Updated July 15, 2026
Letting a candidate know they won’t be moving forward is one of the more uncomfortable parts of hiring, and it’s easy to put off. Some recruiters and hiring managers skip the feedback altogether. Others wait days, even weeks, to deliver the news.
Sometimes the delay is real, and the decision truly hasn’t been made yet. But most of the time, the holdup is discomfort, and dragging it out turns into ghosting the candidate.
Letting too much time pass before you deliver the news hurts everyone, including your company’s reputation and the candidate’s experience of you. As Seth Godin writes:
“‘Not yet’ is the safest, easiest way to forestall change. ‘Not yet’ gives the status quo a chance to regroup and put off the inevitable for just a while longer.”
The very nature of hiring means you’ll reject far more candidates than you send offer letters to. Most applicants know this, so keep everyone in the loop during the process.
Candidates spend hours researching, preparing, and traveling for interviews. Make it a priority to be kind and let them know as soon as possible if they won’t be moving forward.
1. Deliver the news the same day you know. This is the most important rule on this list, so build it into a personal SOP: if the decision comes down on Wednesday, the candidate hears from you Wednesday, before end of day.
Same-day delivery keeps the dread from festering, keeps loops closed, and lets candidates put their energy into opportunities that are still alive. Commit to it, and it gets easier every time. Eventually you’ll be dialing before your brain catches up with the message.
2. If they made it past the first round: email first, then call. A candidate who reached a second round or beyond gave you real time, so close the loop twice. Send an email letting them know you won’t be moving forward, then follow it with a call.
The email puts the decision on record so it can’t slip through the cracks, and it gives the candidate time to process before you speak. The call is where you close the loop personally.
3. If they stopped at a first interview: email is enough. One conversation doesn’t obligate specific feedback. Thank them for their time, tell them the decision, and keep it warm. Skip the rejection template, though. It’s efficient, but it reads cold and impersonal.
4. Be complimentary, and get to the point. The goal is a candidate who walks away feeling valued, not flawed, because today’s runner-up may be exactly who you want for the next opening. Let them know you won’t be moving them forward right now and that you’ll keep their information on record if another opportunity surfaces. Warm, but direct.
5. Skip the personal feedback. If a candidate showed up disheveled or lacked focus, keep it to yourself. Feedback that personal helps no one and wounds on the way out. When the real reasons don’t bear sharing, the graceful exit is: “It was a tough choice, but we moved forward with a few other candidates.” True, kind, and complete.
Hiring Manager: Unfortunately, we won’t be moving forward with your candidacy. If you’re open to some feedback, I’m happy to share it.
Candidate: Yes, I’d appreciate your thoughts.
Hiring Manager: We noticed you had a hard time with the scenario questions in the technical portion. That part of the interview carries a lot of weight for this role.
Candidate: I realized that right after the interview, I just got nervous. Thanks for sharing the feedback. I enjoyed meeting the team. If things don’t work out with your first choice, please don’t hesitate to reach out, I’m sure I won’t be so nervous next time.
Most candidates will respect the feedback even when they disagree with it, and many will disagree. Expect push-back. It’s normal, and they’ll still appreciate knowing where they stand.
One exception: if a candidate showed behavior that clashes with your values, like exaggerating achievements or trashing their boss, feedback probably won’t help, so keep it brief. Technical mistakes are worth mentioning because they’re easy to correct and help the candidate prepare for the next interview.
Judgment errors usually aren’t yours to fix, so move on with minimal explanation.
Hiring Manager: Amy, I’m sorry, but we won’t be moving forward with you in the process.
Candidate: That’s disappointing. I was really looking forward to next steps. Do you have any feedback you can share?
Hiring Manager: We’ve had a lot of interest in this opening, so it’s been very competitive. We’re moving forward with other candidates for now, but if things change, I’ll let you know. I appreciate your time and interest, and I wish you the best of luck with your search.
Candidate: Thank you. I appreciate the call and your consideration. Let me know if anything changes. I’m still very interested in your organization.
Sometimes the real reason a candidate didn’t get the job wouldn’t help them to hear.
I worked with a VP of Sales candidate who was dynamic, charismatic, and carried a strong track record. He interviewed with my client and was sold on the role from the start. He was the kind of leader who could make anyone feel welcome.
The outgoing VP of Sales met with him and decided he was too “retail.” Whatever that means.
I didn’t pass that along. The same client had told me another candidate, from IBM, was too “Silicon Valley,” so I didn’t see the label as feedback anyone could use.
Some feedback corrects; some just wounds. Knowing the difference will keep you out of unnecessary and awkward conversations.
It was a tough call to make anyway. After a long interview cycle, you’re invested in your candidates, and even now my throat tightens, and I can hear the distance in my own voice as I deliver the news. The call gets made anyway, and my candidates understand and respect it.
Here’s what handling rejection well buys you.
We turned down a strong candidate for a director-level role. It was painful, because I thought he’d be a great fit. We emailed him, then called to close the loop, and he was disappointed but understood.
We asked if we could keep him in mind for other roles, and he said yes, of course. He loved our client company and what they are doing with the department.
A week later, the candidate the client hired, a referral from the CRO, didn’t show up for his first day. So we called our number two back.
He was still interested, and he took the role. Eighteen months later, he’s been recognized by the CEO as someone who accomplishes every goal that’s put in front of him.
That outcome only exists because the rejection was handled with care. If he’d been ghosted, or strung along for weeks, that call-back goes nowhere, and the client starts a new search with an empty seat and a no-show story.
Not every applicant is owed the same response, so set a tiered standard your team can follow through on.
A random application from a job board doesn’t require a personal reply. But anyone who interviewed gets an answer, and anyone who reached a final round must get one, no exceptions.
The bar is lower than you’d think. I talked to a candidate today who went to a seventh round and then was ghosted. Seven rounds of his time, and nobody at the company could spare two minutes to close the loop.
Why hold the standard? Because candidates are people who matter, and because it pays: more referrals, more warm call-backs like our director, and more of the right hires. The runner-up you treat well today is the VP-track hire you call next week.
Closing the loop is the final step of a sales interview process candidates respect, even the ones who didn’t get the job.
If you’re thinking about hiring for your next sales role, our software sales recruiters would love to talk through your hiring situation.
