How Companies Predict If You’ll Quit Before You’re Hired

Before you even sit down for an interview, some companies are already trying to predict when you’ll leave.

It’s called a “flight risk” score, an algorithm’s way of betting how long you’ll stick around. It crunches data from your resume, LinkedIn, career history, maybe even your online activity, then spits out a probability. Will this person commit? Or will they bounce?

From the employer’s side, it makes sense. Replacing people is expensive. Turnover can eat 150 percent of a salary once you add in hiring costs, training, lost productivity. If software claims to shrink that bill, of course companies are interested.

But from the candidate’s side? You’re no longer being judged on your skills or your drive. You’re being judged on math.

How They Decide You’re “At Risk”

The signals are blunt:

• Job changes too close together? Instability.
• Worked in a high-turnover industry? Risky.
• Career moving up fast? Probably leaving soon.
• Social media activity that looks like job-hunting? Red flag.
• And yes, some models even factor in age or geography, which drifts dangerously close to bias.

It all boils down to this: instead of asking “Can you do the job?” the system asks “How long until you quit?”

What Gets Lost in Translation

The problem is obvious. Context disappears. Contract gigs, layoffs, a pandemic pivot, all get flattened into “job hopper.” Ambition gets mislabeled as instability. Risk-taking gets punished. And qualities like loyalty, resilience, and growth mindset don’t even register.

The irony? By trying to predict churn, companies often filter out the exact people who would stick and thrive.

How to Fight Back

You can’t stop companies from running the numbers, but you can control your side of the story:

• Make your moves look intentional. Frame job changes as progression, not flakiness.
• Show staying power. Highlight long projects, mentoring, or times you stuck through challenges.
• Clean up your footprint. Keep LinkedIn tight and aligned with your narrative.
• Talk about why you stay. Values, not just skills, signal commitment.

Because data doesn’t explain loyalty, people do.

What This Means Right Now

With hiring freezes and budget pressure, companies are more cautious than ever. Every decision feels like risk management. But loyalty can’t be measured in probabilities. Algorithms can’t see what drives you to show up, what makes you commit, what keeps you building.

Where KNOWME Comes In

KNOWME isn’t here to score your “risk of leaving.” We’re here to show your potential for staying, building, and thriving. A short video says more than any predictive model ever could. Employers see your energy. Your motivation. Your reasons for sticking around.

Not just a pattern in a spreadsheet. A person.

Not a churn statistic. A story.

Not a probability. Potential.

That’s the part machines can’t measure. And it’s the part that matters most.