Should I contact a company for a third time post-interview?
May 13, 2013 10:14 AM Subscribe
I went to a job interview (hurray!) and it seemed to go well. Sent a thank you note. Sent a follow up some time later, but no descion had been made. Should I contact them again?
The details:
The job interview itself was in early April. I think it went well. This is one of the few times where I haven't felt like a total fraud out of their depth.
I was told at the end of the interview not to be a stranger, and that I was the second of five candidates to be considered. Further, I was told that interviews would probably not be completed until the end of the month and should not consider radio silence as a rejection. I sent out a thank you note via email after the interview, and let the interviewer know I would get in touch with them again at the end of the month.
I contacted them around April 30th, but was told the interviews were not yet complete but the hope was to finish them by the first week in May.
Fast forward to today. Do I contact them again? If I do, when? Now? Later? How would I go about writing the email if I did? I don't want to be a bother, but at the same time I really want this job.
The details:
The job interview itself was in early April. I think it went well. This is one of the few times where I haven't felt like a total fraud out of their depth.
I was told at the end of the interview not to be a stranger, and that I was the second of five candidates to be considered. Further, I was told that interviews would probably not be completed until the end of the month and should not consider radio silence as a rejection. I sent out a thank you note via email after the interview, and let the interviewer know I would get in touch with them again at the end of the month.
I contacted them around April 30th, but was told the interviews were not yet complete but the hope was to finish them by the first week in May.
Fast forward to today. Do I contact them again? If I do, when? Now? Later? How would I go about writing the email if I did? I don't want to be a bother, but at the same time I really want this job.
Do I contact them again?
Nope.
I don't want to be a bother, but at the same time I really want this job.
If you are appropriate for the job, they will hire you. If you aren't, they won't. You can't change this. Accept this. From a previous instance of this question:
posted by saeculorum at 10:25 AM on May 13, 2013 [4 favorites]
Nope.
I don't want to be a bother, but at the same time I really want this job.
If you are appropriate for the job, they will hire you. If you aren't, they won't. You can't change this. Accept this. From a previous instance of this question:
It's not as if the people you're interviewing with will forget that they are hiring someone. The decision will happen one way or another, and emailing them won't change that. Similarly, if they want to hire you, a single email shouldn't change that opinion, and if they don't want to hire you, you're not going to make them change their mind. In other words, the email just adds to the number of emails the interviewers have to deal with every day - it's not that big of a deal by itself, but it's not going to change anything for you.
Another way to think about this is: if the organization you're interviewing with is so disorganized a potential key hire was "lost in the noise" or so judgmental that they reject a hire for a single email, would you really want to work there in the first place?
posted by saeculorum at 10:25 AM on May 13, 2013 [4 favorites]
I am in this same situation. Maddening, isn't it? Mine is compounded by a very enthusiastic and energetic recruiter, who actually asked me to write an essay about why I'd be so great for the job.
The way that I'm dealing with it is by applying for other awesome jobs.
I'll give up hope if I don't hear anything by the end of the month. I'll also write SUCH a review on Glassdoor.com.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 10:38 AM on May 13, 2013
The way that I'm dealing with it is by applying for other awesome jobs.
I'll give up hope if I don't hear anything by the end of the month. I'll also write SUCH a review on Glassdoor.com.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 10:38 AM on May 13, 2013
Do not assume they're not interested, and do not assume that you are a bother. Be persistent, be polite... but don't look desperate. It took multiple tries to get into my current job, and I have been at that same company for 24 years.
posted by brownrd at 1:53 PM on May 13, 2013
posted by brownrd at 1:53 PM on May 13, 2013
I would contact them a third time to reiterate your interest in the position and why you feel you are a good match, but it's also clear they are not doing things as quickly as they hope to, so I would try again in another week or two. Holding them to the first week of May seems to set you up for another "Nope, still not quite done yet" response, and then you have to decide if you want to contact them a fourth time, which begins to get excessive.
My goal would be to contact them after interviews are completed and they are in the decision-making process. It sounds like that isn't going to be this week, given how behind they are, but who knows. I don't think you lose anything with a quick note reiterating your interest, but I do think it should be brief as not to be annoying and you should not hold them too close to the dates they mentioned.
At a bare minimum, hopefully if they have made a decision they will respond letting you know so you don't have to wait around anxiously by your phone/email. But maybe if there's a tie between two candidates, seeming to want it more will play in your favor. I am no expert in hiring or getting hired though.
posted by AppleTurnover at 2:02 PM on May 13, 2013
My goal would be to contact them after interviews are completed and they are in the decision-making process. It sounds like that isn't going to be this week, given how behind they are, but who knows. I don't think you lose anything with a quick note reiterating your interest, but I do think it should be brief as not to be annoying and you should not hold them too close to the dates they mentioned.
At a bare minimum, hopefully if they have made a decision they will respond letting you know so you don't have to wait around anxiously by your phone/email. But maybe if there's a tie between two candidates, seeming to want it more will play in your favor. I am no expert in hiring or getting hired though.
posted by AppleTurnover at 2:02 PM on May 13, 2013
The decision will happen one way or another, and emailing them won't change that. Similarly, if they want to hire you, a single email shouldn't change that opinion, and if they don't want to hire you, you're not going to make them change their mind.
Eh, I disagree. I went through a hiring process last year where I was slammed with other work at the same time that I was trying to interview candidates. I had a bunch of candidates who were great on paper but weren't all that enthusiastic about the job, and then I had "Lisa". Lisa followed up with three emails that were juuuuust on the acceptable edge of pushy but the fact that she was just THAT enthusiastic about the job was really obvious in the emails.
And we were busy, and her regular emails - not too persistent, but just persistent enough - kept her name familiar to me. It worked out well for Lisa, just be very careful about the tone of the contact - has to be persistently positive or else it really gives a different message.
Good luck...
posted by arnicae at 8:31 PM on May 13, 2013
Eh, I disagree. I went through a hiring process last year where I was slammed with other work at the same time that I was trying to interview candidates. I had a bunch of candidates who were great on paper but weren't all that enthusiastic about the job, and then I had "Lisa". Lisa followed up with three emails that were juuuuust on the acceptable edge of pushy but the fact that she was just THAT enthusiastic about the job was really obvious in the emails.
And we were busy, and her regular emails - not too persistent, but just persistent enough - kept her name familiar to me. It worked out well for Lisa, just be very careful about the tone of the contact - has to be persistently positive or else it really gives a different message.
Good luck...
posted by arnicae at 8:31 PM on May 13, 2013
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Also, unfortunately, it seems to have become the norm for the non-hired candidates to hear nothing for months on end until someone in HR clears their to-do list and manages to send out the "thanks but we went with another candidate" email. Or worse, they don't contact at all.
In your situation, it sounds like "hope to finish in the first week of May" has become "probably the second or third week of May". I would wait until the week of the 27th, or even the week after, to contact them again.
As for how to construct the email (although I'd advise a phone call if possible), I'd simply say:
I hope all is going well in your search for [position]. As it has been nearly [x] weeks since we last communicated, I'm just checking in for an update on your hiring timeline, and to let you know I'm still very much interested in the position. I'm available for any additional questions or information you have for me.
posted by trivia genius at 10:23 AM on May 13, 2013 [1 favorite]