Candidates hate your take-home assignment — and good ones just drop out
Slide decks, mock territory plans and four-hour case studies quietly filter for free time, not talent. There's a five-minute alternative.
The drop-out you never see
Ask candidates why they ghosted and the answer is consistent: a four-hour unpaid assignment in round three, from a company that hasn't yet convinced them the job is worth it. The people with options leave first, so your assignment filters out exactly the candidates you wanted.
Effort should match stage
A screening step should cost the candidate five minutes, not an evening. Anything longer belongs after you've earned their interest with a real conversation about the role.
A short simulated call is also closer to the actual job than a slide deck about a territory they've never seen.
Give something back
The best-received version of this gives the candidate their own feedback — what they did well on the call and where they lost the prospect. Even rejected candidates rate the process highly when they leave with something useful, and that reputation compounds in a small sales market.
- Long unpaid assignments filter for free time, not skill.
- Keep early-stage effort under five minutes.
- Give candidates feedback — rejected people still talk.
- Realistic beats elaborate: a call is closer to the job than a deck.
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