In our previous Spotlight, we discussed How To Turn Brief Encounters into Lasting Career Connections – Nov #21.  If you missed that one you can read it here. This month let’s explore the impact of misleading job posts.

Is A Job Post Real Or Not 

Does this sound familiar? You’ve seen a position posted on LinkedIn by a company  you’re interested in working at. Next you apply online. And just to make sure that they get your application you also apply at the company’s webpage. Makes sense, right? Well, the numbers may tell a different story. An astounding 1/3 of all job postings are not real.

Recently I posted on LinkedIn about an article on CIO.com magazine titled Beware the rise of ‘ghost jobs’ — fake job openings with no intent to hire that discusses  this topic in detail.  This is such an important topic with many of my clients I decided to include it in this month newsletter. 

An overwhelming number of companies post jobs with no intention of actually filling them. The article is based on the work of  Professor Hunter Ng of Baruch College, City Of University.  His study investigates the emerging phenomenon of “Ghost Jobs”.  You can read his complete work here –Why is it so hard to find a job now? Enter Ghost Jobs–  analyzes the data and uncovers some hard data facts.  The numbers are quite alarming.

According to one survey by ResumeBuilder as part of the of Professor Ng’s research, more than 1,600 hiring managers & recruiters indicated that they have posted ‘Ghost Jobs’.  They offer light on the phenomenon.

More than 80% of recruiters said they posted jobs without intending to fill them, and 41% indicated that more than half of the jobs were fake. Of tech companies, 40% posted fake jobs in the past year, and 79% of those still had active ads.

The fake ads cover all job levels: entry-level (63%), midlevel (68%), senior-level (53%), and executive (45%).

The most common outlets for this disinformation are company websites (72%), LinkedIn (70%) followed by ZipRecruiter (58%), Indeed (49%), and Glassdoor (48%). Most of the phantom listings remain active for a month (31%), a few weeks (28%), and in some cases, a year or more (9%).

The more specialized the job skill, the greater the probability of a ghost job according to the research.

If you’ve limited your job search to just what you see is posted, you’re missing a whole other job market out there. Yikes!

Why? Posting Misleading Information Pays Off

Here are a few reasons the survey uncovered:

• 67% of companies are seeking external talent
• 66% do it to create the impression of growth
• 63% to convince current employees that their workload will be reduced
• 62%  give current employees the impression that they are not irreplaceable
• 59% to collect applications to create a candidate database

Here Are A Few Tips to Spot Ghost Jobs

• How long has the job been posted
• Generic job posts lacking details
• Company reputation
• Lacking urgency in the hiring process
• Non-responsiveness
• Study company hiring patterns

Closing Thoughts:

As the job market becomes increasingly complex, the rise of “ghost jobs” highlights the importance of proactive career strategies. To navigate this landscape, focus on building a strong professional network.  What can you do for your contacts?  Networking is your most powerful tool to access genuine opportunities and bypass misleading postings. Remember, career growth isn’t a one-time effort—it’s about consistently nurturing relationships and staying connected, ensuring you’re prepared when opportunity knocks.

In last month’s Heard it on the Tech Street #21, I wrote that “Networking isn’t a one-and-done activity”.  Read it here.  You have to continually nurture your professional network.