[CSDude]

At least you have been told the reasons, even if they are true or not. I recently had many tech/behavioral interview with team and passed, but after a review with VP of X, saying we decided not to move forward is way worse than this. I still keeep wondering 'What is wrong with me?' even after years of interviews. I have some suspicions, but never a promising answer. If I oneday found a company, first company policy would be to tell the candidates to tell why they were not hired in a polite way.

[jedberg]

> first company policy would be to tell the candidates to tell why they were not hired in a polite way.

And your lawyers would strongly advocate against that.

In most cases they can't/won't tell you because it could open up legal liability. If they say a reason for you, but then hire someone else to whom that reason also applies and you find out, you could sue them. Or you could find a way to twist it into something against a protected class. Too many ways for the company to get screwed.

That's why they all say "we've decided to go another way" or something equally generic.

[yuhong]

This is part of why I dislike employment anti-discrimination laws. They probably worked better for manual labor jobs. Of course, there is also firing where the laws vary by state. I think CA is one of the most strict, right?

[FireBeyond]

Even just a little 'context' can help. I had a candidate ask me after the last position I held interviews for "Can you tell me what to improve? I was honestly surprised I didn't get the position, given how well our interviews went".

And he was right, too.

But I broke it down as follows. We received 300+ applications, we filtered down to 100 that were worth even reading in detail. From those we took 50 that we discussed/scored as a group, and came up with 15 people we wanted to interview. Of those we interviewed 10, and of those we interviewed 5 a second time, and 3 a (brief) third time.

"So yes, you did well, and we'd like to keep your name and reach out" (said sincerely). But for him knowing that he didn't screw something up, there was just an even better candidate and he was realistically still in the top 1-2% of applicants was confidence-boosting.

[kolinko]

How about talking to a therapist / counsellor / coach that specialises in professionals?

Even one or two sessions can help you a lot - they are trained in pinpointing "soft" issues.

[emplynx]

The reasons are rarely shared unsolicited. It's usually because I asked (no harm in that) or knew someone on the inside.

[smilekzs]

My $0.02: Headcount is a major reason and you totally don't have to feel sad about it.