How do I apply for a job a second time?

July 19, 2010 11:32 AM

How do I apply for a job a second time?

I applied (through a recruiter) for a job two years ago. It was a new position in particular organization, and I went through four interviews, three of which I rocked, one of which didn't go so well. The word back from the recruiter was that I didn't get the job, but said something about thinking that maybe they decided to cancel the position.

I now see an open posting for the job, and I'd like to apply again. I have a few contact email addresses, including the person who was the original hiring manager. I'd like to express interest, and want to do more than just simply send in an application.

I know I don't want to go through the recruiter again, and I'm going to apply directly. But I'd like to juice it up a little. Should I email the hiring manager letting them know I'm still interested? Should I email the HR person that I met previously? I have two ex-coworkers that are both at the new organization. Should I try and enlist their services somehow? I know that they might have disqualified me, and I'm braced for that rejection.

How can I maximize my prior application and knowledge of people inside?

Thanks for your ideas and opinions.

posted by Gorgik to Work & Money (4 answers total)

Best answer: I'd skip the recruiter and just contact HR or the hiring manager, or find out through your contacts who your direct supervisor would be. I think the spin would be to identify the great things that the company has done in the past two years and how you remain really excited about the prospect of working for them--AND be sure to describe all the ways you are an even better candidate based on your experiences since then.

It sounds like you've got the right attitude about this, but I think in all interactions with them, you should just assume that the person who got the job was the Second Coming of Christ. Don't be a dick about it, but the spin is just that you had consistently great interviews, loved talking with everyone, but the person who got the job was EVEN more awesome than you. Because, let's face it, you're awesome. By all means, refer back to your earlier interview and how much fun you had talking with them, but I wouldn't get into the fact that you really didn't hit it off with Tim or something.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 11:46 AM on July 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I know I don't want to go through the recruiter again, and I'm going to apply directly.

Just as an FYI, the recruiter may have a contract in place with the company that says you can't do that since you've worked with the recruiter once for this position. Check, early on, with the person you contact at the company. If this is an issue, you want to identify it as soon as possible.
posted by NotMyselfRightNow at 12:58 PM on July 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Best answer: As someone who has done hiring in the past, I would be absolutely thrilled if a candidate I'd found to be acceptable but not #1 in a previous round of hiring applied again in a later round. There's a lot of behind-the-scenes work that goes into screening resumes, checking references, setting up interviews, discussing various candidates, etc. -- work that they don't have to do over again from scratch with you. If you already made it to round 4 in the interview process that means they liked you a lot, you just lost out to someone they liked better. You may be their favorite this time.
posted by Jacqueline at 11:41 PM on July 19, 2010 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: Thanks all!
posted by Gorgik at 6:02 AM on July 21, 2010