Can we normalize setting up date and times for initial phone calls

How often does this happen to you?

Now I don’t know if this is normal to others or not but I was used to getting emails with links to set up a date and time to have a short 20 to 30 min conversation about the possible job position. Even if they didn’t have Calendly or something similar, we ended up exchanging emails on days and times to get on a quick call.

I am not sure if now it’s because of the pandemic or because I am not applying for a specific city. Mostly a lot of remote or such jobs out there. But majority of my experience looking for a job in the last few weeks has been playing phone tag with recruiters or hiring managers from the companies I have applied to.

I am not the kinda person as I am sure many out there who answers phone calls from unknown numbers. If you aren’t on my phone as a saved contact I don’t answer. Way too many spam calls and the sort now a days to be wasting time and effort on it. At least that’s my personal opinion.Now if they leave me a voicemail and I know you are calling about a job? I will call you back, and here is where it all comes crashing down. We start playing phone tag and this gets no one anywhere. Not saying I don’t get emails to set up a time but the percentage seems way too disproportionate compare to before.

Does anyone else agree or has seen this shift happen? I am legit curious and would love to hear from both applicants and hiring managers. Lets try and navigate this turbulent time to apply for jobs and see our peers experiences on the matter.