Five Rules for Following Up After a Job Interview

Summary: We have put together five very important rules you need to put in place when following up after a job interview in today’s highly competitive world.

Searching for a job can be very stressful, especially when you have trouble following up with companies. Many people feel like they are being annoying or bothersome when they follow-up with hiring managers after a job interview. For some, this can be very true depending on how often they make contact. For others, it can be very far from the truth. We will provide you with five rules that are a must-do when following up after a job interview in this post.

Be Polite and Humble

Whenever you decide to follow-up after a job interview, you need to be polite and humble as much as possible when speaking with the hiring manager. Whether you follow-up via email or phone call, the politeness needs to be present. You cannot take it the wrong way if you do not hear back immediately after a job interview because you might come across as upset or mad.

Persistent Does not Include Daily Contact

Even though you need to be persistent in following up after a job interview, it does not mean you should make daily contact with the hiring manager. The general rule is that you should allow one week to pass after a job interview before you follow-up with the hiring manager. When you send emails or make phone calls daily, you are not being persistent. Instead, you are not respecting the person’s time.

Ask if you Should Refrain from Contact

If you have followed up multiple times, via more than one outlet, and have not heard back yet, ask the hiring manager if you should stop following up with the company. Tell them you do not want to waste their time and that you want to know if the company is interested or not in you as an employee. The hiring manager will respect your honesty and will let you know whether or not you are right for the job.

Stand Out Positively

When following up after a job interview, it is best to stand out positively as much as possible. This includes being a little creative in the contact you make with the company either by phone or email. Try to find something to say or offer to the hiring manager that he or she cannot resist when  you follow-up.

Change Course of Action

If you have been contacting the same person multiple times and are not hearing back from them, change your course of action. Send a differently worded email, at a different time of day, in order to catch them when they are free for a minute or two.

The bottom line here is that you are responsible for following up after a job interview until told you are hired or the company no longer has any interest.