Interview Follow Up
Twenty years ago, interview follow up thank you letters were rare. (In 1989 I won a sales job after a mediocre interview because I sent a follow up letter. The hiring manager was impressed because he had never before received a thank you for the interview letter!) Even today only 2 candidates in ten will follow up after the interview. Completing this step will allow you to stand out from the crowd. And if you're applying for a job that has effective follow up as a position requirement this step is a must do. Effective Interview Follow Up.
You need the name, address, phone number and email address of the person(s) with whom you interviewed. This is most easily accomplished by asking for a business card during the interview. When the hiring decision is a week or more out follow up with either:
What's correct depends on the interviewers' style. There are those who believe that if the hiring manager was informal, insisting you call her by her first name, use the first name in your written communication. If the company itself tends to operate informally, this could be correct. First names are more appropriate for a hand written note than for a letter. On the other hand, it's hard to go wrong using Mr. or Ms. This communicates respect for the decision maker and you will avoid offending anyone with the more formal form of address. In either case make sure your interview follow up letter is upbeat, business like and to the point. Computerized grammar check is often wrong. Spell checker doesn't check word usage. Proof read, proof read, proof read for typos and errors. In addition to thanking the interviewer for her time connect the dots between your experience and the position requirements. Two possible approaches are:
Customize the message as appropriate depending on the interviewer's role.
That is; if she said to call back on Tuesday, do it! Failing to do so could quite possibly be fatal to your candidacy. If more time goes by than you anticipated and you still haven't heard anything follow up again. Vary the method of communication with additional follow up attempts. After the initial interview follow up letter, call. If a few business days go by and you haven't heard anything, use email. Don't badger people but don't be passive either. How aggressive you should be depends on job type and industry. For example: If you're applying for a sales or collections job you should be more aggressive than if you’re applying for an accounting position. It's not unheard of for the hiring manager to give false hope to a candidate during the interview. She may make statements about "when you start" or use other phrases that make it seem as if you have the job. You need to understand that unless someone formally offers you the position complete with starting pay and start date (preferably in writing); it's not a job offer. Follow up appropriately. There are exceptions. But unless you were told about an unusually long hiring timeline, don't count on it. Hopefully you will get a phone call but at the very least you should get a letter. Unfortunately, as wrong as it is, some companies do not keep candidates in the loop. That is: keep actively looking for work until you accept a formal offer. Keep applying, keep interviewing and keep your chin up! The right job for you could be just around the corner. Important Note: Some people contend that following up after an interview makes you look desperate. What these people fail to consider is that the hiring authority has a lot of things competing for her attention. Winning the job may be central to your thinking. But getting someone into an open position is only one of many items on the hiring manager's agenda. You can avoid appearing desperate by reminding the decision maker that you have other options pending. But make no mistake about it. Effective interview follow-up gives you an employment edge by allowing your candidacy to stay top-of-mind. Home to Job-Seerers-Edge.com from Interview Follow Up Interview Questions to Ask for Job Fit Ace the Interview Interviewing Do's and Don'ts Prepare for Common Interviewing Questions
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