Why Recruiters Don’t Respond to Job Applications: And How to Get Noticed!

Have you ever felt like screaming at the top of your voice in frustration at not getting a response from recruiters while applying for jobs? You spend hours crafting the perfect resume, hit that submit button with hope in your heart, and then… crickets. It’s baffling, right? You’re left wondering, “Why am I not hearing back from job applications?” or “Why do recruiters ignore applications?”

In fact, as per a SHRM report, 34% of candidates from a survey reported not hearing back from the recruiter in over 60 days and only 7% were notified of not getting the job.

Well, I’ve managed hundreds of recruiters for global companies during my long career and know that it can be worse than that. Before you start blaming the recruiters, please know that amongst various reasons, one of the main reasons is that in a lot of companies they are swamped, their workload could be at an all-time high and therefore they may not have time to respond to all candidates.

The good news? By the time you finish reading this article, you’ll understand why recruiters don’t respond and, more importantly, how to get a response from recruiters in a crowded job market.

Why Don’t Recruiters Respond to My Job Application Right Away?

First, let us understand why you do not hear back from recruiters. There are multiple factors at play and let us understand them step by step.

Recruiters Are Engaged In Multiple Activities Pulling Them In Different Directions

Let me paint the real scenario of a typical recruiter routine for you. When a recruiter walks into her office on a Monday morning and opens her computer, she may find her inbox flooded with 200 new applications. And that’s just for one position she posted last week. If you multiply that number by another 20-30 jobs she might be working on and the influx of applications against each, you will get the picture of what she is faced with.

Now, you might be thinking, “Well, that’s her job, isn’t it?”. You’re right, it is. But what you may not know or understand – reviewing applications is just one part of a recruiter’s jam-packed day. Let us look below at what else the typical recruiter has to spend their time on during the day:

In addition, they also are involved in:

• Meetings: They’re constantly touching base with hiring managers to understand role requirements and discuss candidates.
• Candidate Engagement: Touching base with shortlisted and selected candidates
• Reporting: Maintain accurate records of candidate interactions and report recruitment metrics in and outside of ATS.
• Branding: Attending events including Job fairs from time to time

So, when you’re not hearing back from job applications, it’s not because they’re ignoring you or sipping margaritas by the pool. The reality of recruiter workload means that sometimes, unfortunately, responding to every applicant becomes virtually impossible for them to manage.

ATS Systems May Screen Your Application Out

It is important to understand the process of what happens after you apply for a job online and how the ATS can become another hurdle in getting a response from recruiters.

What is an ATS? Think of it as a super-smart software system that is supposed to help recruiters organize and search through applications. Here’s what it does:

• Keyword Matching: The ATS scans your resume for keywords that match the job description. If your resume does not have the keywords the recruiter is looking for, the ATS will not serve up your resume to the recruiter at all. This is why optimizing your resume is crucial for getting noticed by recruiters.
• Ranking: Based on how well your resume matches the job requirements, the ATS assigns you a ranking. The higher your ranking, the more likely a human will actually see your application.
• Filtering: Some ATSs can automatically filter out applications that don’t meet basic requirements, like education level or years of experience.

In other words, your application may or may not make it to the recruiter and therefore your chances of getting a response are likely to depend on this filtering process.

Human Screening Too Has An Impact On Recruiter Communication

Once applications make it through the ATS, it presents to the recruiters the resumes in order of match with requirements. If yours is not optimized per the job, chances are it will sit somewhere at the bottom of the pile and will never be noticed by the recruiter. An analogy would be where you do not look beyond the first or second page of search results when Google serves up hundreds of pages of likely results.

Next the recruiters will start their human screening process typically looking at the top 10 matches and the following:

• Qualifications: Do you have the must-have skills and experience for the role?
• Culture Fit: Based on your resume and cover letter, do you seem like you’d mesh well with the company culture?
• Red Flags: Things like job-hopping or unexplained employment gaps might raise questions.

Hopefully, it is becoming clear to you that if the recruiter did not see your resume or disqualified you, chances are you will not be hearing back.

Prioritization May Cause Recruiters To Ignore Some Applications

Another reason the recruiter may not see your application or ignore it resulting in no communication, is that they may prioritize other applications based on a few factors:

1. Internal Candidates: Many companies have policies for recruiters to consider internal applicants first.
2. Employee Referrals: A recommendation from a current employee will get preferene over yours.
3. Direct Matches: If someone else’s experience aligns perfectly with what they’re looking for, they will likely get a closer look.
4. Urgency of the Role: Is this a position they need to fill ASAP? If so, they might review the first 5 or 10 applications more quickly.

The Recruiting Numbers Game: Recruiter Workload Impacts Communication

If recruiters have too much workload on their plate, you may not hear back from them. Let’s understand why. On average, a corporate recruiter may manage about 30-40 open positions at any given time. Now, multiply that by the number of applications each position receives. We’re talking hundreds, sometimes thousands of resumes to sift through.

Here’s a quick breakdown:

That’s a lot of job applications to process! Even if the positions are slightly less than this example, it is still a lot of applications. Hopefully, you get the picture!

The Recruiter Time Crunch: How It Affects Recruiter Communication

Let’s do some quick math. If a recruiter spends just 5 minutes reviewing each application (which is generous), and they receive 250 applications for one job, that’s about 21 hours of resume review. For one job.

Now, remember all those other tasks we talked about earlier? Interviews, meetings, offer negotiations? Yeah, those don’t magically disappear. So, recruiters often find themselves in a time crunch, trying to balance all their responsibilities.

The “Hot” Job Factor: What It Means for Your Application Visibility and Communication

This is another interesting factor that impacts recruiter communication. Not all of the positions recruiters work on are created equal. Some jobs are designated by the company or hiring managers as “hot” jobs. These are:

• Positions that need to be filled ASAP
• Roles for high-priority projects
• Jobs for important clients or departments

When a recruiter has a “hot” job on their plate, guess what happens? Yep, it gets more attention. They might spend more time sourcing candidates, reviewing applications, and following up quickly for those jobs.

On the flip side, this means other positions might get pushed to the back burner. It’s not fair, but it’s also a reason why recruiters don’t respond to all applications equally.

You May Have Applied to an Expired or Fake job Posting

You are not likely to get any response to your job application if you have unknowingly applied to an advertised job that has already been filled or the company has no intent of filling. Please read the article for more details.

Pie chart depicting the percentage distribution of reasons why recruiters don’t respond to job applicants:

What This Means for Your Job Search Success?

As you can see there are multiple reasons why may not hear back from the recruiters. It is not that they do not want to but the reality is that they can’t.

So what do you do? You need to be smart about how you apply. You need to make your application stand out and impossible to ignore.

In the next sections, we’ll dive deeper into specific strategies to help you navigate this process and improve your chances of getting that coveted recruiter response.

How to Stand Out to Recruiters

Based on my experience leading recruiters for multiple global companies, I can tell you that regardless of the industry, there are some tried-and-true strategies you can apply to get noticed by recruiters and improve your chances of getting a job response.

Optimize For ATS: The Key To Getting A Response From Recruiters

Your goal is to get ATS to work for you, not against you. Here’s how to create an ATS-friendly resume:

1. Use Keywords Wisely: Look at the job description and make sure your resume includes key terms they’re looking for.
2. Keep Formatting Simple: Fancy fonts and complex layouts might look pretty, but they can confuse ATS systems. Stick to clean, simple formats.
3. Use Standard Section Headings: “Work Experience,” “Education,” “Skills” – these are the headings ATS systems are trained to look for.
4. Avoid Images and Graphics: Most ATS systems can’t read these, so stick to text.
5. Save in the Right Format: Unless otherwise specified, a .docx file is usually your best bet for ATS compatibility.

Customize Your Resume: A Crucial Step In Standing Out

I can’t stress this enough – a one-size-fits-all resume just doesn’t cut it anymore. Here’s how to tailor your resume for each job:

1. Mirror the Job Description: Use similar language to what’s in the job posting.
2. Highlight Relevant Experience: Reorder your bullet points to put the most relevant experiences for this specific job at the top.
3. Quantify Your Achievements: Use data, facts, figures as much as possible. Numbers catch the eye and prove your impact.
4. Customize Your Summary: That little blurb at the top of your resume? Tailor it to each job, highlighting why you’re perfect for this specific role.

Craft a Killer Cover Letter: Another Tool For Getting Noticed

You might be thinking- do recruiters have the time to read cover letters if they do not have time to look at resumes? The answer is it depends. Some job postings specifically ask for it and you must submit one. Also assuming that your resume and LinkedIn profile are ATS optimized and puts you in front of the line, your cover letter may then distinguish you from other good applicants, if it is written well. Here’s how to write one that’ll get noticed:

1. Keep It Concise: Aim for 3-4 short paragraphs. Recruiters don’t have time for your life story.
2. Show You’ve Done Your Homework: Mention something specific about the company that excites you. It shows you’re genuinely interested.
3. Address the “Why”: Why this role? Why this company? Why you? Answer these questions clearly and concisely.
4. End with a Call to Action: Express your enthusiasm for the next steps in the process.

Please reach out to me for some free templates you can use.

In the next section, we’ll talk about what to do after you’ve submitted this stellar application. Because sometimes, even the best job application needs a little follow-up love to ensure you get a response from recruiters.

Following Up On A Job Application

In my career, whenever a candidate has followed up, they have been able to get more of my attention than others who have not. Sounds logical? So don’t sit back and wait – follow up! But there’s a right way to do it. Let’s break down some effective strategies on when to follow up on a job application to improve your chances of getting a response from recruiters.

When To Follow Up After Applying For A Job

First things first – timing is everything. You don’t want to seem desperate or pushy, but you also don’t want your application to get lost in the shuffle. Here’s what I found to be the right timeline:

Based on the timeline:

Based on the type of jobs:

• For standard applications: Wait about 1-2 weeks before following up.
• For jobs with a closing date: Wait until a few days after the closing date.
• For jobs you’re really excited about: You can send a “thank you for considering my application” email right after applying, then follow up properly after a week.

The Follow-Up Email: How To Craft It For Job Search Success

Now, let’s talk about how to write that follow-up email. The key here is to be polite, and brief, to add value, and to show continued interest in the job.

For a free template that you can use, please feel free to reach out to me.

The Do’s and Don’ts Of Following Up

Following up can be a bit of a tightrope walk. Here are some do’s and don’ts to keep in mind:

What To Do When Recruiters Don’t Reply

If you’ve followed up once or twice and still haven’t heard anything, it’s probably time to move on. But don’t get discouraged! Here are some strategies to improve your chances of getting a job response:

1. Keep Applying: Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Continue applying to other positions that interest you.
2. Refine Your Approach: Use each application as a learning experience. Tweak your resume and cover letter based on the jobs you’re applying for.
3. Network: Sometimes, knowing someone inside the company can make all the difference. Attend industry events, join professional groups on LinkedIn, and reach out to alumni from your school.
4. Improve Your Skills: If you’re consistently not hearing back, it might be time to upskill. Look for courses or certifications that could make you more competitive in your field.
5. Consider Working with a Recruiter: Recruiters in staffing agencies can be great advocates for you and may have insider knowledge about why you’re not getting responses.

Remember, not hearing back from recruiters doesn’t necessarily reflect on your worth as a professional. It’s often just a symptom of the overwhelming recruiter workload we discussed earlier.

Conclusion: 5 Key Takeaways:

1. Recruiters aren’t ignoring you on purpose: They’re often overwhelmed with applications and responsibilities, which is why you might not be hearing back from job applications as quickly as you’d like.
2. Optimize for ATS: Ensure your resume is ATS-friendly by using relevant keywords, simple formatting, and standard section headings. This is crucial for getting past the first hurdle in the application process.
3. Try to get someone to refer you: Your resume will be noticed from amongst a sea of applicants if an employee refers you or if you directly reached out to a decision-maker.
4. Follow Up Strategically: Don’t be afraid to follow up on your application, but do it thoughtfully. Wait 1-2 weeks, be polite and concise, and offer additional value in your follow-up communication.
5. Stand Out Through Customization: Tailor each application to the specific job and company. Use the job description as your guide, highlight relevant experiences, and show genuine interest in your cover letter.

By implementing these strategies, you’ll significantly improve your chances of getting a response from recruiters. Remember, persistence and smart tactics are key in the job search process. Keep refining your approach, and don’t let temporary setbacks discourage you. Your dream job is out there, and with these tools, you’re now better equipped to land it. Good luck in your job search! For coaching help please reach out.