Author Topic: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous  (Read 6307 times)

jeromedawg

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Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« on: November 04, 2015, 03:38:01 PM »
Hey guys,

Do you think it's weird to track down contact info for the ppl who you interviewed with after an interview to thank them and what not? This could be in the case that you didn't get their email or contact info and perhaps they're on LinkedIn or whatever. And also, these wouldn't be the hiring manager(s).

Or is that sorta weird, stalkerish and in poor form?

BossofMoss

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #1 on: November 04, 2015, 03:52:05 PM »
I think you should do whatever it takes, within reason, to obtain their contact information so that you can send them a thank you note.  I've seen people be removed from consideration when they do not send a follow-up note.

Kris

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #2 on: November 04, 2015, 06:40:06 PM »
Yes, I would if you can.

MDM

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #3 on: November 04, 2015, 06:49:55 PM »
I think you should do whatever it takes, within reason, to obtain their contact information so that you can send them a thank you note.  I've seen people be removed from consideration when they do not send a follow-up note.
Wow.  Can't argue that a real example isn't true, but that seems a very superficial way to screen candidates.  It is not universal practice, so not sending a follow-up note does not result in disqualification everywhere.

If you do send a note, it should be one of two types:
1) A very brief "thank you for your time and I look forward to hearing from you" or similar.
2) A very specific follow-up to things discussed in your conversation.

Generic "I am confident that my skills can make a positive impact on your company" notes are perceived, usually correctly, as coming from someone just going through the motions of some internet advice column.  Of course, this is indeed an internet advice column so take all this for what it is worth.... :)

Good luck with whatever you choose.

Orvell

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #4 on: November 04, 2015, 06:56:37 PM »
An email thank you is fine. Tracking down postal information is maybe weird.
And if you can't do it with reasonable effort? Don't worry about.

Despite comments above, rational (and good) employers won't "take you out of the running" for something like that. If they do dismiss you for that (and not, because say, there was someone actually better suited for the position) you dodged a bullet, because that's a hella dumb hiring decision that indicates some hella dumb managing.

But please don't fall for other gimmicks. A quick thank you email reiterating your interest in the position is a maximum level of contact at this point; the ball is back in the employers court. Don't send chocolates!

BossofMoss

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #5 on: November 04, 2015, 07:27:21 PM »
I agree that tracking down postal information would be weird...

Some more context to the situation which ruled a candidate out:  The hiring manager and I were interviewing an individual for an entry level analyst position.  The interview went ok, we thought he might be able to fill the void but also had other candidates.  The interviewee obtained the hiring manager and I's business cards before he left, and never sent a note....He either did not want the job or lacked the business etiquette one would expect from a professional. 

Clearly your situation is a little different and I understand that its sometimes an awkward ending trying to secure their contact information for the sole purpose of sending them a note.  However, it would be a nice touch and shows some extra effort if you could find a way to send them a thank you email.  If not, hopefully they will understand that you did not have the ability to send an email.

Orvell

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #6 on: November 04, 2015, 07:36:04 PM »
....He either did not want the job or lacked the business etiquette one would expect from a professional....
I just want to touch on this:
He clearly was interested in the job because he showed up to the interview and stayed for it. It sounds like he was a so-so candidate, and this pushed the tide towards "no" rather than being the deciding factor. That's different from ruling a strong candidate out of hand because they didn't "want the job" and show it to you with a note. I also just want to say again that holding people to nebulous etiquette standards is often silly, unless that is actually part of the job they would be doing...
/soapbox.

okits

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #7 on: November 04, 2015, 08:54:49 PM »
I don't think it's weird to know a company's postal address if you've been there for an in-person interview.  And especially if it is posted on the public area of the company website.

Local and industry standards vary, but I think it's good to thank for any opportunities you've been given.

Frugal D

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #8 on: November 04, 2015, 09:19:16 PM »
Not mandatory, but we actually disqualified someone recently for errors and typos in their thank you note. They were otherwise headed to the next round of interviews. Be careful...

jeromedawg

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #9 on: November 04, 2015, 09:24:45 PM »
Not mandatory, but we actually disqualified someone recently for errors and typos in their thank you note. They were otherwise headed to the next round of interviews. Be careful...

Wow that stinks. What kind of position would it have been for? One heavily involving writing or something commanding perfect grammar, spelling, etc?

I realized I made a slight syntactic error (in terms of my placement of something in parens) so I hope I didn't just screw myself over!

Frugal D

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #10 on: November 04, 2015, 09:32:50 PM »
Not mandatory, but we actually disqualified someone recently for errors and typos in their thank you note. They were otherwise headed to the next round of interviews. Be careful...

Wow that stinks. What kind of position would it have been for? One heavily involving writing or something commanding perfect grammar, spelling, etc?

I realized I made a slight syntactic error (in terms of my placement of something in parens) so I hope I didn't just screw myself over!

The position just required attention to detail (not necessarily relating to grammar) and that was a flag.

seattlecyclone

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #11 on: November 04, 2015, 11:07:15 PM »
I think that if you haven't been previously communicating with your interviewer over email and they didn't give you a business card, there is no expectation that you will look them up to send a thank you note. I've given tons of software engineering interviews (in which I briefly introduce myself to the candidate but don't exchange contact info) and have almost never been thanked afterward by the candidate. I typically don't reach out to my interviewers when I'm on the other side of the table either. I have sent thank you emails to my recruiting point of contact people when interviewing. I doubt these made any difference, but there's no way they hurt either as long as you proofread it and don't come across like a total jerk.

neo von retorch

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #12 on: November 05, 2015, 11:18:21 AM »
I've been thinking about this lately. I'm a software developer, and until recently, I've never written thank-you notes. And most of my interviews have turned into job offers. It seems unlikely that most employers put much weight in this. I'm cordial in person, and express gratitude as interviews end, and this is likely enough. Now, a recruiter insisted that I send thank-you notes, and all nine people involved in my interview gave me their business card. So I sent nine thank-you emails, and it felt weird, and I have no idea what effect it had. Zero people replied to those, and the company eventually told my recruiter they "put hiring for that position on a temporary hold." Did the thank-you emails have any effect on that whatsoever? I really have no idea. However, if your position was client-facing, such as sales, consulting, support or project management, it would make some sense to me to see how comfortable someone was with writing that kind of follow-up message, and include that for consideration in the hiring process.

sol

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #13 on: November 05, 2015, 11:24:24 AM »
We typically receive email thank you notes from candidates who have interviewed, but they are not a requirement or expectation.  Never by snail mail, never outside of the office. 

Sending a hand written note to someone's home address would be creepy and weird. 
« Last Edit: November 05, 2015, 02:46:35 PM by sol »

Axecleaver

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #14 on: November 05, 2015, 01:34:48 PM »
Generally considered good manners to thank the hiring manager, at least. Handwritten notes will stand out, but emails are more normal. In technology, thank you notes are rare; I would say I get maybe 10% followup, but that always makes a candidate stand out.

Never got a thank you note with mistakes in it, but I would definitely not hire someone who couldn't be bothered to spend two minutes checking a thank you note for errors.

MrMoogle

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #15 on: November 05, 2015, 01:47:52 PM »
My last interviews, I only had HR's contact information, and asked her to forward the email along.  I was living overseas, so it was a Skype interview, so I obviously didn't get a business card.  And I emailed because a snail mail letter would have taken a month to get there. 
Generic "I am confident that my skills can make a positive impact on your company" notes are perceived, usually correctly, as coming from someone just going through the motions of some internet advice column.  Of course, this is indeed an internet advice column so take all this for what it is worth.... :)
I did have something like this, although I also had the "thank you for taking the time" part too.

Conjou

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #16 on: November 16, 2015, 08:25:54 PM »
I surveyed a human resource managers' group recently for a project and one questioned inquired in open-ended fashion as to something that tipped the hat in favor of a particular candidate. Of the 79 respondents 42 mentioned the value of receiving a short follow-up email or personal note of thanks from a candidate. For what it's worth...

aschmidt2930

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #17 on: November 16, 2015, 08:43:13 PM »
I think you should do whatever it takes, within reason, to obtain their contact information so that you can send them a thank you note.  I've seen people be removed from consideration when they do not send a follow-up note.

I've never sent a single interview thank you note. My logic?  If a company picks their candidates on such superficial criteria, I don't want to work there. 

With that said, no, it's not weird.

FIRE_Buckeye

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Re: Post interview follow-ups/thank yous
« Reply #18 on: November 16, 2015, 09:52:53 PM »
I think you should do whatever it takes, within reason, to obtain their contact information so that you can send them a thank you note.  I've seen people be removed from consideration when they do not send a follow-up note.

I've never sent a single interview thank you note. My logic?  If a company picks their candidates on such superficial criteria, I don't want to work there. 

With that said, no, it's not weird.
It's not so much about companies picking their candidates based on such superficial criteria, but about doing everything you can to set yourself apart from other applicants. All other things being equal, expressing a higher level of (reasonable) excitement for the position will land you the job over someone who doesn't.