I had a second interview nearly three weeks ago at a megacorporation. Everything appeared to go well, and everyone I talked to seemed pretty enthusiastic. They gave me more than a few signs that they thought I’d be pretty swell in the position.
You can probably guess what’s coming next.
I’ve heard zip from them.
Two weeks ago, I left a message on the HR person’s voicemail, but I guess they’re dodging my calls.
I’ve got the phone numbers/email addresses of both members of my hypothetical management team. Would it be appropriate for me to give them a call at, say, the three week mark, assuming that I don’t hear anything from HR?
I’ve already pretty much accepted that I didn’t get the job, but still, I’d like a little feedback on what in particular they were looking for, since the position seemed like such a good fit for me. It would also be nice if I could get a final word before I went through the hassle of applying with somebody else, since I’d take this position in a minute if they offered it to me.
In any place I’d want to work, it is much better to follow up with the hiring manager than HR. If HR is making hiring decisions for anything more technical or skilled than fast food workers, run. In all places I’ve worked, HR can’t tell you anything until the management team has made their decision. Then they do the paperwork. I’ve always personally called the people I’ve hired to make the offer.
I’m not sure you’ll get anything more from the hiring manager but his or her reaction will tell you more about your prospects.
If you mean megacorporation on the size of, say, Target or Wells Fargo, not hearing back for a few weeks means little. Also, anybody who’s interviewing for a company of that size could easily overlook an email. Try sending another query or two and see if they’re still not talking.
It can take months from first interview to hire date for companies of that size, even if they say on the first interview that you’re perfect for the job and they’re not going to bother interviewing anybody else.
See, it’s nagging little thoughts like that that’re tearing me up. Most of my previous experience is in government, where the hiring process is fairly regimented and predictable, and very small companies, where it’s lightning fast. The employer in question is bigger than both Target and WF.
No, don’t call them. Perhaps this might have been the way to do it 20 years ago, but times have changed.
They’re not going to tell you what you could have done different. For all you know, the position was *always * going to be filled internaly, but they had to interview candidates from outside the company to look good. Perhaps a bean counter (or hiring manager’s manager has decided that the postion won’t be filled until after next year because they don’t want to bring in someone right before the holiday season. Perhaps they’ve decided to delay hiring until the New Year because the budget will be available.
Start applying elsewhere. If you hear something out of the blue, so much the better. Then you’ll be in the driver’s seat.
I think most HR departments would frown on anyone doing this. If you tell an applicant “You didn’t get the job because you lacked skill X”, and the applicant can come back and prove that he is in fact an expert in skill X, you might have a pending lawsuit on your hands.
A couple of things may be happening. (I used to work for the Bell System, so I know giganto companies.)
They may have rejected you, but are too busy to send a letter.
They may have tentatively rejected you, but are waiting to see if anyone better comes along. If not, they may hire you anyway.
They may be interviewing over a period of a month or so, and won’t make any decisions until they see everyone.
You may have gotten the job, and the manager is waiting for the offer to be computed and the paperwork to be signed.
You may have almost gotten the job, but the budget went away and the manager is now fighting for headcount.
I’ve seen all these things happen.
Are they interviewing locally or nationally, and is this for a specific position or one of a set of openings? This makes a big difference in how fast people move.
The bottom line may be that their sense of urgency is nothing like your sense of urgency. dalej42 is right that they will never tell you why you didn’r get it, but calling (once, not stalking) might jog someone’s memory, and let them know you really want the job.
Oops, I meant that aktep is right, not that dalej42 might not be right also. I’ve never seen companies who really want to fill a job internally bother with hiring outside, but if the ad says you need know 3 obscure languages, 5 bizarre apps, and have 5.321 years of experience, it might be an H1B scam.
There are two reasons I’ve seen companies do this.
They **know ** they’re going to fill it internally, but they want the internal person to back down on their salary and benefits demand. By showing the internal person there is competition for a job, the internal person is less likely to start demanding raises and extra perks.
I suggest sending a thank you letter to everyone you interviewed with, if you haven’t already.
(A real letter, made of paper).
It looks extra-formal and distinguishes you in their minds, which may be helpful if there is still any possibility of you getting the job. It also encourages them to send you the formal no thanks letter if you didn’t get it.
I’ll also say no to this. This advice appears in every job hunting book, but I think it is at least ten years out of date. Companies don’t want paper and especially not snail mail letters. The anthrax scare from a few years ago put the nail in this advice.
As a hiring manager, when I’ve received thank-you notes from interviewees I tend to think, “How nice,” and throw it in the trash. It doesn’t really influence my hiring decision one way or the other (although, if I’ve already decided to hire them, it’s a nice confirmation that I’ve hired someone with good, if somewhat quaint, manners). It’s true that in the many dozens of interviews I’ve done, I’ve received, maybe, four or five thank-you notes.
On the other hand, the last thing I want is for potential candidates to call me because they haven’t heard anything, or wanting to know why they weren’t selected. Usually my responses are 1) call HR and 2) we hired someone else.
Whoa. You work in a way different place from me! A transfer that is a promotion gets a standard raise. One that is not gets nothing, and I’ve never heard of anyone asking for more money or perks. This kind of thing happens because someone is looking for an internal career change or because they aren’t happy in their current organization, and don’t want to leave the company.
For H1Bs, the last thing you usually want are credible candidates applying, because then you have to hire the US candidate also. It’s fine if you have some openings. The HR people filter the responses you get back from the ad, and most of them seem to be not even close.
For an IT type of job, I’d expect a person sending a paper letter to show up for a second interview in a horse and buggy wearing spats. I’d guess there are some jobs where paper letters would do, but not around Silicon Valley!
I used to think how nice and delete the thank you emails. But I doubt anyone would be offended, and some people might like it.
Well, crap. I sent paper thank-yous. And it’s in IT.
I’ve asked the buddy who recommended me for the job to make a circumspect inquiry if I haven’t heard anything by Monday. He’s got a mercenary interest - he gets a pretty hefty bounty if I land it and manage to avoid getting fired for a year.
BTW this:
[quote]
Two weeks ago, I left a message on the HR person’s voicemail, but I guess they’re dodging my calls.
…should read “One week ago.” I called HR two weeks after the second interview.
I’d guess there are some jobs where paper letters would do, but not around Silicon Valley!