A reader writes:
What’s the etiquette of responding to a job candidate’s thank you note? Is this the right thing for employers to do?
Every time I go for an interview, I always send out a thank you email, normally on the same day. Some companies/people I interview with were kind enough to respond to my thank you, but mostly just don’t. From past experience though, it never really means anything as far as whether or not I get the job, since I got jobs from the non-responsive companies, and did not get jobs from those who responded. But when companies/people respond to my thank you notes, even if I didn’t get the job at the end, it always gives me a positive impression about them.
What’s your take on this?
You know what’s weird? I went years without ever being asked this question, and now I’ve been asked it numerous times in the last two months. I can’t figure out why. In any case…
I do not think courtesy demands that employers send a thank-you in response to your thank-you. I think of it like gift etiquette, where if someone sends you a thank-you note for your gift, you’re not expected to then send them a thank-you for their thank-you. If you were, it could become an endless cycle, and we would all just keep thanking each other over and over and have no time to watch Top Chef.
(And imagine if you had to do it with thank-you’s that arrived by mail rather than email. It would get time-consuming.)
That said, it’s certainly a kind and gracious gesture to reply to a candidate’s thank-you note. When I have the time (which isn’t always the case), I’ll sometimes reply with something like, “It was great meeting you as well, and we’ll be in touch soon.” But again, I think this is optional, and I wouldn’t read anything into it when employers don’t do it.
Anyone want to argue that it’s obligatory?
{ 44 comments… read them below or add one }
From the original poster.
Thank you for posting my question so quickly, AAM.
I recently had 10 (yes, right, ten) interviews with a large company, meeting with nine people – one person interviewed me twice. Almost all of them responded to my thank you emails, with the exception of the hiring manager.
I ended up not getting the job, and in fact no body else was hired either. But apart from getting a bit frustrated by the long, dragging process that had no conclusion at the end, I still have really nice impression about that company. I feel that most of the people I met were very welcoming and they embraced the possibility of my joining their team.
From my perspective, it is still a thing for employers to practice. On the other hand, I wonder if it would give candidates a 'false hope' when we get a response for the thank you note, thinking that we are the special one and will therefore automatically get the job.
Hm..
Keep in mind that there will be no response to positions that remain unfilled despite ongoing interviews and/or job postings.
There are three additional possibilities that stand out above and beyond those that were mentioned in the article.
1) The employer is testing the market. This is the process whereby interviews are conducted in preparation for a as-of-yet unrealized growth phase. The hunt for fresh talent enhances market perception (shareholder satisfaction). Never mind that in this particularly harsh economic climate such a practice amounts to cruel and unusual punishment: the job seeker’s version of a bait-and-switch encounter.
2) The hiring manager had an incumbent in mind for the position. You did, in fact, interview well but the decision had nothing whatsoever to do with you.
3) You interviewed for an out-of-area (state or country) position and while you are qualified there is always that doubt that you are serious about uprooting your life as you know it to relocate “just for a job” (even at your own expense). It’s all too easy in an “employer’s market” to hold out for a comparable local talent. The more desperate the long-term unemployed become the further they may be willing to go for work. Would-be employers may have a difficult time believing that such candidates will stick it out when the economy improves.
Related question for AAM: I've always sent hand-written thank you notes, thinking that was more professional than email. These days, it seems email is an acceptable substitute, and more instantaneous of course. Yet emails sometimes get overlooked or land in a spam folder, etc.
Which do you recommend? Is it overkill to send a brief email and then a snail mail note as well?
yes employers should help employ the job seekers because there are disperate to work so i feel is right to respond to job seekers like me.
Many companies, including mine – have a policy – no contact with a candidate outside of HR. I frequently receive thank you notes for people I interview as the hiring manager, and this certainly helps me form a favorable impression of that candidate, however I never respond. Not because I'm rude or don't care, but because our HR department has a very smart policy in place to protect us.
“I frequently receive thank you notes for people I interview as the hiring manager…. however I never respond. Not because I’m rude or don’t care, but because our HR department has a very smart policy in place to protect us.”
This is exactly what happens when millions of children grow up with the “stranger-danger” message and don’t realize that was intended to protect them from KIDNAPPING vs. “normal social situations”. Too many of us have grown up and entered the professional world with the same fears we had as children. This is not progress for corporate America — or for interpersonal relations in general.
I realize my metaphor paints a rather extreme picture but I think this accounts for the equally confounding lack of manners we see in our society today. Reading your post, I’ve had a Oprah “ah-ha” moment: We’re all too scared of the boogieman under the bed — even as professional people; even as full-grown adults — to reciprocate decency and respect.
Apparently, too many of us have been watching too many made-for-TV movies and if-it-bleeds-it-leads nightly newscasts. Seriously, whatever happened to giving others the benefit of the doubt? Psychopaths and stalkers make up a tiny fraction of the population. Perhaps the next corporate seminar needs to come from a social psychologist who can put the stranger danger in perspective before it inexplicably erodes the talent base of our “job creators” as a direct result of hiring “recruiters” who are afraid to do their job (interact with the public).
HR, after all, has the background check option at their disposal. Furthermore, most applicants provide multiple references. If an applicant has any kind of job history at all you can follow up on them (and should!). Better yet, technology has never made it easier to hide behind email or voicemail systems. Responding to an applicant with whom you’ve interviewed — to let them know if the position remains open or not — doesn’t even necessitate picking up the phone to actually TALK. In short, it doesn’t get any easier to be antisocial. So if it is easier than ever to be “safe” than what accounts for still not feeling safe enough (to the point where we rationalize out-and-out indifference even to the most gracious of applicants who have hand-written thank-you notes!)?
Sad but telling, indeed.
I don’t think that’s quite what this is about. HR depts that prohibit managers from responding to thank-you notes may be misguided, but what they’re afraid of is that a manager will inadvertently send a response that implies to the candidate that they have the job. They want to prevent that, so that they prevent situations like the candidate feeling misled if in fact they don’t have the job or, worse, giving notice at their current job.
I also maintain that sending a thank-you in response to a thank-you is unnecessary.
I do think email is perfectly fine — often even better, because it gets there quickly. I sometimes receive postal mail thank-yous after my decision has already been made. I think email has become perfectly acceptable for thank-yous.
I'd say using both would be overkill.
I've done many thx-you notes and after a while, wondered if they were worth writing. Does this add value to your application? Does this help being remembered from the crowd? I have a serious doubt.
What is your view?
Fedora,
I have to say I started thinking the same thing. I've been sending countless thank you notes and the problem with that was it made me waiting for the response. And lots of times there wasn't any.
Now, I also interviewed a few candidates and just realized recently, I received not even one thank you note from anyone of them. And a few of those candidates got hired.
So probably I should re-think this.
Thank-you notes do matter. They're not going to convince me to hire a bad candidate over a good one, but when you have several great candidates, I absolutely take note of who sends them. It only takes a minute — why not just do it? It won't hurt, and it may help.
What does it say of a good candidate that does not send one?
It's more what it says about the candidates who do send them. For them, I know that they're very interested, and care about making a good impression. For candidates who don't send them, those things may be question marks.
I always send a thank you after I have had an interview but for the first time EVER, I got a response from the hiring manager. Now what to do? I am thinking the best plan of action is no action-I don’t want to keep the email “going” by responding with a “you’re welcome” and then making HIM feel like he needs to respond. But on the other hand, I am not sure if I should respond just to let him know I got his email…this could go on and on…
Laura, what exactly did his response say?
I had the same situation and wondering if I should respond?
The response to my thank you from the employer: “Thanks Nancy. I will be out of the office for the rest of the week. I will keep in touch as we go through the process.”
I know the employer has checked some of my references.
Yeah, no need to respond to that.
So based on what the email said, do you think it sounds like I’m a top candidate?
Thanks.
No way to tell from just that!
I had an interview on Tuesday and it seemed to go well. I asked relavant questions, pulled out literature I had about their organization and had very strong referances. Of my 5 references, one of them actually works for the organization with a relavant position and he placed my resume of the directors desk and gave me araving review at that time. When they called me for the interview they told me that there were 3 interviewing for the position, and that we ALL had very strong resumes. About 1 hour after my interview, I got a call from one of my strong references. She immediately called to tell me they called her and she gave me a raving review. The following day (wed.) I sent a thank you letter. Is this a good sign. I know my stuff and passionate about what I do. I have been told by my past employers that I blow them away during the interview process…very polished. It was the same this time as well. I know there are no guarantees based on this info but realisticallly, how does this sound…positive? They said I should know something my Friday (today) no later than Monday. Ofcourse I am a nervous wreck until I get the call.
I had an interview in a company last week, it went quite well, friendly and I think i did quite well. At the end if it the hiring manager told me that he would like to connect me on linkedin. (Although no invitation yet). I sent a thank you mail and got response from hiring manager after 3 days. It says ” Dear Mr. Name, I also enjoyed our discussions. you will be contacted soon by our HR department for our decisions and the further process”. It is clear if I m out there is no further process. Do you think it is a good sign and should I expect a positive mail soon?
Thanks for your advice.
I finished my second interviews this week with a major cable network. I always send a thank you email to everyone I interview with. The first interviews were four individual interviews and the second interviews were two individual ones. I sent out my thanks for the same day after the first interviews and the next day after the second interviews.
I have normally never received a response from any of my thank you emails. But I actually got a response from one of my second interviewers and now I’m really worried. The response I received basically said it was great meeting me and thank me for being patient since it took them awhile to get the interview process going, then at the end it says “keep in touch.”
Maybe I’m over-thinking it, but I feel like that’s an indicator they’re not choosing me for the position even though this response did not come from the hiring manager, this interviewer still has a strong input in the selection process considering they were lined up as an interviewer in the first place.
Trying to stay optimistic…
So I’ve received a response from HR since I decides to follow up today and find if they had made a decision. I was told I am still under consideration and that I’ll be kept posted with updates.
I’m happy to hear I’m still being considered but can’t help think how that means another person is also being weighed against me. I guess I generally go into a job interview with a company I really want to work for very confident they’ll like me and feel confident about my ability to handle the job. Still very nervous and really hoping I’m the person chosen. Maybe I’ll hear something this Friday.
If I don’t should I follow up again on Monday with HR?
Hey this is a good sign in fact. Why someone would like to “keep in touch” if you are out. I think you should be happy firstly because the guy took his time and sent you reply of thank you mail and secondly he wants to stay in touch. In my view you did well and were able to make him remember. Expect a positive reply soon & post the response here. Good luck!!
Thank you. I will definitely share the outcome regardless.
I had an interview last Tuesday, July 30. I did not too bad on the interview even what they asked was out of my preparation and expection. After the interview, I wrote them a thank-you letter to each of the interviewers, three of them including the HR Manager, two Department Managers. After that, I got a reply from one of the Department Manager saying “It was my pleasure to meet with you too.” Do you think this is a positive sign to show their impression of me or not? I did not know how to do at the time and I did not reply to this email cause I through if I reply, it could end up with a endless cycle of thanking each other forever. Do you think I did right for this? In addition, the HR Manager told me right after the interview that they will let me know the final outcome in a week the most. But I got no reply till now. I am so much worry about I did not get selected and that is why they did not call me so far. I am now thinking I will call the HR on this Tuesday (Monday is holiday cause the long weekend) to follow up anyway. Should I do this on Tuesday or I should wait until the end of this week?
I wouldn’t read anything into the reply (it was just a polite response, doesn’t mean anything either way), and you were right not to reply back to it for the reason you said. It’s been almost a month since you were supposed to hear something, so it’s reasonable to follow up. Call or email on Tuesday. (Or did you mean AUGUST 30, not July 30? If so, it hasn’t even been the week they said yet — in which case wait until the end of this coming week.)
Many thanks for the quick reply. Yes, I made a mistake in my last post. The interview happened on last Tuesday, August 30. Sorry for the confusion. As the HR Manager told me one week the most I will have the answer. This upcoming Tuesday will be the date after a whole week of the interview. This is why I am worry that I was not selected cause they might have the final decision by last Friday already. But anyway, I would wait until this Thursday or Friday to follow up. Thanks.
First of all, I’d like to tell how much I LOVE your blog, and how much it has helped me to improve my resume, cover letter and overall preparation for a good job hunt! I was able to land 2 interviews last week (one was last Wednesday, one was yesterday!). I already received an email from the first interview that I am invited for a 2nd round next Monday! However, the job I am REALLY interested in, I interviewed for yesterday.
And as you might have figured… I have a question :)
So, yesterday’s interview went really well.. or so I think. I came prepared, dressed very professional (even though I knew the office was casual – I definitely saw people in flip flops and jeans!), arrived about 10 minutes prior to the appointment.. and so on. The two interviewers were very impressed by my (job-relevant) skills, and when I was speaking about how I enjoy being very organized, the dpt. manager said she can definitely tell from my very well-structured, neat resume. I was sooo happy! In fact, she complimented me on my skills quite a few times throughout the process. Sounds like everything went perfect… BUT… there were two really akward moments. Oh God!
First, when I was alone in the interview room waiting for the managers to show up I felt like I have a lash in my eye or something, and wipped out my mirror to check. Well, unfortunately, 2 mins into doing that I look to my right and can see the managers standing in front of the door. I was so embarrassed.
The 2nd awkward moment was a short skill test. It’s a bilingual position (a language that IMO not too many people in the US speak.. at least not too many that applied for this job, I think. Haha.) and at the very end I was supposed to write a one or two sentences about a “turning point in my life” in the other language.
Now, at this point we moved the interview from the room to the lobby area because we went over the scheduled time (which is a good sign, in this case, I believe). I had to bend down and write on a coffee table, while the two managers were chatting away and I got kind of nervous. I had no clue what to write, started, and then crossed out some stuff. It looked kind of messy, and to make it worse I put on a bad poker face and jokingly said “Gosh, I haven’t written by hand in so long. Sorry about it being so.. messy.” The moment it came out of my mouth, I literally wanted to slap myself. Ugh.
Also, the manager was a “talker”, and in between topics she talked about, she’d ask me if I had questions. I, of course, asked a few, but wanted to save some for the end. Well, as I mentioned.. the interview was moved to the lobby for the short skill test, and then I got a quick tour, and the interview was over after I received her business card. She apologized and said both of them had to run into a meeting, which I didn’t think much of, as the interview went 20 minutes longer than expected, and in a large company, I know that managers often have meeting after meeting without really getting a break.
What do you think? Should I be worried about these two faux-pas? :/ I followed up with a very nice email to her, and expressed how interested (and why!) I am in the job, and that I really enjoyed everything. I didn’t mention this, but I really wish I would have gotten more time to ask questions! I only asked about 3-4 in total, because I didn’t want to interrupt her or changing the topic completely! Ugh.
She replied to me today, and though I wish it was a sign of me being close to getting an offer.. I doubt it. She mentioned that if I have any additional questions, I should get in touch and that she expects to be in touch with me about the job before the end of the week.
Should I reply to hear? And, as a manager, do you think the “compliments” towards my skill set were simply standard/her being polite or if she actually meant it? I’m so nervous about hearing back, because I really want this job. Le sigh.
P.S. Sorry for the ramble!
Katie, those don’t sound like serious faux paus at all! I wouldn’t give them another thought, seriously!
As for her compliments, it’s hard to say if they mean anything or not. You could be a fantastic candidate, but there could be 3 fantastic candidates, you know? It’s better not to try to read too much into this stuff. Good luck!
Wow, that’s what I call a quick reply! :) And phew, I’m really relieved now. I was soooooo embarrassed by the mirror incident, like.. seriously. So much. Hahaha. It’s crazy how when you’re looking for a new job the smallest thing can throw you off!
We’ll see how it goes.. I’ll try to stay positive for now! Thanks so much for all your great advice, I love your blog!
Hi, wow – this is a great site! Anyhow, here is what happened to me. 1) I was selected for an on-campus interview with a large firm 2) I (and the rest of the candidates) were invited to a “meet-and-greet” at a local restaurant for lunch the day before the interview. 3) I interviewed the following day on campus with two members of the firm (1 Partner/1 Sr. Mgr) for approx. 30 minutes each. 4) Both the “meet-and-greet” and the interview seemed to go well. 5) I sent thank you emails to both interviewers 6) a few days later I received the following response from one of the interviewers “Thank you for your interest in XXXXXXX. I enjoyed the time we spent together. You should be hearing from us regarding whether you will be receiving an invitation to visit or office within the next couple of weeks. Please feel free to reach out to me in the meantime with any questions, etc. Have a great day!”
7) Is this a test? Should I respond and/or re-reiterate my qualifications and why I would be a great fit? All contact information was provided such as multiple phone #s. Any assistance would be appreciated. Thanks
It’s not a test, but there’s no harm in sending back a short email (don’t call). Thank them for their time in talking with you and tell them why you’re more interested as a result of that meeting.
Oh, wait, ignore me. Just realized you already sent a thank-you and this was in response to that (duh). No, I’d say only respond back (to their thanks for your thanks) if you do legitimately have questions. It’s not a test though, I promise.
I had a wonderful interview with a great Corporation this past Monday 10/10. The CEO and Direcot of Human Resources were in the interview. They stated they received over 900 resumes and mine stood out. They know my former boss and were impressed my my long history of staying at jobs for more than 10 years +. They said they were agressively interviewing by word of mouth/referrals. I wrote a thank you email and received a response from the CEO stating that they would get back to my by the end of the week as again they are agressively interviewing…….I have great references and people that know him that put a good work in for me but then the other candidates are referrals from members of the board…….I guess this would be more like a “political” appointmet of who knows who the best ….I am very confused and scared that I wont get a fair shot……..
Many of the comments here have been questioning how much a response to a thank-you email indicates good performance in the interview. I don’t think that is the case. Instead, I think the post-interview response is a function of 2 items:
1. How personalized the email is. If you sent a 2-liner that says “thanks for interviewing” then a response is unlikely. However, if you mention something specific that stood out to you from the conversation, attach a work sample for something discussed in the interview, or mention something else unique about the interviewer’s background/weekend plans/interests, etc, then you are naturally more likely to get an individual response.
2. How many people were interviewed that day. If it was a 30-minute on-campus interview, then the interviewer likely saw about 15 people that day and will have her inbox flooded with emails from people that she hardly remembers. However, if you did a fly-out final round, and the interviewer only met with 2-3 candidates that day, then she would be more able to respond individually.
I think these 2 factors alone drive 90% of employer responses to post-interview thank you emails. In short, the extent of personalization and size of interview class will alter the probability of getting a response.
That said, if only a handful of candidates are interviewing that day and you had a good enough interview to draft a quality/personalized thank you note, then odds are, you are more likely to pass that round. So in this respect, there would be a correlation (not causation) relationship between receiving a employer’s response and receiving a job offer.
Please note: I just received responses from 2/3 interviewers from my interviews yesterday, and not knowing the result is driving me crazy. And I get highly analytical when I am crazy, so I thought I would share my thoughts.
I received a reply from the indivdual that interveiewed me telling me it was nice to meet and thanking me for taking the time to write a nice thank you note. They also said they would be in touch soon.
Do I need to reply to this?
If the interviewer doesn’t give you the opportunity to ask questions after the interview or “pre-screening” as it was called, is this a bad sign?
Most likely it’s a bad/inexperienced interviewer.
I figured it would be the hiring manager that would ask me if I had a question; provided I land a second interview as it was the hiring manager that shortlisted my resume. However it was the companies HR recruiter that I had first contact with and they didn’t even bother to describe the position passed what the add was saying, in fact they didn’t even talk about the position at all. It was just straight behavioral questions and OK thanks for your time and I will pass on your response to the hiring manager? Is it fair to assume that “pre-screening” is just a set questionnaire and not actually an interview, because it didn’t feel like an interview?
If you’re asking if you should send a thank you note anyway: Yes, still send one.
Will do thanks
I had an interview this past week and I sent thank you emails to everyone whom I met with. I received a response from one of the HR people thanking me for the email and that she would get back to me as soon as possible “with the next steps.” Does this imply I have a good chance of getting the job? I may be reading too much into it, but I feel as if an email saying something like she would be getting back to me asap with their decision would be more neutral?
You’re reading too much into it :)