This has been sitting in my drafts for a little while, and sadly I have had to experience it recently. There is a strange contradiction sitting at the heart of modern product companies. On one hand, they claim to invest heavily in UX Designers, whose entire job is to obsess over users, map their journeys, remove friction, anticipate needs, communicate clearly. Create good stuff.
On the other hand, those same companies routinely deliver one of the worst user experiences imaginable when you become a candidate.
It would be funny if it wasn’t so widespread. When the f**k did this become the norm?
Applying for a UX role today often feels like stepping into a product that skipped research, ignored usability testing, and launched anyway. You fill in a long, repetitive form that asks for your CV… then asks you to manually retype your CV. You craft a thoughtful cover letter tailored to the role. You press submit.
And then… nothing.
No confirmation beyond an automated email. No timeline. No expectation setting. No feedback loop. Just silence. Days turn into weeks. Occasionally, you might get a notification that your application has been viewed on Indeed, or someone from the company has had a quick look at your LinkedIn profile (no clue who though, unless you fork out for LinkedIn Premium). You’re left wondering if your application disappeared into some kind of digital void or if any human posessing a pair of eyes actually saw it and decided they couldn’t be bothered replying.
This is the same industry that would tear apart a signup flow for far less.
Imagine presenting a case study like this in a design review:
- No clear status updates
- No feedback after key user actions
- No visibility of progress
- No closure
It would get shredded, and rightly so.
Yet in hiring, it’s somehow acceptable.
The irony is that candidates are users. Arguably, they are some of the most motivated users you’ll ever have. They’re investing time, effort, and emotional energy into your “product” (your hiring process) with a very clear goal. If there’s anywhere experience design should shine, it’s here.
Instead, many hiring processes feel like they were designed without any empathy at all.
Ghosting has become normalised. Like someone you chatted to a few times on Tinder. Vague timelines are standard. Feedback is treated like a luxury rather than a basic courtesy. Even when candidates make it through multiple interview stages, complete take-home tasks, and present work, they’re often met with… silence.
From a UX perspective, it’s baffling.
We talk constantly about trust, transparency, and user-centred thinking. But what does it say about a company when the first meaningful interaction a designer has with them completely contradicts those principles?
It creates a credibility gap.
Because if a company can’t design a respectful, communicative hiring experience, what does that imply about how seriously they take user experience internally? Is UX truly embedded in their culture, or is it something they apply selectively when it suits the product roadmap?
The uncomfortable truth is that many companies simply don’t prioritise it. Candidates are seen as disposable inputs rather than users deserving of a well-designed experience. And until that mindset shifts, the gap between what companies say about UX and how they actually behave will remain.
For UX Designers, it creates a slightly absurd situation. You’re expected to demonstrate empathy, clarity, and user-first thinking at every stage of the interview process… while navigating a system that often shows you none of those things in return.
It’s like being asked to design a world-class product while using tools that actively get in your way.
Maybe the real test isn’t just how well you perform in the interview. Maybe it’s whether you notice the experience you’re being put through.
Because sometimes, the hiring process tells you everything you need to know about the company designing it.
