One finalist. Final round done. Everyone liked her.
Then a reorg moved the role under a different leader.
The client's message to her: "Please wait for us to complete the process."
No date. No reason. Just wait.
Two months later, she was gone.
I don't blame her. To anyone on the other side, "wait" with no timeline sounds like "we've moved on."
She could have handled the truth. Most senior candidates can.
What she needed to hear:
"There's a reorg. The role is moving under a new leader. It may change. We don't know yet."
Uncomfortable to say. Takes two minutes.
Why hiring managers don't say it:
Reorgs feel confidential. Nobody wants to admit the role might not survive. "Complete the process" sounds safer than "we're not sure."
But the silence doesn't protect the reorg. It just loses you the finalist.
If you're the hiring manager:
Tell her what's happening, even if you can't tell her how it ends. Let her decide whether to wait. Tell your search firm too, so we can keep her warm instead of guessing.
Hiring managers, when a reorg hits a role you're hiring for, what do you actually tell the finalist?
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