You're about to reject a candidate who spent hours interviewing with your team. They prepared, they showed up, they invested emotional energy in the possibility of working for you. And now you have to tell them no.

Most recruiters handle this terribly. Generic emails, vague feedback, or worse - complete ghosting. Here's how to reject candidates in a way that doesn't make them trash your company on Glassdoor.

Speed Matters More Than You Think

The longer you wait to reject someone, the more their hope builds and the worse the rejection feels. If you know someone's not moving forward, tell them quickly.

Ideally within 24-48 hours of the decision. Definitely within a week. Letting someone wait three weeks for a rejection is cruel, and they remember it.

Ditch the Generic Template

"After careful consideration, we've decided to move forward with other candidates whose qualifications more closely match our needs."

This tells candidates nothing. It's the recruiting equivalent of "It's not you, it's me." Nobody believes it, and it feels dismissive.

If you can't provide specific feedback, at least acknowledge their effort and be honest about the decision.

Give Actual Feedback (When You Can)

The legal team is going to hate this advice, but: when possible, give candidates real feedback about why they didn't advance.

Not: "We found someone with a better culture fit." Yes: "The role requires deep experience with enterprise SaaS sales, and your background is primarily in SMB. That's a significant gap for this particular position."

Be specific. Be kind. Focus on the role requirements, not personal deficiencies.

Can't give feedback due to legal concerns? Say that clearly. "Our policy doesn't allow me to provide specific feedback, but I want you to know this was a competitive process and your qualifications are strong."

Leave the Door Open (If You Mean It)

If the candidate was good but not right for this role, say so.

"While you're not the right fit for this senior role, I was impressed by your skills in X and Y. I'd love to keep your information on file for future opportunities that might be a better match."

Then actually keep them in your pipeline. Tag them in your ATS. Reach out when a relevant role opens.

If you don't mean it, don't say it. Empty promises are worse than clean rejections.

Acknowledge Their Investment

Candidates spent time on your process. Acknowledge that.

"I know you invested significant time in our interview process, including the presentation you prepared. I want you to know that was valuable and we appreciated the effort."

This costs you nothing and means everything to someone processing rejection.

Respond to Follow-Up Questions

If a candidate replies asking for more feedback or clarity, respond. You don't have to write a novel, but a brief, thoughtful reply shows respect.

The candidates who ask for feedback are often the ones trying to improve. Help them if you can. They'll remember you positively even in rejection.

What Not to Do

Never ghost candidates after interviews. Never send a rejection at 5 PM on a Friday (wait until Monday). Never blame the hiring manager or throw your team under the bus. Never say "we'll keep your resume on file" if your ATS auto-deletes applicants after 90 days.

The Long Game

Every rejection is a chance to build or destroy your employer brand. Rejected candidates talk - to friends, on Glassdoor, on social media, in industry groups.

Handle rejection with respect, and you'll have candidates who say "I didn't get the job, but they were incredibly professional about it." Handle it poorly, and you'll have candidates warning others to avoid your company entirely.

The way you treat people on their worst day with your company (the rejection) says more about your culture than any careers page copy ever will. Make it count.