On 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟭𝟲, I received an assignment for the 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗠𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝗿𝗼𝗹𝗲 at Leap. I put in focused effort to understand the brief, craft a thoughtful 9-slide deck with an MVP and actionable solutions, and submitted it by 𝗠𝗮𝘆 𝟮𝟬. Since then — no response. Despite a follow-up email on June 5, it’s now been 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵 of silence. As candidates, we invest 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲, 𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 into solving these take-home assignments — not just to get hired, but to genuinely showcase our thinking and approach to real-world problems. 𝗚𝗵𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁-𝘀𝘂𝗯𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 can be deeply discouraging and leaves their efforts unacknowledged. A simple “Yes,” “No,” or constructive feedback goes a long way in building goodwill and employer brand.