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When aggressive job candidates won't take

no for an answerBy Bob WeinsteinJuly 31, 2002, 7:00am PDT

There are many articles on how to recruit and hire talented candidates, but few that are focusedon how to politely, yet emphatically, reject unqualified candidates who just wont take no for an

answer. Just ask Ray Costello, ex-CIO of jewelry manufacturer Donald Bruce & Company,

based in Chicago. Costello could easily fill a book relating weird but true candidate rejection

scenarios.

While getting a candidates interest is half the battle, as youve sold the job, a bigger battle

looms when a candidate just wont accept rejection, despite the fact that you've told her or him

directly or have sent a thanks for applying, but letter, said Costello.

Suddenly, youre inundated with phone calls, letters, e-mails, and surprise appearances, eventhough you sent a clear message that theyre not being considered for the position, he explained,recalling several incidents in which nonhired candidates tested his patience.

A gym dandyAs his first example of the lengths to which overzealous candidates will go, Costello related an

incident in which a relentless job seeker followed him into a gym shower. It occurred about eight

years ago when Costello, then director of IT for a large Midwest retail chain, was seeking an

operations manager to run the data center. The talent pool was pretty thin, but plenty of C-gradecandidates were applying, he recalled.

Costello interviewed a candidate who submitted a great resume that turned out to be extremely

misleading (the candidate was actually a salesman in a luggage store). After the brief interview,during which Costello made it clear that the job was not the candidates for the taking, Costello

headed to his gym for a lunchtime workout.

I was taking a shower and the guy next to me says, Howd I do on the job interview? It was

the lathered-up luggage salesman, and he proceeded to enlighten me about his computer

experience, related Costello, noting that it's hard to explain how bizarre it was conducting a

formal interview with a person and then find yourself standing naked with him in the shower.Right then and there, Costello reiterated how running a cash register was not relevant computer

experience, and there was no way the candidate could be considered for the job.

The next day, I had to listen to him while we soaked in the whirlpool and then he showed up

next to me the next day when I was riding the stationary bike. He didnt stop being my lunchtime

workout buddy until I told him I filled the position. I think he thought he would grow on me overtime, said Costello.

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Candidate tenacity driven by economic crunch

Costellos experience with aggressive candidates is becoming more common than ever these

days as the job hunter population growsspurred by a tough economy and longerunemployment periods, according to Bob LoPresto, president of the technology practice at Palo

Alto, CA, executive search firm Rusher, Loscavio, and Lo Presto.

What should tech leaders do when slightly off-the-wall candidates refuse to accept rejection?The first tactic is to be tough and firm and present the rejection with irrefutable language,

explained LoPresto. Make sure the candidate gets a formal rejection letter, and that HR is copied.

Costello knows the routine only too well, but also knows that even the strongest letter might not

get the message across these days.

With the scarcity of jobs, we find that we are dealing with more aggressive job hunters, many ofwhom refuse to take no for an answer, he said, recalling how one candidates mother pulled out

all the stops to get her son a job. This time, Costello was hiring programmers and had just

concluded a long day of interviews when the switchboard operator called and said he had avisitor in the reception areasomeone named Mrs. Howard.

In the lobby, he was immediately bear-hugged by a woman who introduced herself as Kyle

Howards motherKyle being a 30-year-old programmer who had been interviewed earlier inthe week.

She brought me a bag of food and a craft plaque that she made with little painted marshmallowswhich spelled out I love my job, related Costello, and was there to thank me for hiring Kyle.

The element of surprise caught the tech leader off guard, and he responded by indicating that

Kyle was a strong candidate, but interviews were ongoing.

She told me that Kyle was out in the car and she could bring him in for me to see him again,

said Costello, adding that this sweet little mother turned into a high-pressure appliancesaleswoman and she battered me until I couldnt take it anymore.

Kyles mom tried to follow Costello up the stairs, and would have followed me into the mensroom if she had the chance. As soon as the tech leader got back to his office, he asked his

administrative assistant to type up a thanks-but-no-thanks letter for Kyle Howard and send it out

immediately.

I debated whether to send it to Kyle or to his mother, he noted.

A few days later, he got a call from Mrs. Howard.

Sheangrily scolded me for not hiring her son. The marshmallow plaque that said I love my

job did hang in my office for over five years. Thank you, Mrs. Howard, and Im sorry about

your son, said Costello.