Kind of a two-parter here; when I left my former position, I applied and was interviewed for a Sales Representative position, for which I was rejected. They told me in that rejection that my qualifications line up quite well with that of a Merchandiser, and they encouraged me to apply for that role should it appear. After a matter of months, the Merchandiser role came up, and I was encouraged to apply by several people. I applied remembering what I had been told by a company insider previously, and I interviewed twice for the role (phone and in-person). Both times I was informed that I had impressive qualifications and that they were excited to pursue my candidacy further. My in-person was shortly before the holidays, and they told me I should hear within the week about next steps. The holidays came and went with no word, but I felt that the holiday rush probably got in the way. I reached out after New Year's to check on my status; I was told that I had been rejected several weeks earlier, and that they had 'hoped' that I would have been told before the holidays. I couldn't help but feel that they straight up forgotten to tell me that I'd been rejected; that feeling, along with the fact I'd been told I was well-suited for the role until I wasn't after all, makes me feel that unprofessionalism and frank dishonesty may be acceptable in this organization. They encourage me to keep an eye on their career board to reapply with my 'genuinely impressive qualifications', but this incident has certainly given me second thoughts.