You’ve got it in the bag.
Or have you? Before you go resting on your laurels, putting down deposits on fancy new digs and booking a pre-emptively well-deserved holiday to Hawaii (you are going to work SO hard you already feel like you need a break just thinking about it), stop for a moment before hitting send on the follow-up note you’re just SURE is going to land you the job.
While it seems like such a simple, harmless, nice thing to do from the candidate’s end, not all employers actually like to receive them, especially in fast-paced industries like financial services or consulting.
Teams are under ever-increasing pressure to perform, to get their jobs done faster and better with less. Reading and replying to 50 ‘thank you’ follow-up emails is not something many hiring managers have the time or inclination to do.
However, if you and the interviewer discussed a great Ted talk or they spent a considerable amount of time explaining a concept to you, then that’s a great opportunity to send a genuine follow-up email and thank them for helping you to gain further insights into the role or industry.
If the role is in marketing, you could write something like:
“Dear [interviewer’s name],
Thank you so much for taking the time to meet with me to discuss the position, it was great to learn more about the role, team and organisation. I looked up the video you mentioned and found it really interesting, I think it will help me when I go to prepare my next marketing plan [insert something relevant to the role you’ve applied for].
I look forward to hearing from you about the next steps in the recruitment process. Please let me know if there is any further information I can provide.
Kind regards,
[your name]”
Use your judgment about whether it’s a good idea to send a follow-up thank you email, remembering that the people hiring you are busy. If you’ve got a genuine reason to follow up then it’s a lovely gesture, but keep it short and sweet if you do. It’s a lot easier to click ‘Delete’ than it is to read yet another email!