I think the piece does a decent job of laying out the advantages of being responsive in this way: you're creating an opening for referrals, you're increasing the chances of your rejection pool transforming into a future hiring pool, and you're building a positive reputation. I also suspect that there might be some positive effect on the actual hiring process -- someone who knows they're going to have articulate their decision might be more thorough in the process of making it. I don't know if it's a decisive advantage, but it seems reasonable enough.
The part I'm curious about at this point is if anyone has actually gotten good at eliciting this kind of feedback during/after the interview process.
Usually, it's better to just move on to the next opportunity, but as I've said elsewhere in this discussion[0], I occasionally come across a job that I know I'd like to be able to apply for again if I don't get it, and in those cases, I try to send follow up notes asking for suggestions to become a more competitive applicant.
My response rate is 1 out of about a dozen or so.
It's possible this is actually pretty good considering the facts on the ground (people are busy/time is scarce, that's why they're hiring, and nobody wants to open themselves to legal threats).
I'm just wondering if anyone has learned to do considerably better.
The part I'm curious about at this point is if anyone has actually gotten good at eliciting this kind of feedback during/after the interview process.
Usually, it's better to just move on to the next opportunity, but as I've said elsewhere in this discussion[0], I occasionally come across a job that I know I'd like to be able to apply for again if I don't get it, and in those cases, I try to send follow up notes asking for suggestions to become a more competitive applicant.
My response rate is 1 out of about a dozen or so.
It's possible this is actually pretty good considering the facts on the ground (people are busy/time is scarce, that's why they're hiring, and nobody wants to open themselves to legal threats).
I'm just wondering if anyone has learned to do considerably better.
[0] https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=6524750