A.K. applied to dozens of product roles and heard almost nothing back — just “we’ve decided to move forward with candidates whose experience more closely matches our needs.”
But wouldn’t you like to know the real reason you got rejected?
Because it’s almost never the reason in the email.
A.K. — initials only, because he’s still employed — works in enterprise sales but wants to move into product management. On paper, that is nowhere near an obvious yes: he looks risky to interview and unqualified for the role.
But five minutes into our conversation, my reaction was: “Ah, he has real product sense on top of his commercial experience. That is a powerful combination.”
A.K. knew what customers actually want, how they talk, and which ones make good testers, while many product managers are almost academics who avoid customer contact. That was a big advantage he wasn’t leading with.
What does a hiring manager see in ten seconds?
A hiring manager scanning 300 CVs doesn’t see your career. They see a few clues and make a snap call:
- Obvious fit
- Too senior
- Unqualified
- Interesting, but risky
Which bucket does a stranger drop you into in ten seconds? I’ve made that call thousands of times, and I can usually tell you.
I’ve hired around 200 people across six companies, conducted close to 1,000 interviews, and read and rejected several thousand CVs. That includes work at Skype, Wise, and Salv, across engineering, product, data, sales, marketing, legal, operations, HR, and leadership.
After that many, the patterns are hard to miss.
I’m opening 20 no-charge Hiring-Side Reads
Until 14 August, I’m offering 20 no-charge Hiring-Side Reads.
In a 25-minute call, I’ll show you how I would read your situation from the hiring side:
- What looks strong, and where you should double down
- The doubts I would expect a hiring team to have, and how you might defuse them
You’ll leave with at least one practical move to test that week, just as A.K. did.
Who this is best for
This will be most useful for experienced people making a move that needs context:
- A new country
- A new industry
- A role shift
- A senior or specialised search
- A career story that gets flattened on paper
This is a trade, not a favour
I launched PivotDesk three weeks ago, and people aren’t buying yet. I need to understand why.
At the end of the call, I’ll ask for five to ten minutes of blunt feedback on the relationship-led job-search system I’m building: is it clear or unclear, attractive or not, trustworthy or not?
To be clear, the Hiring-Side Read itself isn’t research and it isn’t a pitch. It is real help I can give you, and I’ll keep it that way. Only that closing feedback slice is for me. This won’t become a sales call.
The two catches
There are only 20 slots, applications close on 14 August, and I can’t offer one to everyone. I’ll prioritise the people whose situations I can genuinely help with.
If your job search has a challenge you would like my read on, and you’re willing to give honest feedback on a new concept, email me at [email protected].