Follow Up After the Interview

After finishing an interview, many candidates simply wait for the job offer or letter of regret. As in sports, follow through makes all the difference in the world. The question is simply just how and when you should re-contact your potential employer, not if. Sometimes the only thing separating you from the position that you want is other equally credentialed candidates. Keep yourself at the front of the pack by reminding them of who you are.

The first move is to call your interviewer later and thank them for their time that they spent with you. This should be done on the same day, but if the meeting was near the close of business, the next morning will suffice. If you get their voicemail, just leave a message expressing the same. Keep it short and sweet, as you are sure they are very busy. If you can think of any additional information that would be helpful to them in making their decision but failed to mention earlier, now would be the time.

The second move is to follow the call with a note expressing your thanks again. It should arrive the twenty four to forty eight hours after the interview and it is therefore acceptable to fax or email that note. Highlight what was discussed in your interview and reiterate your qualifications. Finish by expressing your continued interest in the position. If you met with several people, the department head and the Human Resource Manager for example, send each of them a separate note. Ideally, you will have collected their business cards so that you can correctly address, by name, each person with the correct title. Make sure that each person’s note is unique. Changing the name at the top of each letter will not do as the department head may bring the letter to the Human Resource Manager just to find out they received the exact same thing.

Alert each person on your recommendation list to the possibility of being contacted by your potential employer. This gives them some time to think about what they may say. If you have a person on your recommendation list who could have a strong impact on your chances of being hired, ask them to follow through for you with a call of their own. Use only one person to do this so that you do not come off as being overbearing and only do this if this is a truly great job opportunity. You do not want this person to become frustrated at being asked to repeatedly call on every interview chance that you get and eventually lose interest.

If you have not heard anything within a week to ten days after the interview, you may again call to ask if any decision has been reached. Sometimes the hiring process takes longer than the employer expects and you want to show your continued interest. Of course, you do want to be bothersome so always be deferential and patient during the call. If no decision has been reached, you may again remind them of your strengths and why you think you would be a good fit for their company.

Finally, if you have gone on several interviews and receive an offer on one, but are still waiting to hear from the company you would prefer to work for, it is recommended that you let them know of your other offer before accepting it. This kind of forces a response one way or the other from your preferred company as a sort of leverage. You may simply call the person with whom you interviewed and inform them of the offer that is on the table. You only need to state the company that wants to hire you and tell them that you would like to have an indication from them before accepting that offer. This lets them know that you are seriously interested in working for them. They may offer you the job before losing you to someone else.

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