Thank-you notes

The Dos and Don'ts of Post-Interview "Thank You" Notes

iStockphoto (NiroDesign)

iStockphoto (NiroDesign)

 

It's a no-brainer to send "thank you" notes after a job interview – or at least it should be. This simple act of post-interview gratitude can propel your candidacy forward. Here are some guidelines you should follow when sending "thank you" notes:

•Be prompt. Send your notes no later than the morning after the interview. This will reinforce that the position for which you interviewed is front of mind and demonstrate your orientation toward action.

Be brief. Short and sweet. Indicate your appreciation and interest, and perhaps reference a memorable aspect of the conversation, which will demonstrate that you were listening and engaged.

•Send it by email. It's true that a handwritten note on personal stationery demonstrates charm and care you'll never find in any email, but letters sent by post also take a long time to arrive and can easily get lost or ignored in the company mail room (I've witnessed this firsthand). If you'd like to send a note via traditional mail, do so in addition to an email; instead consider dropping the note off at the company's front desk without fanfare.

•Proofread the heck out of it. Typos and grammatical errors introduce or reinforce negative perceptions an interviewer might have about your communications skills.

•Don't forget anyone. Sending "thank you" notes to some interviewers and forgetting to send to others can get you knocked out of consideration, even after an outstanding interview. Here's why – the interview team will meet after the interview to discuss your candidacy and come to consensus about your qualifications, fit, and presentation; if it becomes clear that you sent notes only to certain individuals, others interviewers might feel marginalized. Send notes to everyone you meet or speak with – from the CEO, to the Corporate Recruiter, to the Administrative Assistant who scheduled your agenda. If you don't have someone's email address, ask the person who arranged your interview to provide it to you.

•Don't go overboard. A simple note will suffice. Resist the urge to drop off gifts such as cupcakes or candies. Such gestures, while potentially heartfelt, tend to be viewed by employers with skepticism, as an attempt to curry favor.

•Most importantly – remember to send it! Shockingly few job seekers even bother to send "thank you" notes. It's an easy way to make a positive impression. Why waste the opportunity?


Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

Job Hunting Zen Thought of the Week – October 9, 2015

Here is your Job Hunting Zen Thought of the Week!

You interviewed this week for a job. You didn't blow the interview, but you didn't exactly wow the hiring manager, either. In short, you demonstrated you could perform the duties of the job, but you didn't really close the deal.

There's still hope!

A well-written "thank you" note to the interviewers could still get you the job. Demonstrate your passion for the position and the company by sending an eloquent, thoughtful note. Reiterate those topics you found of particular interest. Demonstrate how you can demonstrate value to the organization.

A hiring manager who wanted to continue searching may decide you're the right fit after all.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

 

Ten Great Ways to Sabotage Your Chances of Getting the Job

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Note: This is a mild rewrite of a piece which appeared a couple months ago. Enjoy!

Here are ten methods I've witnessed candidates - first-hand - employ to ensure that they do everything in their power to sabotage their chances to snag that dream job in the application and interview process.  It's so easy to throw a wrench in the works!

  1. Arrive late for the interview. Don't bother to call. Then act like nothing happened.

  2. Learn nothing about the company in advance of your interview. Then, when asked by your interviewer "What do you know about us," make something up.

  3. Ask how much the job pays. Even after you've already had this discussion with the corporate recruiter. Ask everybody with whom you interview.

  4. Tell the recruiter you are close friends with the CEO, when you and she met once in passing. Maybe.

  5. Be friendly to everybody you meet in the company. Except to the recruiter. In that case, be a total ass.

  6. Bring extra copies of your resume. Folded up into a compact square in your pocket.

  7. Send a nice, thoughtful thank you note after the interviews to people you've met.  Generously sprinkle in typos and misspellings.

  8. Guess at your prior dates of employment on the job application. Go ahead, just guess. That way, when the company gets ready to hire you and runs the pre-employment background check, nothing adds up and you get disqualified for dishonesty.

  9. Leave your cell phone on. When your phone rings during the middle of the interview, casually take the call.

  10. Use your referral network to do everything possible to get in the door with the company. Make sure you ask an executive to sponsor you and they use every bit of their personal equity to push you through and get you an offer in another department. Then, AFTER you've received and accepted the offer, make your resume live and searchable on the job boards the company subscribes to, like Monster, so that the recruiter can stumble across it and inform the executive about it.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.