certain of who they will hire, but they are under some obligation (internal or external) to post the opening to the wider public. It’s possible that some exemplary candidate will come along in the process and that they will choose to hire that person instead of the one they are leaning towards, but it’s not very likely.

We may think it’s not fair. It feels like a “bait and switch” or a waste of time, but who cares what we think? The job is the companies, not ours. They are free to hire anyone they see fit. People hire people they know and trust, so it only makes sense that they will go with their first choice most of the time.

The only way to determine if you are applying for one of these “phantom” job openings is Read the rest of this entry »