Is it possible to be blacklisted from further interviews?

Post Reply New Topic

I've always wondered this, if you mess up an interview with a medium-large organization (i.e. one with multiple depts), and they strike you out as the right candidate, is there a possibility that the interview panel puts you on a blacklist with their HR dept?

And when I say "mess up", I don't mean laughing maniacally at the interview or saying that you're fascinated by serial killers, or making overt insults to the panel members...I mean the kind of absent-minded stuff we Aspies do like being too bluntly honest, going off on tangents while responding, or misinterpreting a couple of questions and that sort of thing. Is there a good chance that they'll flag you as "spaced out, not welcome back"? In my experience, it's been mixed - I recall having interviews that overall went well but there were a couple of things I wished I hadn't set (not severe faux pas, but embarrassing enough) - and in the case of one organization, I never got called to any interviews since, but for the other organization, I did (but didn't result in a hire - maybe it was just the luck of the draw for that one and they forgave me any mess-ups.)

Yes.

If an applicant performs badly during an interview (meltdown, violence, insults, et cetera), that applicant is not likely to ever get another interview with that company again. Same for people who have resigned badly or been fired for cause.

If you've done everything right, then keep applying. Otherwise, look for another employer.

Oh yes! They will make a note of it and probably not interview you for any other positions. Keep trying though - they may have just like another candidate better. If they offer you another interview put the last one out of your mind. People can be swayed in the moment and you may get it.

I think you may have read my post a little fast. I already stated that I wasn't referring to the obvious forms of bad behaviour such as the ones you mention in brackets, but the more Aspie-like behaviours. Such as, what if somebody gave a poor handshake, or forgot to say "thank you for your time" at the end, or made indirectly inapproriate comments e.g. such as the candidate is asked "why do you want the computer programming job?" and his answer "because it's something I find very easy, it's never been an area of difficulty for me" - not realizing the bigger picture that two people on the interview panel would be his programming co-workers and they might think the candidate is arrogant. Would any one of those or a couple of those slip-ups likely get the candidate blacklisted - that's what I'm asking.

I don't think these examples would be enough for them to blacklist you.

The answer is still 'Yes'.

Once they've decided that you aren't qualified, for whatever reason, then it is likely that you will never qualify.

Of course, there has to be a legally recognized reason - you can not be denied employment solely on the basis of race, religion, national origin, color, sex, age, veteran status, or disability.

Believe me, well-trained and experienced Human Resources personnel are adept at finding legal reasons for not hiring the vast majority of applicants; otherwise, they'd have to hire every single applicant that comes along. Couple that with the fact that ADEA regulations require that solicited applications be kept for one year minimum, while federal AAP ("Affirmative Action" or executive order 11246) requires two years. You only have to meet the federal AAP retention schedule if you have federal contracts.

Otherwise, many employers discard unsolicited applications after six months (sometimes less).

However, now that computer records are being kept, it is very likely that any given application may be recorded and retained on an HDD somewhere for up to 20 years, or even longer, and may also include an explanation of why you were not hired - again, all perfectly legal.

This is not to say that no employer will ever change its standards regarding what a "qualified" candidate might be, but given the current employment situation, I wouldn't count on it ever changing.

All the foregoing assumes that the application is being made in the U.S. of A.

Yes - if you're deemed unsuitable then it's not unreasonable to think that HR departments rule you out for any other job within their company because your'e unsuitable...it can be due to major inappropriate behaviour or due to the simple fact they don't like you (because god knows actual ability seems to be worth nothing in the work place these days!). I highly suspect a lot of agencies have black-listed me after meeting me because of my autistic behaviour in initial meetings with them (not flapping or meltdowns...but general lack of eye contact, difficulty communicating, anxiety, etc.), I see them once then never hear from them again even if I chase them up.

That's not to say you stop trying, just that it makes things more difficult as you've now got to prove yourself even more or be even smarter at finding your way through the 'gatekeepers' to get to a person who may be able to help you get a foot into the door.

Last edited by Bloodheart on 25 Nov 2012, 7:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Well a couple of these responses give whole new meaning to the cliche "we'll keep you on file if anything else comes up" as stated to the losing candidate.

It probably depends on the size of the organization, whether all applications/resumes you submit get filtered through whoever decided against you, and a lot of other things. I once completely blanked - froze up in an interview. I was later hired for another job in the same organization, by another manager. He had a little trouble getting it approved by his boss, I've always figured, since she was the one I froze up interviewing with. There was a point, about a year into the new job, when I think she finally realized I could do it, and her attitude changed toward me, but I'm sure that at first she held that flubbed interview against me.

When I did hiring, I saw applications from the same people more than once. I always did my best to only measure their experience and skills against the job we were currently hiring for, I can't think of anyone I decided I would never hire to do anything. But that was me, and I can't say everyone is fair or gives people second chances.

I think a very good method is to artfully bypass HR to the extent possible. Use networking, Internet research, etc, to find the actual hiring managers, and then . . .

'I've already sent HR a copy of my resume. May I send you a copy also?'

Now, the person might say yes, might say no, but notice you are not asking them to go around HR. You are just offering an additional copy. And I think this kind of low-key, matter-of-fact approach puts the odds more in your favor.

So employers just assume that people can't learn from their mistakes and improve?

I would expect a large company, which recruits a lot of staff for similar rolls would keep track of applicants previous attempts and reject people who have been received (substantial) negative feedback from an interviewer.

If the organisation has lots of different rolls it would be more difficult to work out whether somebody who has previously failed is appropriate for another position. I have seen jobs re-advertised with a note telling previous applicants not to apply.

If recruitment is done on a site to site basis then it is likely that there will only be one person doing the recruitment, if they remember you then your previous applications will influence your chances (this is not always bad as somebody who came 2nd in a previous round may have an advantage). Sending in your CV too often may damage your chances.

I doubt somebody would interview the same person for a job many times if they keep failing.


If I was an employer (on any scale) I would blacklist people who:
-behave inappropriately at interview (not minor social failings)
-lie at any stage of the application
-apply for jobs for which they (obviously) don't meet the requirements

That seems to be the case.

It is easier to select from those applicants who pass the screening and interview processes than go back and re-interview someone who has already been rejected, only to reject them again.

Where I work, we are not allowed to store resumes, so we couldn't maintain a black list.

That said, if you messed up really bad (like the guy who said "spyware is removed by going to Control Panel Add Remove programs) that will stick out in the minds of the people for a LONG time.

I think you'd have to do a lot to get black listed from a company.

To give you some perspective:

We listed a job.

We got 300 resumes in 2 days.

We have to read all 300 of them. A lot of them are poorly written, sloppy, and off topic.

Of those 300, we pick maybe 6-8 to interview.

Of those 6-8, we pick 2-3 to second interview.

of those 2-3, we hire 1.

It really would depend on the size and structure of the company. I worked for local government and was involved in the recruitment process for my team. I shortleeted applications and sat on interview panels. If someone messed up at interview, we didn't record this anywhere in particular. We had a sheet where me marked the applicants and used this to help us decide who we were appointing. How well someone did, other than whether they were appointable or not, was not recorded anywhere, definitely not in an electronic format anyway. If another interview panel wanted to interview them, they would have no knowledge of how the person had done previously (unless they specifically asked me or one of the other panel members). The only people that knew were ourselves. We would tell our HR dept to keep a note of anyone that had done something really bad, i.e. police had to be called, but nothing like this ever happened.

I should also say that, within local government where I worked, they was no central HR for recruitment purposes. Each dept had it's own HR dept. So, you could apply for a post in Education, mess up, then apply for another in Social Services and it would be unlikely that anyone in Social Services would know about your previous attempt.

I don't know where you are, but I'm pretty sure in the UK there's probably laws against companies doing something like that. Unless you did something like punch an interviewer, they couldn't "blacklist" you. They should base offering interviews/jobs on your performance in that interview or by the CV (resume) you submitted for that specific job, not because of anything they already know about you or may have heard. Whether or not they actually do that is a different matter.