Hello, and welcome back to Inc.’s 1 Smart Business Story. Hiring decisions don't always come with explanations, and usually for good reason. But what happens when a rejected candidate refuses to accept “no,” especially when that persistence starts to cross professional boundaries?

In her latest Ask a Manger column, Alison Green unpacks a reader’s dilemma involving an applicant who won’t move on, raising larger questions about feedback, professional boundaries, and when hiring managers owe applicants nothing more than a polite decline. 

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BY ALISON GREEN 

Do I need to respond to his increasingly aggressive messages?

Inc.com columnist Alison Green answers questions about workplace and management issues—everything from how to deal with a micromanaging boss to how to talk to someone on your team about body odor.

Last fall, I left a beloved job and assisted them in hiring two people to replace me. One was an internal hire, the other required an outside interview process. We received over 50 applications, narrowed it down to 13 phone interviews, then seven in-person interviews, and finally made a very satisfying hiring decision.

At each step along the way, I sent out polite rejection emails to those who didn’t make the next level. It was very professional, and all candidates but one reacted very well. However, one gentleman who was not granted an interview wrote back saying that since he was “clearly overqualified for such a position,” he “would have at least appreciated an interview.” In fact, he had no qualifications for the position: he’d never done the work of the role, worked in our industry, nor had any background in our field.

I never responded, but he tracked me down and has asked me several times why he wasn’t interviewed. He is clearly well-educated and has an interesting work history, but nothing on his résumé was even remotely connected to our field, and frankly, he came across as condescending. That said, we are community-based and try to be friendly, kind, and helpful to all.

I’m still peripherally involved in the organization, but no longer an employee. In fact, I moved across the country and took another job. Do I have any obligation to write him back? And, if so, how honest should I be? Apparently, he’s written to the organization, too, and they refuse to deal with him. If I write him back, might he leave them alone? A small part of me feels as if he’d benefit from knowing the truth, but I also feel like maybe it’s none of my business. I recognize that if I respond to him, it would not be in any way official. What should I do?

Block and ignore.

You don’t work there anymore; there’s absolutely no reason you should have to engage with this guy and risk him getting more aggressive or angry.

You didn’t do anything wrong in this hiring process. In fact, you did everything right! You sent out polite, timely rejection emails. You made hiring decisions that you feel good about. You don’t have anything to explain or defend or justify. You don’t even have to explain (here or to this candidate) why he wasn’t invited to interview. Employers regularly have more qualified candidates than they can interview and there doesn’t need to be anything wrong with someone for them to be rejected; it can just be that others were stronger.

While most candidates are professional and understand the nature of the hiring process, there are always a few who can’t believe they didn’t get an interview and think employers should have to justify that to them. You aren’t obligated to respond to them at all, but especially after they become rude or pushy.

If you still worked there, I’d tell you to respond to him one time and say something like, “We received a tremendous amount of interest in the position, and the hiring process was very competitive. We weren’t able to offer interviews to many people with strong qualifications for the role.” Or, if you prefer, “We received a tremendous amount of interest in the position and we focused on candidates with experience in Skill X and Industry Y.”

But you don’t even work there anymore! Not only do you not need to respond to this person, but you probably shouldn’t—the organization needs to be in charge of its communications with candidates (particularly since there can be legal ramifications if you word something badly). If they’re not responding, that’s their call.

I’m not clear on whether the candidate somehow tracked down your personal email account and is messaging you there. If he’s emailing you at your personal account, that’s a real overstep (and a sign of some seriously inappropriate investment) and you absolutely should block him. If you want, you can email back once to say, “I no longer work for [organization’s name] and cannot answer any questions about their hiring processes. Please do not contact me at my personal account again” and then block him—but feel free to skip that and just block him.

I do get that the organization is community-based and wants people to have warm feelings toward it. That’s an argument for them (not you) responding—once, and with the kind of language above. But after that, candidates who are rude or hostile don’t need to be indulged. It’s OK to decline to engage.

Want to submit a question of your own? Send it to [email protected].

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