POST-INTERVIEW FOLLOW-UP
Immediately after the interview, you will write a thank-you note to the interviewer. If you spoke with several people, write notes to both the primary interviewer and the most influential interviewer.
Probably less than 10 percent of all job hunters will write a thank-you note after an interview. Those who do will be thought of more highly and more often. Those who do not will be melding it easier for you to outmaneuver them. The note should restate your qualifications, reiterate your interest in working for the company, and pose an additional question you ''forgot" to ask in the interview. Including a question in your note automatically gives you an excuse to call the interviewer a day or so later to inquire about the answer and then to sell your candidacy again.
Call the interviewer after you are certain he or she has received your thank-you note but before the date on which you know that the final decision will be made. Ask the question you included in your note as well as others you may need answered. Then ask if the schedule for the final hiring decision is still the same and how you stand compared to the other candidates. If you find that you are among the leading candidates, reiterate your interest with enthusiasm, and make a note to find a reason to call the interviewer back again before decision day to see if any new problems or candidates have developed. If the interviewer assures you that you will be contacted when the decision is made, explain that you are sometimes very difficult to locate because you have a very active professional and social life and it is easier for you to call rather than vice-versa. It is to your advantage and for your peace of mind that you make routine status checks with the interviewer. Your status checks are a reflection of your friendly, thorough, and persistent approach to problem solving. You are not being pushy. You are assuming the responsibility for your own career.
If you find that the interviewer is noncommittal about your candidacy or says that other candidates seem more appropriate, ask for constructive criticism about your qualifications and interview techniques. Listen carefully to the criticism you do receive, do not take it personally, and listen for misconceptions by the interviewer.
Sometimes you will discover a communications problem regarding the extent and nature of your experience or your level of interest in the job which you can now try to rectify. Sometimes the explanations you receive will simply be vague, which means that the interpersonal chemistry was never established. In such cases, ask for another interview, explaining that you feel you did not present yourself well because of nervousness. Evaluate carefully all critical feedback you do receive, searching for ways to improve your next interview performance. As with all criticism, remember that it simply reflects one person s opinion. However, when the same comment is made more than once, it is worthy of serious consideration and corrective action. Finally, ask for job leads.
Unless the interviewer says that you are clearly the number one candidate, ask for a description of the leading candidate. Then try to devise arguments to match or exceed the attractiveness of the leading candidate with your strengths and Special Ingredient This leading candidate is your prime competition. Build yourself up and mold yourself in his or her image. Subtly attack the competition’s weak points and calmly reinforce them in the interviewer s mind: maybe the competition is expecting far more salary, or has less experience, or has less education, and surely is not as enthusiastic and hard working as you are.
