This month we conducted a survey on LinkedIn that ran for a week. We asked a question that’s currently a big topic in our industry: “How long do you think it’s reasonable to wait for feedback on job applications?” We gave three options: 1-2 days, 2-4 days, and up to a week.

Here’s what the survey showed:

As you can see, most people think waiting 2-4 days for feedback is the most professional. While we agree that’s a good timeframe and we encourage our clients to follow it, there are a few reasons why things might take longer.

• First, Hiring Managers are busy people. They have their regular work to do on top of interviews, especially during busy times. Sometimes, the process starts with an interview with HR, and they handle hiring, so that part might be faster, making the rest seem slower.

• Another thing is that there can be a lot of candidates in the pipeline. When you’re hiring, you can get a ton of applications. Without help like a team or AI, going through all the resumes and messages about the job can take a while. Once Hiring Managers have a bunch of qualified candidates they’re talking to, they might slow down on reaching out to new people to avoid confusion.

• Lastly, if a candidate is close to getting an offer, the whole process might pause for others. It might sound frustrating, but it’s meant to respect everyone’s time. If that candidate doesn’t take the offer, things go back to normal.

Why do we care? Well, we know that there are some cases that don’t fit the usual pattern. Sometimes companies change things in the middle of hiring, they just stop communicating, or they reject people without giving any feedback. As a recruiting agency, we don’t have much control over these situations. At eCommerce Placement, we want you to know that we understand your frustration. We try our best to be there for you during the interview process and be honest about what’s happening.