Yes, there are other threads on this, but they are old.
I am applying for a software development position - the phone interview with an HR person went well enough that I had my technical interview yesterday (yes - new year’s eve) over zoom with 3 folks (though not the hiring manager though he was invited)
Should I send an email thanks? (I wouldn’t even know what snail mail to use, and this company says they act fast). If so, is today too soon? (not sure they will be even working tomorrow)
One of the questions was about software libraries I have used - I named 2, but thought of more (of course after the interview was completed) - should I include those?
I think the interview went OK if not optimal - they use C#/.Net which I don’t have much experience in ( I was honest about that, but one thing in my favor is at my previous job I had to jump in where needed and had to ramp up quickly)
Yes, I would thank them for the interview in an email. It certainly can’t hurt, and mention any additional information you left out during the interview that might be pertinent. Keep it short but say you’re available for any follow-up they may want to do. Remember, tech businesses move slowly during the holidays so don’t expect a reply anytime soon… if you get one at all.
Here’s my five year old thread on the topic. The consensus among people who hired for technical positions was that a content-free thank you doesn’t help - no one is waiting for a “thank you” email and giving you a downcheck if you don’t send one - and it might possibly hurt. Bone, markn_1, and Pantastic all recommended against sending one.
If you have actual relevant information to send, then sure send it ASAP. This isn’t dating, they’re not going to think you’re too eager because you called back the next day.
And no, don’t send anything via USPS, unless specifically instructed to do so.
I should point out that others in that thread, including Bullitt who posted above, said they did appreciate a thank you email. So it’s really a roll of the dice.
I probably get fewer than 25% follow-up emails from candidates I interviewed. It makes very little difference to me.
You should reiterate your interest in the position and MAYBE make a point or two that didn’t come up in tgevinterview(s). But only if they add meaningful.
Any attempt to ingratiate yourself with me by talking about my Alma mater’s football team prowess or our company’s spectacular results is going to get negative points.
It’s not dating, but it is selling. So really the idea is to use any legitimate excuse to connect with a decision maker to 1) demonstrate your enthusiasm and 2) remind them that you exist.
It’s also good to follow up with the recruiter or HR person who is facilitating the process to discuss what when well or address anything you might feel didn’t go well. At the very least, they should give you a sense of how things went and may subconsciously become an advocate for you.
Keep in mind, the interviewer has most likely made their decision and provided feedback within a few hours of the interview.
There is a key point here to bring up. When you apply to a tech company (particularly a large one) your primary contact will be a recruiter (someone employed by the company to deal with the process of recruiting, not to be confused with a third party recruiter who can be a bit sketchy). It’s their job to run the whole process from application through to job offer (and avoid wasting the time of the manager whose team you will join).
So, yeah, it’s probably not best to send a thank you email to the team members and manager who actually interviewed you, sending one to the recruiter is completely appropriate and normal
For what it is worth, this is not a tech company per se - it is for Kwik Trip (big gas station/convivence store chain in Wisconsin/MN/IA*) - would be developing software for internal use.
The person I had my first interview with and arranged the second is “Technology and Trades Talent Recruiter”
My main reason was mention some software libraries I used but didn’t mention in my interview, but on second thought those libraries (xerces, SQLite) are probably not as useful in a .Net shop other than say “i have used a varitey of third party libraries”
Brian
* Kwik Star in Iowa as there was altready a Quik Trip)
I’d send a thank-you followup. At my company (biosciences), it would be a point against you not to send one, especially if the other applicants do. Everyone we have hired in the last 6 years has sent a thank-you email. But we’re a small company and we have to work closely with one another, so social skills are important. That may not be the case with your position.
The primary contact might be with the recruiter, but the hiring manager is the decision maker. In the very big tech companies where I worked and hired people for my group, I’d never let HR have any input on the hiring decision - not that they ever tried to. They arranged the dates and the transportation and covered benefits. I always had an excellent relationship with HR.
I don’t think a thank you note hurts, but in IT it is probably not important. Never influenced my decision. As for additional information, if you promised it, then yes. Otherwise, it might sound desperate.
The reason you never tell anyone you reject for an offering why you rejected them is because you’d immediately get back all the counterarguments, and no one needs that. Someone might be rejected because there was a better candidate, or they might get rejected because they suck, but you don’t want tot get into an argument about it. No place I would ever want to work would reject someone for not sending a thank you note, For an IT type job. For a sales job, I can see it.
On paper that’s true, in practice having a recruiter who actually likes you is going be an advantage, in a whole bunch of small ways, even if they have no input on the final decision.
Of course a two sentence thank you email is not going to instantly ingratiate you with the recruiter. But all this stuff is never going make that much difference. Even in the days when physical thank you notes for interviews were a thing, they were hardly ever the reason someone did or did not get a job.
This is also a key point. Both my last two jobs have been at large tech firms. At both of them there was no email communication with the manager or the rest of the team, it all went via the recruiter. Their emails were in the CCs of the calendar invite etc. but it would have been weird to send an email directly to them.
While I think there was a bias towards candidates not getting the emails of interviewers, some asked for business cards. My contact information was out there due to the technical activities I was involved with, so clever candidates could find it.
As stated, I have their emails from zoom invite. I decided against sending thank-yous as after some thought my additional info wasn’t as relevant as I initially thought.
If I don’t get the job c’est le vie – I will get a decent severance pay from my old job which I can live on for quite a while (though expensive vacations are definitely on hold)
But first you have to signal that you’re available, and then you have to put yourself at the head of the queue. Many, if not most, hiring managers have other things to do and want to hire someone good as quickly as possible. That’s why networking is so effective - it puts you high up on the list, and, if your contact knows you, it makes you a safe choice.
the fact that you take part in a job interview, signals that you are - a priori - available.
the processes I took part (as the responsable line mgr for hiring) - we came up with a prioritized list of candidates (0 - 5 candidates that all made the “good enough cut”) … and no way of schmoozing would get you up from 2nd to 1st place … your only chance was that the 1st ranked would tap out of the process… THEN you’d get a call as second either way.
In my personal case: a thank you note will not get you anywhere (you already thanked me at twice at the interview, didn’t you? - normally your beginning phrase and your end-phrase) …
I do reckon that “hiring and corp. culture” in different countries - and even industries may vary … and senseless pieces of comunication (my personal definition of schmoozing/B-nosing/thank you notes) might get you somewhere (Love your tie, Al!) in some cultures - but not with THIS cold hearted SD-poster .
Nobody wants to receive emails, period. Ever. People tolerate them because they have to. A thank-you note is just another five seconds of their lives they won’t get back and another piece of junk clogging their inbox.
In general, people are constantly inundated with useless messages 24/7. The best thing you can do for someone is not add to them.
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