Etiquette- Interview Follow-up

I saw the statement below in an article about how to follow-up after an interview. I would like to know your thoughts on the "show up in person" follow-up. Especially from the corporate recruiters.

"Don’t wait for them to call you. One week after the position closes, snail mail a follow-up letter or make a personal visit (suited up) to the Human Resource director to introduce yourself regarding the position that you’ve applied. Briefly reiterating your qualifications and skill sets and how you remain impressed with the company. Thank them for taking the time out of their busy schedule and that you look forward to hearing from them. Letter should be no more than ¾ of a page and personal visit should not last longer than 2 minutes."

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Permalink Reply by Professional Recruitment Resourc on August 21, 2012 at 8:56am

I do not know of many situations where I would recommend the impromptu "drop in" to a hiring authority. You have an excellent chance they will not make time to meet with you. An email or letter would be best and may not even warrant a response

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Permalink Reply by Ben McGrath on August 21, 2012 at 12:34pm

I agree with Andrew that just dropping by may not be a good idea. It would, however, depend on the situation. Certainly contact via e-mail of some kind is a good idea. Perhaps you are somehow connected to the interviewer or hiring manager. If so, drop them a quick note.

If you are not somehow "socially" connected, then perhaps accomplishing two tasks with the follow up is a possibiity. First, reiterate your desire for the position and second, ask if they would like to connect for future and/or current networking opportunities.

All the best,

Ben

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Permalink Reply by Maya Saric on September 18, 2012 at 10:06pm

Hi Tiffany, I have to agree with Ben on this. As for etiquette, I stick to a thank you letter or email, rather than dropping in. Not to mention, not many people have the time to spend dropping by to every recruiter they have seen

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Permalink Reply by Theresa Hunter on September 19, 2012 at 11:02am

If one of my candidates dropped by the law firm where they just interviewed I think the firm would freak out and to be honest so would I. I do a debrief with the candidate after the interview and than counsel them on the next step. I would never suggest they drop by and try to talk with the Partner. It is my job to keep things flowing along.

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Permalink Reply by Tiffany Branch on September 19, 2012 at 11:08am

I was really shocked when I saw this piece of advice. I hd a candidate drop in once and it freaked me out. We don't have security but I made reception aware and I kept the guy in the reception area. He was actually pretty creepy.

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Permalink Reply by Martin O'Shea on September 19, 2012 at 11:48pm

Would have to agree with everyone, that dropping by unannounced wont be recognised as a very good thing. Unless of course what Ben said if you were socially connected then I don't see why not. A email will do the job just fine, or can even use the telephone to call up which will show your ability to have a solid conversation on the phone. I once waited at the bottom of a commerical building waiting for the Managing director to go on his lunch break and approached him say "sorry to bother been trying to be in contact over the last couple of weeks and wasn't getting a response", maybe I the one who is a creep haha. Didn't up with a job as they wanted a bilingual speaking applicants but was good experience!

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Permalink Reply by Dave Rietsema on September 24, 2012 at 10:43pm

I would not recommend dropping by unannounced--I find it pretty strange and a bit intrusive. I would suggest dropping the interviewer a clear and concise email thanking them for their time and reiterating your qualifications for the position you interviewed for. Also, you might want to check the company website's HRIS/Applicant Tracking System to see if you are still in the running for the position--some systems will tell you where you are in the process. Make sure when you email the interviewer you mention something specific discussed in the interview so you can show you were paying attention.

Hope that helps,

Dave

ATS