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I disagree, if you type a thank you letter and have typos or use poor grammar it will hurt you. It's the same reason some people do not do Cover Letters. The thinking here is, the more you put down in writing on paper the more chances you have at making errors and thus people just skip it. Obviously it should not be hard to write a few paragraphs without errors, but you'd be surprised. The smallest simplest letter could destroy your chances.
There is a word for this line of thought. Let me think for a moment....
Right. I have it.
CRAZY!
I can understand people saying that thank you notes aren't necessary because they are lazy, or socially inept. But actually arguing against them because they might hurt your job prospects!?!? Or as other posters say because it makes you look weak?
What do you say when your grandmother passes you the potatoes at thanksging dinner? F... You grandma? I curse the day you brought my mother into this world.
I met with a career counselor today. She was really pushing the thank-you letter thing. In fact, she said I could email one or send it in the mail. Not sure which century she's from. I'm trying not to be obstinate, but I just don't see how a thank-you letter helps. Do you think a business that interviews you is going to think, "We really liked that guy. He seems smart, reliable, and has the experience we're looking for. But since he didn't send us a thank-you note for interviewing him, I think we'll go with someone else." ??? I'm guessing that most hiring managers just roll their eyes at thank-you emails and in fact the candidate looks worse because now he/she looks to be trying to courier favor or play on emotions. Maybe it helps in some sectors, like maybe Sales, but I doubt it does for technical roles, where skills are all that matter.
It comes down to the fact that you're in competition with a lot of other applicants, and hiring decisions are based as much on subjective factors (i.e. whether they think they might like you) as objective criteria (your skills). I can understand if someone completes the interview, goes back to work, and forgets about it, or is otherwise just too lazy to do it, but if someone can't at least understand why it's probably not a bad idea to send a follow-up thank you, then that's somewhat revealing.
There was a guy on these message boards just the other day who said he was told by who hired him that it was a choice between he and another applicant and each were equally qualified, but he got hired because the only thing that differentiated them was that he sent a thank-you note.
send a thank-you note, via email or mail. Be sure to keep it short and simple:
Dear Ms. Smith
I just wanted to drop you a quick note and thank you for taking the time for interviewing me on Tuesday, January X.
After meeting with yourself and Mr. Y, and Ms. Z, I'm sure that I can make a solid contribution in helping your firm exceed their goals.
Please do not hesitate in contacing me if you have any questions.
I just wanted to take a moment and check back with you to see if there were any questions or concerns which I may address regarding my candidacy for the position of Vice President in Charge of Closet Space.
Please advise, and I very much look forward to being part of the team at Rectabular Extrustion.
If you think about it, trying to sell yourself to a company makes you look desperate. But then again, how many of us can afford to sit around waiting for someone to invite us to work for them?
For my current job, my interviewer said right off the bat that he wanted to hire me. A couple days later, I wrote him a thank you email. Since during the interview, he told me about his dogs, kids, girlfriend, and where they went for vacation last year, I thought I would make the email less formal than I normally would make it.
Just don't have cookie cutter thank you letter. Each thank you letter should be unique, just like each application.
Do you think a business that interviews you is going to think, "We really liked that guy. He seems smart, reliable, and has the experience we're looking for. But since he didn't send us a thank-you note for interviewing him, I think we'll go with someone else."
Yes, they do exactly that. In particular, they think, "But that other guy who is just as qualified did send a thank you note, so we will go with him. Thank you letters matter. Not doing it means that you do not understands the rules and mandatory courtesies of business, and that is a problem.
In this day and age, there are layers to get through. What if the initial interview is some layer of HR and not the actual hiring manager? Does it matter as much then?
As a software engineer, I’ve personally seen a strong correlation between companies that care about things like thank you notes and companies that have decent work environments. They tend to care more about their employees and treat them less like widgets to be plugged into their machine. Those are the companies I typically want to work for. Again, just my personal experience. YMMV.
Thank-you notes are basic etiquette in the job-interview scene. With two equally qualified candidates, that thank-you note could be the tipping point. For a manager who is concerned with putting together a cohesive team and maintaining a pleasant workplace, the thank-you note could be very important. And it is a chance to show that you understand the job and the culture of that particular workplace.
"Skills" are rarely all that is considered when a person is hired. One toxic personality can up-end an entire office.
Yeah, grovel for that job and you'll surely get it!
In this day and age, there are layers to get through. What if the initial interview is some layer of HR and not the actual hiring manager? Does it matter as much then?
Just do it. You have no idea how much input HR might have, or if the HM and HR are friends. Costs nothing, can't hurt, might help.
Quote:
Originally Posted by winkosmosis
Yeah, grovel for that job and you'll surely get it!
Saying thank you is not groveling. It is polite.
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