With all due respect to those who disagree, I have to question if the amount
of time necessary to reply is too prohobitive, especially considering the cost
of leaving dozens to hundreds of job seekers hanging for months. Maintaining
an Excel database of the names and addresses makes sending a simple form
letter as easy as clicking 'Mail Merge.' Furthermore, this database could be a
useful resource to future job searches particularly if it's annotated with
information about each candidate. Granted it would increase input time, but it
would save time in the future.

Regardless of how detailed this list is, creating a simple list of names would
require a few minutes to a few hours of time. The most significant chunk of
time would be folding letters and licking and stamping envelopes; which, if
your museum is large enough to warrant a couple of hundred responses, chances
are the resources or technology to make this job easier are already in place.

To me, this is a question of cost and benefit analysis. Is a few hours of work
worth maintaining a good public image for anywhere from a dozen to a hundred
people? I have applied for jobs where I have not even received a letter
confirming my application, let alone whether or not I have been approved. If I
didn't hear from word of mouth that I was not accepted I would have no idea.
Heck, I could still be in someone's list of potential candidates for all I
know. But I have to agree with John and others - the people that apply at your
museum today could colleagues, visitors, donors, or in a position to influence
decisions that affect your museum. But only if you give them the courtesy of a
reply.


George Garner


>===== Original Message From Museum discussion list
<[log in to unmask]> =====
>Still if a professional organization sends out an offer for a job, they
>should not drop
>all applicants cold turkey and leave them hanging for months that turns into
>never
>receiving a response.  They should not be sending out request for a new
>employee
>if they cannot be considerate enough to do the job right, with respect for
>all
>those who applied and waiting for news on the job.
>
>Like I said in my previous post, if you have two hundred applicants sitting
>out there
>waiting, while you have already hired someone,  I personally would like to
>see those two hundred people receive a letter of thanks and that the job has
>been filled.   Personally, I would
>never apply again at that museum if they had another opening.   Simply, if a
>museum advertises for a position to be filled, they need to carry forth
>their professional or business ethics and reply to ALL who submitted an
>application.
>
>John
>
>From: "Paula Lynch" <[log in to unmask]>
><snip> ....... Most recently when I ran an employment ad in The New York
>Times, it
>> received over two hundred responses.  So many responses, coupled with the
>> responsibilities of a one person HR office, whose duties principally are
>> Executive Assistant to the Vice President for Operations, is an
>> overwhelming amount of work.  I confess I can only respond to resumes sent
>> via E-mail.  Otherwise, I'd have to sleep over!
>>
>> Paula Lynch
>> [log in to unmask]
>).
>
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