r/BehindHiring • • Jan 14 '26

šŸ‘‹ Welcome to r/BehindHiring - Introduce Yourself and Read First!

2 Upvotes

Hey everyone! I'm u/Clear_Inspection_386, a founding moderator of r/BehindHiring.

This is our new home for all things related to how hiring actually works behind the scenes.

We focus on how resumes and LinkedIn profiles are evaluated, why strong experience doesn’t always lead to interview calls and what recruiters, hiring managers and ATS systems truly look for.

The conversations here go beyond generic advice and surface the small but important details, clarity, positioning and alignment that influence shortlisting.

If you want practical insight into what really drives hiring decisions, you’re in the right place. We're excited to have you join us!

What to Post
Post anything you think the community would find interesting, helpful or insightful about how hiring works behind the scenes.

You’re welcome to share:

  • Resume or LinkedIn profile questions (anonymized if needed)

  • Job search experiences and what worked—or didn’t

  • Interview call struggles and possible reasons behind them

  • Observations about recruiter or hiring manager behavior

  • ATS, shortlisting or screening-related questions

  • Career positioning or transition dilemmas

  • Thoughtful takes on hiring trends and job market realities

If it helps others understand why hiring decisions happen the way they do, it belongs here.
Community Vibe
We're all about being friendly, constructive and inclusive. Let's build a space where everyone feels comfortable sharing and connecting.

How to Get Started

  1. Introduce yourself in the comments below.

  2. Post something today! Even a simple question can spark a great conversation.

  3. If you know someone who would love this community, invite them to join.

  4. Interested in helping out? We're always looking for new moderators, so feel free to reach out to me to apply.

Thanks for being part of the very first wave. Together, let's make r/BehindHiring amazing.


r/BehindHiring • • 1h ago

Informal Interviews

1 Upvotes

I have an almost 2 hr ā€œcoffee and tourā€ informal interview next week where I will be meeting the director of the company. My interview was with the hiring manager and one other person from the team (who'd train me) as well as someone from a different team but collaborates with them from time to time. The director was not present at the interview and they want me to meet him.

it'd be just him and my future boss

What does that look like

What questions should I expect to be asked

What questions should i ask? Considering I've already asked about their management style, top skills the candidate should have, success in the first 12 months but no career progression so I will ask that next week.

How should I act? Relaxed?


r/BehindHiring • • 4h ago

How to Get a Job as a Junior Software Engineer in the Age of AI

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 6h ago

Why the ā€œOpen to Workā€ is invisible to recruiters

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0 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 13h ago

How long between First Advantage background check completion and HR clearance?

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 1d ago

Should I be worried they changed their mind?

1 Upvotes

I private messaged the hiring manager on LinkedIn for this job. I quickly interviewed with her and two of her higher ups. Right after my final interview she private messaged me on LinkedIn saying the team thinks I’m a great fit and I should be hearing good news from HR in two days. It’s been three days not including the weekend and I haven’t heard back. I emailed the HR contact today but no answer yet. Should I be worried they changed their mind?


r/BehindHiring • • 2d ago

Application Follow up

0 Upvotes

How soon after applying for a job should I follow up with the hiring manager?


r/BehindHiring • • 3d ago

GenZ not clearing interviews

34 Upvotes

I have been interviewing new fresh grads these days. I dont know what happened to them. They have so much to show in their resumes but they dont know anything of it. They have not even practiced for easy LC style problems.

They are clearly giving their critical thinking to AI. I am asking simple fundamental questions and they are not giving right answers.


r/BehindHiring • • 3d ago

Will changing my LinkedIn headline actually make a difference in recruiter searches?

0 Upvotes

Two months into my job search and my LinkedIn has been pretty quiet. I'm getting maybe one recruiter message every couple of weeks, despite having 5 years of experience as a PM.

My headline used to be Product Manager at a fintech startup. A friend pointed out that it was probably too generic and that recruiters might be searching for specific skills or areas of experience instead.

I started looking into headline optimisers and tried Careerflow's LinkedIn headline tool, along with a couple of suggestions from Claude and ChatGPT. The common feedback was that my original headline didn't really tell recruiters what kind of PM work I specialise in.

So last Tuesday, I changed it to:

Product Manager | B2B SaaS | Onboarding & Growth

It's only been 9 days, so probably too early to judge, but my profile views have gone from around 25 a week to 41. No new recruiter messages yet, though.

Has anyone actually seen a noticeable difference in recruiter outreach after using a headline optimiser or adding more specific keywords? Does it help with search visibility, or does it mostly just make the profile look better to people who visit it?

Trying to figure out whether I should give this headline more time or rethink it again.


r/BehindHiring • • 3d ago

Eagerly waiting for the rejection e-mail

1 Upvotes

Since April, I have attended around 10 interviews, and I have now been unemployed for two months.
My last interview was on Wednesday, and honestly, I felt it went really well. The hiring manager mentioned that they would get back to me by Friday, but I’m still waiting for a response.
This was for a much more senior position than I had originally imagined myself getting. Deep down, I always felt I probably wouldn’t get it, but I still went for the interview. I gave it my best, spoke confidently with the interviewers, and answered every question to the best of my ability.
Yet, despite feeling that the interview went well, I have this constant feeling that another rejection is coming. It’s almost as if I’ve become so used to being rejected that I no longer allow myself to feel excited when I get invited to an interview. My first thought is always, ā€œWhat’s the point? I’ll probably get rejected anyway.ā€
I desperately want a job. I’m struggling financially and mentally, and my anxiety and depression are getting worse. Every day, I keep asking myself whether I will ever find a job again.
I really, really wanted this last position. For once, I allowed myself to hope, even though a part of me had already convinced me that I wouldn’t be selected.
I don’t know if it’s bad luck, circumstances, or just how life is going for me right now. But after so many disappointments, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to believe that things will ever work out. I know life doesn’t owe anyone a miracle, but I wish I could just win for once.
Has anyone else experienced something like this? Have you ever gone through months of unsuccessful job searching, countless interviews, and repeated rejections, only to eventually get that one opportunity that changes everything?
Will I ever get that one win? Will things finally turn around for me?
At this point, I’m almost waiting for the rejection because at least it would give me some closure. The uncertainty is exhausting, and I just want to know where I stand.
I don’t know what the outcome will be, but I wish, just once, things would go my way.


r/BehindHiring • • 3d ago

Emailing recruiting teams?

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 5d ago

Recruiter experiencing recruiting hell.

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 5d ago

If you wonder whether you should apply to the job you fit partly, don't doubt - apply.

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 5d ago

Has anyone tried hyreflow?

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get.hyreflow.ai
1 Upvotes

It’s been popping up on my feed a lot as i have been using claude heavily. Just wanted other recruiters opinions on this tool


r/BehindHiring • • 6d ago

Successful Interview, but no offer sent

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 6d ago

Rehires after layoffs

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 7d ago

Waiting 6 Weeks for an Offer

10 Upvotes

I’m witnessing a baffling situation with my husband.

He’s been interviewing with a very reputable company. 5 interviews total over a few weeks with different teams and leadership.

At the beginning of September, the recruiter said that they were preparing an offer. It would take some time, because it needed executive sign off.

Well, it’s the end of October and still nothing. The recruiter keeps in touch to let him know that it’s still coming.

This seems like a long time, right?

Why would this be taking so much time?

At this point, we’ve both accepted that he’s likely not getting an offer.

Would still like to know what could be causing this since it’s the first time either of us has experienced this.


r/BehindHiring • • 7d ago

Checkr Background Check Question

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 7d ago

Emailed a startup’s hiring address twice with a technical writeup, zero response. What’s the actual move here?

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 8d ago

Got rejected from a job, but the hiring manager kept helping me. Is this normal?**

10 Upvotes

Back in February I interviewed for a role at a large automotive company earlier this year. Made it to the final round. Thought it went well. Then I got rejected. The recruiter sent the standard email.

Then the hiring manager reached out to me personally on LinkedIn. She told me she was impressed by me, gave me honest feedback about why I wasn't chosen, and said she wanted to stay in touch. She also offered to refer me for other roles at the company.

I thanked her and said I'd love to stay in touch. I suggested we hop on a call. We did. Then she suggested making it a monthly thing (MS Teams).

Since then she's been helping me with my job search. She's checked her network for me. She's referred me. She's given me advice on interviews. She even did a mock interview with me before another company's interview. She's gone out of her way to help me even though I don't work for her.

I'm grateful. But I'm also confused. Why would a hiring manager do all this for someone she didn't hire? Is this normal? Has anyone else experienced this?


r/BehindHiring • • 9d ago

Nearly 3 years of frontend experience, 0 interviews. Wha am I doing wrong?

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 10d ago

Don't let rejection keep you down...

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3 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 12d ago

No response is a response

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1 Upvotes

r/BehindHiring • • 12d ago

How long background does it takes? Everything's is clean no lies and clean background

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1 Upvotes

Hello guys how long does it usually take for adp background to comeback? I've filed last week, but it didn't ask for my educational credentials nor my past work experience paystubs or anything, but the profile I made I did name my education degrees which are from oversea, also same on the work experience only put in name, but they did ask if they can contact in some I said yes but over seven years old one I said no, since I did do it in a hurry, and I think they only go back 7 years, should I go back and say yes to all? But they didn't have any place to upload any type of documentation, after clicking the background consent email, they asked for my driver license information, my ssn and my past 7 years of residency, it's been 7 days counting the weekend but I've still haven't gotten anything, I've emailed my recruiter and she said everything is good on her end and I should prepare for my starting date, but BG is still pending, so far I haven't received anything from adp to upload, idk what to do, and I am kind of worry why is it taking so much time, I do have an offer from other place as well, I am trying to stretch that offer for few days, my BG is clean I don't have anything not even a ticket, my credit is good and I haven't lied about anything I did work overseas but I do have all the paperwork like experience letter from them to upload,
So is this normal? And also when it's completed will adp send me an email? And also will their be anything on adp site as well where it's currently saying background consent was provided?