Great interview! The countless hours you spent researching potential jobs, agonizing over your resume until it’s just right and dressing for success paid off – you just got home from interviewing for your dream job….now, sit back and wait for the call, right? Wrong. Interview follow-up may determine what kind of offer you’ll receive (or whether you’ll be offered the job at all). A professionally written, positive follow-up letter or email is another opportunity to further distinguish you and make a favorable impression on the mind(s) of interviewers. A well crafted follow up letter shows that you have follow-through skills, ensures that interviewers have your contact information, and keeps your name in the front of their mind when deciding which candidate to hire.
Here are some interview follow-up tips to remember:
- It’s not unusual for interviewers to present a business card by way of introduction – these are invaluable because they contain the correct name, title and email (or snail mail) address of the interviewer. If the interviewer doesn’t have a card, ask for this information at the end of the interview.
- After the last interview, ask the interview host/coordinator (usually the company recruiter or staffing coordinator) when a hiring decision will be made.
- Within 24 hours, write individual thank you notes or letters to each interviewer and the staffing representative. The basic content and tone of the each letter can be similar, but tailor each to the each recipient (e.g., based on role, anecdotes from the interview, etc.).
- Don’t forget this is a thank you letter – show your appreciation for the addressees taking an interest in you and for sharing a part of their day with you. This is a perfect time to do some self marketing, and plainly state why you are the perfect candidate to hire for this role.
- Make sure your letter is perfect – there shouldn’t be any typos, misspelling or grammatical errors. Most word processing applications have spell check/grammar check tools – use them! If you’re not sure it’s perfect, ask someone you trust to proofread it before sending.
- Phone call follow up – It’s OK to do a telephone follow-up call 5-7 business days after sending a thank you letter. Like the letter, the follow up call is another opportunity to put your best face forward and make a positive impression. Pay attention to the tone and language of the interviewer – while follow up calls are a great tool, you don’t want to over-do it and become an annoyance – this can actually damage your chances of getting an offer.
- If you don’t get an offer – don’t get discouraged! Thank the employer even if you don’t get hired-you never know when your paths may cross again, and you want to leave them with a positive impression. Bottom line – you’ve worked hard to make a positive first impression; use the follow-up letter and telephone calls to reinforce the notion that you’re right for the job and are ready to step up to the challenge and make a difference.
About the author:
Bill Gaul (bgaul@destinygrp.com ) With 15+ years experience of helping veterans transitioning to the civilian workplace, after himself graduating from West Point and serving in the Army as a helicopter pilot, Bill Gaul is an Author, speaker and President/CEO of The Destiny Group, given the Weddles Users Choice Award for 2005 and chosen as one of the TOP 50 Career Websites by CareerXRoads, the only veteran specific job board to win this honor for the past 3 straight years. The Destiny Group operates the career centers for more than 50+ Veteran Service Organizations/Associations and has a reach of nearly 3 million veterans through its network. Bill’s articles are Copyright 1997-2005, The Destiny Group.
