How to respond to desperate job applicant?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do you want her to play hard to get? It’s not a date. She is expressing that she is eager for the job and wants to start ASAP, and that she is willing to do any job you have. And she is qualified. I mean I wouldn’t follow up every day , but I would probably be tempted to when I was younger and hungrier. I don’t get why eagerness to work would be a detriment.

Completely agree. I'd cut the candidate some slack.

[Anonymous]

sending repeated emails like that over the weekend is a huge red flag. Being eager is a good thing, but bombarding anyone with repeated emails over the weekend shows poor judgment. I would not want this person to interact with clients/vendors in this manner. Perhaps this is just eager beaver behavior from someone who is young and doesn't know better.


If they're otherwise good, give them a shot but also explain to them how you expect them to communicate internally and externally. A lot of professional behavior can only be learned on the job. Perhaps she does not have the experience yet to know any better?

My old company had a job posting which I passed on to the career services folks at my old school. I explicitly asked people to email their resumes to me if they were interested.

One eager beaver disregarded that and emailed our managing director with her resume. It was off putting and got me into a bit of hot water. Needless to say, in spite of the fact that she was probably qualified to at least interview, she did not get an interview because of her tactics.

[Anonymous]

I'd hire her

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s one thing to be eager. But it’s another thing to blatantly say “I need the money”. Yikes. Sounds like they care more about getting paid than the role.

Would you do your job for free? No? Don’t perpetuate this.

OP - are you planning on hiring this person? Just straight out say the process is a little slower than you would like, but you will be in touch. I wouldn’t change my hiring decision based on this. S/he is hungry, broke, inflation is high, but qualified for the job, right? Throw them a bone.

You NEVER say “I need this job cause I really need the money” during the interview process. The company will bring it up during the offer. This is business 101

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s one thing to be eager. But it’s another thing to blatantly say “I need the money”. Yikes. Sounds like they care more about getting paid than the role.

Everyone does, for nearly every job. The applicant said the quiet part out loud, which is not good judgment.

[Anonymous]

I'd be reluctant to hire someone who doesn't understand social norms.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s one thing to be eager. But it’s another thing to blatantly say “I need the money”. Yikes. Sounds like they care more about getting paid than the role.

Everyone does, for nearly every job. The applicant said the quiet part out loud, which is not good judgment.

I’m PP. exactly you don’t say that part outloud.

[Anonymous]

Is she very young? If she is early 20s and new to the professional world, I’d be more lenient and tend to overlook her awkward/desperate communication. I’m saying this as someone who had no family or place to go after graduation if I couldn’t find a job: I definitely came off as desperate in some interviews and communication because I WAS desperate. In some ways, though, I was a better employee in those days because I truly needed the job and was so thankful to be able to afford my own apartment, etc. This could be a young person who is a little rough around the edges because she does not have a support base to help her understand the interview process and to ensure that she has a home/safety until she actually finds a job.

If this is a person in their late 20s or older, I’d avoid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We have an open admin position. This applicant has all of the experience we need, references were solid, but they are hounding us for the position.

They have followed up every day since our initial phone screen. The first was a general thank you for your time I am very interested in pursuing this position further. Then we did the in person interview Thursday and I said we would be reaching out to references. They sent follow up emails Friday, Saturday, and Sunday asking about references progress and saying they really need a job. I updated them yesterday and said we had connected with one reference, are waiting for at least one more to respond, and I will keep them updated. Then this morning I have an email "Good morning, any further progress on my references? I really need this job and to start working as I have no money. If not this job, I am open to any job you have available that I can start as soon as possible. Thank you".

To say the least, this is awkward and uncomfortable. How do I professionally respond to this and would you still consider them for the job?

I'll never forget leaving a message that I'd received a second offer I needed to respond to asap and if I was their backup or they were rejecting me to just let me know immediately. No rejection after 3 messages. I called from a different phone number and the recruiter picked up on the first ring. I told her I wouldn't ever call again and I that I was taking the other position. But then, I dissuaded everyone I knew from dealing with the company and their "first choice" rejected them too. OP, you owe the candidate honesty. Tell her other candidates have had to wait 4 weeks for onboarding. Tell her you usually give references 2.5 weeks to respond. Ask her if she has another reference. Tell her there are no immediate hiring positions or that you can forward her resume to the custodial services or whatever other department. Tell her if she needs money to find a company with immediate hiring needs, to go with them. If you treat people right, she may send over referrals of better candidates, or be the best employee you ever had. If she is too pushy/thirsty to hire , you are justified and that is fine to tell her, but you are DEFINITELY not being forthcoming enough. It is not going to kill you to be open and it makes you look more professional.

[Anonymous]

I would pass - they are going to hound you for raises and promotions as soon as they are hired or generally be needy. I had a woman like this and it was never enough. We have an annual schedule for raises and a process to apply for open roles and she would just hound me constantly even though I don’t control HR or the company process / annual cycle.
This candidate is not demonstrating the ability to act professionally or communicate effectively. If this is her best behavior, is this who you want supporting leadership as an admin?

[Anonymous]

Would this person have any access to money or things worth money if they got the job? If the answer is yes, do not give them the job.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would this person have any access to money or things worth money if they got the job? If the answer is yes, do not give them the job.

LOL are you calling someone a thief because they are expressing interest in a job? Please explain your mental gymnastics because Nobody deserves to be called a criminal for breaking social norms.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It’s one thing to be eager. But it’s another thing to blatantly say “I need the money”. Yikes. Sounds like they care more about getting paid than the role.

Newsflash - we all care more about getting paid than the role.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It’s one thing to be eager. But it’s another thing to blatantly say “I need the money”. Yikes. Sounds like they care more about getting paid than the role.

Newsflash - we all care more about getting paid than the role.

Yea I didn’t go to college for 8 years to not collect a fat check

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would this person have any access to money or things worth money if they got the job? If the answer is yes, do not give them the job.

LOL are you calling someone a thief because they are expressing interest in a job? Please explain your mental gymnastics because Nobody deserves to be called a criminal for breaking social norms.

Desperate people do desperate things. This is why companies check credit scores of potential new hires.