Post Interview Thank You Cards

July 24, 2006 9:38 PM

What should I write in the the thank card post job interview — especially for a position within my current company?
posted by dial-tone to Work & Money (8 answers total)

Thanks very much for taking the time to interview me. I look forward to hearing from you soon. -dial-tone

What else is there to say? The idea is that, by providing the card, you get the benefit of having your name seen last before the decision is made, because people almost never send post-interview thank-you cards. There isn't much to say beyond "thanks" - if there's some bit of information you wanted to convey, it's probably best to have done that in the interview itself.
posted by gwenzel at 9:53 PM on July 24, 2006

I thank you for the opportunity to interview with you. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

It is the thing to do. Especially if it gets there the next day. Don't next day air it or anything, but have it already done and mail it immediately after the interview.
posted by Ironmouth at 9:57 PM on July 24, 2006

And by "mail it immediately after the interview" Ironmouth likely means at the post office or at least in a box that still has a pick up that day.
posted by FlamingBore at 11:02 PM on July 24, 2006

Depending on how well you know the person who interviewed you, and whether or not it would be seen as weird in your office, you could also just drop by their cube/office and say hello, and thank them for their time. Just make sure you smile!

Good luck with the internal interview . . . done that a couple times myself and typically it pays off.
posted by Medieval Maven at 4:31 AM on July 25, 2006

My rule of thumb with the post-interview thank you is to refer to something that you spoke about in the interview, some important point or interesting sidebar, just to remind them that you were paying attention during the interview and to emphasize your interest in that topic.
posted by archimago at 5:54 AM on July 25, 2006

They're also very aware that you work there, but I'd still toss in a cheerful reminder anyway. "I've enjoyed my X years at company Y and would love to contribute in a new way by joining your department." It never hurts to keep the fact that you know the business, the customers, and the corporate culture at the front of the hiring manager's mind.
posted by mikeh at 7:04 AM on July 25, 2006

Exactly what archimago said. I usually keep thank you notes (sometimes an email is fine too, depending on the circumstances) short and simple. "I enjoyed talking with you the other day, thanks for taking the time to meet with me. I'm particularly interested in 'project X' and am excited about the possibilty of working on it." etc.

Good luck!
posted by aladfar at 7:29 AM on July 25, 2006

I've gotten a lot of "thank you for the interview" cards over the years (although not nearly as many as people I've interviewed) and the things not to do:

- If you're writing thank you notes to more than one interviewer, don't use the same line. We compare notes.
- Don't put it on Winnie the Pooh cardstock, or similar, unless it's so tacky it's obvious you're poking fun at it
- Don't seem lukewarm about the position.

For an internal interview, a quick, slightly more casual note that directly addresses the internal thing and that isn't pushy would be the way I go.

Good luck.
posted by Gucky at 9:44 AM on July 25, 2006