We, as recruiters, often have a hard time telling our fellow job seekers the exact feedback we get from clients, particularly when the communication is vague and/or not very constructive.

Clients may also tell us something that’s a little harsher than we feel is right, and they don’t necessarily want us to just repeat what was said back to the candidate.

They understand it’s our job (and not an easy one) to be able to figure out how to hold the relationship intact on both sides, while also trying to be polite, sincere and helpful.

If you feel you received some “fluff” from a recruiter when you didn’t land the next interview or position, it might be because we struggled on how to communicate the feedback effectively or we just didn’t get enough information to form a logical conclusion.

Talking through it together may help fill in the gaps or asking the recruiter if they can get some more information to help you understand what happened are both options to think about during the feedback loop.