How I Placed a Candidate After 4 Interviews For 4 Roles

Lessons in risk, preparation, and confidence in a tough market

Before we begin:

Thank you for those who signed up for the resume/linkedin reviews and career questions while I was on vacation. Got to a few tonight, getting to the rest of them throughout the week!

Remember, I’m running a promotion for all founding subscription members. You can either get one of two options for free:

1. Resume/LinkedIn Resume Review: this has been a very popular service so far and will likely make this a long term / yearly offering

2. A handful of questions answered via email. I don’t have the bandwidth to do calls at the moment, and quite a few folks have asked to do this vs a resume/linkedin review if they’re not actively looking for a job so figured to offer it to everyone else.

Remember, paid subs will also get:

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The Setup: A strong candidate in a tough market

I work with software engineers all day. After 10 years and over 1,000 placements, I can usually tell within 10 minutes if someone will be in demand.

This candidate checked every box on paper.

• Location: DC metro area

• Background: Strong financial services experience

• Technical skills: Java, Python, AWS, object-oriented design

• Situation: Recently ended a contract and actively seeking a new one

He also had one critical factor most of my clients are looking for in 2025: experience in regulated environments.

I ran him through my standard process:

1. Technical vetting with an internal consultant that’s a SWE at one of our other clients

   • He passed with no problem.

2. Recruiter screen for red flags, pain points, and motivations

   • Clear communicator, realistic compensation expectations, and open to multiple team environments.

3. Budget alignment

   • His target salary fit within my client’s ranges.

I thought, this guy is a no brainer for my client.

I had four hiring managers at the same company in different groups looking for his skill set. It felt like we were going to have a quick win.

That’s not what happened.

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The First Two Interviews: Failure and friction

We set him up with his first interview.

He didn’t pass.

No worries. It happens.

We lined up a second interview with another team.

He didn’t pass that one either.

This is the moment when most recruiters drop the candidate. Two strikes. Managers are moving fast. It is easy to pivot to someone else and protect your close rate.

But I didn’t drop him.

I asked myself three questions:

• Is it him?

• Is it the client?

• Or is it something deeper?

I went straight to the source and asked the managers for feedback.

Here is what I heard paraphrased:

“He froze up on technical questions. He couldn’t elaborate on his experience. We are concerned about his ability to handle pressure in meetings.”

On the surface, this was surprising.

He passed my screen. He cleared a technical vetting with one of our own consultants. He was polished and articulate in our conversations.

But I was not entirely shocked either.

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The Diagnosis: Why good engineers fail interviews

This is a pattern I have seen many times before.

Most software engineers are introverts.

They are brilliant at writing code, solving problems, and architecting systems. But put them in front of a hiring manager on Zoom, ask them to explain their work under pressure, and their brain can short circuit.

Add the weight of today’s job market, where candidates know they are one of dozens competing for a role, and it’s easy to see why even great engineers stumble.

In 2025, there is little room for error.

Hiring managers are under pressure too. They want engineers who not only know their stuff but also project confidence.

If you freeze in the interview, it creates doubt. Doubt kills offers.

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Behind the scenes: My mindset as the recruiter

At this point, I had a choice.