The only thing worse than being ghosted is being strung along. I applied via referral and had a positive phone screen with the internal recruiter, who told me I'd be scheduled with the hiring manager the next week. If I may say so, I'm more than qualified for the role and the culture fit seemed great. I understand things slip, so I followed up the next Tuesday and the recruiter assured me they were running behind schedule. Rinse and repeat that every few days for a few weeks. It got so bad I emailed the hiring manager and heard the same thing from them. Finally, I stopped because it seems like they're not serious about filling the role. If this is how they treat well-qualified referral candidates, I hate to think of how they treat cold applicants. Or their employees.