Why I’m Advising My Clients to Avoid Talent500 Like a Wi-Fi Network Named “Free Virus”

As a career coach, my job is to help people land great opportunities—not send them into an application process that feels like playing a game where the house always wins. And that’s exactly what I’ve seen happening with [Talent500], a company that claims to connect IT professionals with Global Capability Centers (GCCs) in India. But based on my experience, their hiring process has all the fairness and transparency of a magician pulling rejection letters out of a hat.  

Here’s how it goes:  

1. Candidate applies. Hope is alive.  

2. Talent500 sends an additional questionnaire. Okay, maybe they’re being thorough.  

3. Before the candidate even finishes reading the email, a rejection letter arrives. And what does it say? "After careful consideration…”  

Excuse me? Careful consideration? If you sneeze, you’ll miss the time between submitting the questionnaire and getting rejected. I’ve had candidates who were an exact match for the job description get dismissed so fast, you’d think they had confessed to a crime in their cover letter. Why? Who knows. Maybe the rejection letter is automated. Maybe the hiring team is making decisions based on tea leaves.  

Now, I’m not saying every candidate deserves a standing ovation. Some résumés are a crime against formatting. But when a highly qualified person with a polished profile applies, the least a recruiter can do is actually review their application. Or here’s a wild idea—spend 10 minutes on a quick call before tossing them into the void?  

Instead, Talent500’s process feels like ordering food at a drive-thru only to be told, “We’re out of everything,” before you even finish speaking. After seeing too many skilled professionals get ghosted for no logical reason, I’ve made my decision: I’m advising my clients to avoid Talent500. Because if “careful consideration” actually meant something, we wouldn’t be having this conversation in the first place.  

[Check them out here—if you enjoy rejection letters that arrive faster than a pizza delivery.](https://talent500.com/)