Out of Sight, Out of Mind
Elaine Varelas offers advice on following up after a job interview
Q: Last month, I accepted a buyout offer from my company, and I’m currently freelancing while I look for a new full-time position. I had a good job interview two weeks ago and followed up a few days later thanking the interviewer. During the interview, he said he was interested in my candidacy and wanted to bring me back in to meet with more people. I haven’t heard anything since the interview two weeks ago. Since I’ve already sent a follow-up, should I do more to find out where I stand?A:
Out of sight, out of mind. Stay in front of this person. Your goal is a live conversation to express your interest and gauge theirs. Remember, this job may be your top priority, but it’s not your contact’s top priority. They’ve got multiple priorities and projects to work on, and you don’t know what their to-do list looks like. Be patient and assertive. Often the person who was the most recent touch is the person who moves ahead. Showing your level of interest and eagerness is worthwhile.
Sometimes an interviewer isn’t getting back to you because they’re pursuing another candidate. You could be a strong number two candidate, and they might be deliberately slowing down your process and speeding up somebody else; this way, they can come back to you if the other candidate doesn’t accept. A lot could be going on, but there’s nothing worse than not knowing, so continue in your efforts to contact this person. You might consider making contact through an admin to get a clue about the situation: is your contact available or is he traveling? Can the admin get you on your contact’s calendar to speak at a scheduled time? Just communicating with the admin could help if he or she encourages your contact to return your call.
It’s common to feel like repeated attempts at contact become annoying and that you’re at risk of leaving your contact with a bad impression of you. But it doesn’t have to be all or nothing—find a balance. How many calls make you a pest and how many calls make you an interested candidate? The determination between these options is in the time in between your communication. Sending an email every hour all day is a pest. Sending an email or voicemail every third day conveys a level of interest. Calling before hours or after hours is a great approach, too—your contact may be more likely to pick up the phone if you aren’t catching them at the busiest part of their day.
When do you accept silence as confirmation of no longer being considered for the job? It depends on how much time and effort you have invested. The rule of thumb is to expect an equal reaction to your action; if you only sent a letter or email, you’re not likely to get a response. If you had a phone interview, you might get something from a recruiter, the manager, or an admin. If you’ve had a face-to-face with one or more people, you deserve a conversation (and if not, that reflects poorly on that organization). The best thing to do is make sure you know what the next step in the process is before you even leave the interview: “If I don’t hear from you, can I call you within the next week?” That way, you have something concrete to fall back on in your follow-up.
Definitely do more to find out where you stand—staying top of mind for the interviewer is in your best interest, so go ahead and put in another follow-up call.
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