Getting Rejected After the Final Interview

From the Wall Street Journal | Feb 12, 2010 | By Eric Nisbeth

Eric Nisbeth worked as a financial analyst for Broadlane, Inc., a large group purchasing organization that supports hospitals, until his job was eliminated in December 2009. Previously, Mr. Nisbeth, 35, was a marketing manager for a saltwater fishing boat manufacturer. He earned an M.B.A. from the University of Dallas Graduate School of Management in December 2009. He lives with his wife and son in McKinney, Texas, a suburb of Dallas.

Waking up early the day after I was laid off was much more difficult than I would like to admit. However, the loud ringing in my dream turned out to be my phone. As I processed this intrusive sound, I assumed it was probably someone in my family offering counsel if needed. Much to my surprise though, it was a recruiter from a small town in the Midwest. She and I spoke about a management position with a health care company.

Their interview process was very comprehensive, and it even required requisition of a camera and microphone for a Skype interview. I did well on all of the preliminary screens, and it was time for the phone interview with a representative from the company. All of these calls took place over a four-week period from the 11th of December through the first week of January.

My phone call with the hiring manager took place on January 6 and went so well that the conclusion was complete with an invitation to fly me to their location for a face-to-face interview on January 25. At this point, I was pretty confident about the prospect of working for this company. The opportunity was a great fit for my professional goals, and I believed I would be a great asset to their management team. My unemployment was stretching quite comfortably into its second month, but I had a very viable prospect and the job search seemed to have a very real end in sight. I thought things were going well, and I was positive when anyone asked about my search. This scenario was going to be all right; my M.B.A. was going to be worth obtaining after all.

The plane touched down and pulled into the gate just after 7:00 a.m. The interview began at 9:00 a.m., and would last until noon. I was interviewed by 12 of my future coworkers and supervisors. Perhaps the most interesting interview of the morning was the interview with the supervisor of the department. It was within the first few minutes of this interview when he let me know today was his first day. I tried to make sure I understood what he was telling me, and I replayed his words in my head almost three additional times, and sure enough, this was his first day on the job. At 3 p.m. I boarded the plane for home.

The day after I mailed my 12 thank you letters, I received the information indicating my job search was not ending. In fact, since I had wasted nearly 30 days of the search on this one ‘sure thing’, my job hunt just grew more intense.

Readers, how have you dealt after being rejected in the last round of an interview? Share your stories in the comments section.