Top 5 Reasons Why Candidates Reject Offers

44% of job offer rejections occur because the candidate has already accepted another job (ERE Media). In this candidate-driven market, competition for top talent is fierce. Top candidates are often placed in 10 days or less.

Here are the answers to why most candidates would reject an offer:

• The company takes too long to make an offer

Submitting an offer to a candidate 3 to 4 weeks after the first interview increase the company’s chances of an offer turn down by 19% compared to 1 to 2 weeks after the interview. (MRINetwork) Some companies are using hiring committees to speed up the hiring process. Hiring committees are a group of employees that are not currently within the department that is hiring. The committee researches the department and requirements of the positions. Then committee makes a timely yes/no decision on each candidate in the process. According toeremedia.com, the top 10% of candidates are placed within the first ten days of being on the market.

• Counteroffers, shopping for higher offers to receive counteroffers

10% of candidates receive counteroffers from their current employers (CareerBuilder). Ask the question “why are you considering a new career move?” and their answer is money and advancement they will most likely accept a counteroffer from their current place of employment. You can also ask the similar question “what would you change about your current position”.

• Compensation and benefits are not market competitive

29% of candidates reject offers because compensation and benefits are not in line with their expectations (CareerBuilder). We have seen average salary increases in this current market are between 6% to 9%. Companies who are urgently looking to hire may offer higher salaries to fill positions immediately. Recruiters and HR Professionals must understand benefit plans and ensure that their benefit plans are market competitive.

• Company Reputation

Mergers and acquisitions, high employee turnover rates, and reviews from review sites can deter candidates from accepting job offers. Explain issues or potential issues during the interview process to build trust between the company and the candidate. This will keep them from using your company reputation as the reason to turn down the offer. For more information on company reputation, take a look at our previous blog post.

• Not ready to make a move

Although some candidates state that they are looking for a new position and are ready for a career move, this could not be the case. It takes an experienced recruiter to discover a candidate’s true reasons for switching jobs.