You just finished sitting down face to face with one or perhaps several managers and personnel at your prospective employer’s office (or via zoom due to COVID-19). So now that the interview is done, you decide to put it in God’s hands and move on to the next adventure. I will argue that you are making a big mistake. This is an opportunity to set yourself up for the next interview or prep for accepting a job offer. In any case, for several reasons which I will outline, you should consider doing the following things after an interview:
1) Take notes. Hopefully you took notes during the interview. It’s always a good practice to write down your impressions of the job, the office and the people who you talked to in the interview. Odds are you have applied for several jobs and you might not remember the finer details in 2 weeks. Plus, if you end up with multiple job offers you will have notes and impressions that you can rely on when decided which one to accept.
2) Send a thank-you card / note. Nobody really does this, but sometimes it’s the little things that mean a lot. In a competitive marketplace for jobs you are going to want to get every edge that you can. Being courteous and thoughtful should be something you should do anyways, because who wants to be around an asshole let alone hire one?
E-mail is an option, but I think a handwritten actual thank-you note is more effective and is a nice personal touch.
You don’t need to write a book on the thank you note either. Just a simple “thank you for taking the time to talk with me and allowing for me to learn more about your company. I’m very interested in the position and I look forward to hearing from you again in the near future.” Now you have also restated your interest in the position as well, which is really good, especially if you are interested in the job.
3) Take yourself out of the running. And if you aren’t interested in the job? Maybe you have a better offer elsewhere or you didn’t like the drapes or choice of office plants. It doesn’t really matter, the point is you don’t see yourself in the picture. Again, a simple e-mail will suffice. You can state why you are taking yourself out of the running if you like (just don’t be negative, be polite. If the reason is because you thought your potential boss could be a monster, then don’t say that. Say something like “I have decided to pursue a different position.”
Now if you really want to be bold, you can call up and tell them on the phone. Again, a little old fashioned, but leaves a good impression. You never know with how small some industry circles are, but your paths could cross again and you would want a good solid reputation in your industry circle / profession.
4) Put a tickler in your calendar to follow up. Hopefully you asked what the timeline is for them to make a decision. If they say within a few weeks, then put a reminder in your calendar to follow up in 2 weeks. There is nothing wrong with taking time to follow up, just probably don’t do it daily, or hourly. Your applying for a job and don’t want to come across as a stalker.
5) Write down follow-up questions and ask them. Maybe you forgot to ask a few questions. Sometimes it is good to have a couple tucked away for follow up. If you take the time to follow up either by phone or e-mail, it allows you to be a gentle reminder that you are still out there and in the running.