[Anonymous]

After 8 interviews and at lest 20 thank you notes only one person has ever responded. Is this normal?

[KBinMN]

I agree, and for each thing interviewers say or do, I take note of that as well in considering to take or decline the job.

If a thank you note really pushes you to be the one to get the job, I think that is a poor hiring practice.

[Anonymous]

@Son What would you propose sending as a reply to the thank-you note? I'm the type of person that rarely ever doesn't answer any emails, and usually answers them all very promptly…but when I got emailed thank-you notes for an interview, I was stumped. I couldn't come up with an appropriate response that wouldn't create false hopes, and I definitely didn't want to create false disappointment.

I do think interviewing is a 2-way street. I do realize that the interviewee who is hired will probably remember every second of their interview and have a pretty well-defined opinion of you long before you call them back with an offer. I do take very seriously the responsibility of being the interviewer. And I do, in person, thank them for taking the time to come and visit with us. However, the real point of the interviewee's thank-you note isn't simply to thank the interviewer for his/her time – it's also to make sure their name is in their interviewer's mind, to make a quick one or two sentence comment to help the interviewer think they're a good choice, etc. An interview thank-you note is more like the last part of a sales pitch, combined with a thank-you note. So, yes, their time is valuable as well in its own way…but they're the ones who are trying to sell themselves. It's like when the insurance salesman comes by, he might send a follow-up email that says “Thanks for meeting with me today. It was a pleasure to discuss in more detail your insurance needs. XYZ Insurance Company has been serving your industry for 78 years and excels in providing insurance products that are tailored to your needs. Please let me know if I can provide you with more information.” Is that a thank-you note? Yes, but mostly as an excuse to email. It's a parting sales-pitch. And that's fine – that's his job. For the interviewee, getting the job is their job.

As the interviewer, my job is to make the best decision possible for my company and for the candidate and not to unnecessarily disappoint people, either by falsely building up their hopes or by accidentally saying something via email that is misinterpreted as disappointment. I said the best decision for the company and the candidate; this is a part of the process that I take particularly seriously. This most recent time that we were conducting interviews, we had one candidate that had all the qualifications and seemed like she would do great in the job, but that she would be miserable in it as well. We strongly encouraged her to apply to other positions at our organization because she seemed like she would be a great employee, but this job just wasn't a fit that would be good for her, regardless of whether or not it would be good for us.

KBinMN – I wouldn't say that a thank-you note makes you get the job, just that it has the potential to be helpful, if done right. The candidate we hired didn't send a thank-you note, but it was a point in their favor for the ones who sent good, well-constructed thank-you notes.

[thelawnwranglers]

I think the response rate is similar to AR confirmations

slim and none

I always do them but it seems stupid. You are never going to write the perfect blurb that puts you over the top. It is just checking the box of doing what you are suppose. Had energy – check- wore a suit – check- sent thank you- check

[Tripp11]

To the OP, yes, it's quite the norm.

Our Firm does not send thank you notes as a response to candidate's thank you notes. We thank them for their time at the conclusion of the interview. If not sending a thank you note in response to their thank you note upsets the candidate or makes the candidate think less about our firm, that candidate isn't the right fit for our firm.

With that said, as a firm, when it comes down to deciding between nearly identical candidates, those that send thank you notes or thank you emails get the nod.

AUD - 93
BEC - 80
REG - 86
FAR - 83

[mla1169]

Further the thank you note isn't at ALL about thanking the interviewer for their time. If that's what a candidate thinks, then you have no clue how to write a thank you note and really need not bother.

The first sentence, and closing sentence are thanking the interviewer for their time. The rest of the email is a marketing pitch of yourself. You are explaining why YOU are the best person for the job, and how after discussing the position in depth how your skills and talent are a perfect fit. You are bringing up key points from the interview to demonstrate that you are well aware of what will be expected from you. And if you're smart, you will ask a question or two that you thought of after the interview.

If you talked to multiple people you PERSONALIZE individual emails because what you need to “sell” in the thank you letter will not be the same. (i.e. Judy cares most about your ability to provide reporting data but John cares most that you understand ratios).

I think people who lament that thank you notes are a waste of time are not utilizing them properly. If you just send a note that says thanks for talking to me, you're wasting your time.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[KBinMN]

When are candidates ever “nearly identical”?

[TNCPA16]

“You presume that candidate's time is less valuable than yours – why is that, you consider yourself a better person or professional simply because they are looking for a job, and you already have it?”

Lol, yes, exactly. (kidding, kidding). Look, my company invests a lot of time in recruiting people. Between HR and the hiring managers (me), we look at a lot of resumes, do prescreens, spend time interviewing, follow up interviews, etc. We discuss every candidate before we ask them in for an interview. Every person we bring in for an interview is thanked at the beginning for taking an interest in the position and thanked at the end for coming in. And every person we interview is followed up with after the interview – ether asked to come back for round 2 or told that they were not selected for the position. We have interviewed people over the phone, early in the morning, late in the evening, etc. to accommodate their schedules and do what's best for them. It's ridiculous to even suggest that I somehow think I'm a better person because I don't respond to a thank you note.

Like I said in my very first post, what kind of response are you expecting? Unless you ask me a question, I really don't have a response. If we liked you, there's a good chance I'll be calling you in the next 24 hours to set up round 2 – so why would I need to reply to your thank you note? If we didn't like you or are on the fence, then what could I say to you that wouldn't lead you on? I hate to say it, but we are such a sue-happy society, that I do think very carefully about what I say to candidates, because I don't want something to come back to bite me in a discrimination lawsuit. I've had people email asking for feedback about their interviews. I would love to respond, because I genuinely enjoy helping people with resumes/interviewing, but I'm afraid that anything I say can open up the company to liability. And what about people who hand-write a thank you card? How do you expect me to respond to that? If you want a response to a thank you note, ask a question. Otherwise, you more than likely will not get a response.

I agree that a thank you note is not ALL about thanking someone for their time – let me clarify. First, yes, I do think it is polite to thank someone for their time. An interview is mostly about you, selling yourself to me. Yes, I need to sell the company/job to you, but mostly, I want to know about you and if you are a good choice for this position. I have spent time reviewing your resume, discussing you with my colleagues, reviewing your prescreen, preparing questions to ask you, and finally spending time interviewing you. I have invested a good bit of time in you already. Do I require you thank me for that? Absolutely not, but it certainly is nice and the polite thing to do. Second, sending me a thank you note tells me that you are interested in the position. I can't tell you how many people I have interviewed who, when asked “why are you interested in this position?” answered with something like “I just need a job.” Those people rarely send thank you notes after. Why? Because they really aren't interested. I don't want to be working with those kind of people. I want someone who is excited about this opportunity and excited about working on my team. That can be hard to convey in an interview, so a thank you note is a perfect time to tell me that you are interested and excited about this position. I'm probably in the minority here, but I hate it when people regurgitate their resumes/interview in thank you notes. Unless it's something we did not explicitly discuss in your interview, then I don't think you should include it in a that in your thank you note.

Anyway, enough on that. Back to the original subject. Is it normal to not get a response? YES.

[Tripp11]

@KMinMN – You clearly aren't in favor of sending thank you notes, and that's your choice. I'm simply telling you that it matters to some firms and interviewers. It's up to you to send them or not send them.

And our Firm interviews 30-40 candidates every year for full-time positions, and there are indeed many candidates who are nearly identical in my mind. They have almost identical GPAs, similar experience, similar extracurricular activities, and seemingly have personalities who would fit well within our firm. If we have only one position open, and we have 3 candidates who everyone likes – it simply comes down to the person who went the extra step in trying to separate them from the pack. At times, a thank you note does just that.

AUD - 93
BEC - 80
REG - 86
FAR - 83

[Lindsey_p87]

I'm much less worried about a response to my thank-you note (which I always send) than just a response in general. I can't tell you how many interviews I've been on and haven't heard a word one way or the other. Most of these are mid-size CPA firms. One in particular invited me for an all-day office visit and then neglected to send me anything saying whether or not I was hired. 3 weeks later I emailed the partner I interviewed with and got a response from a random employee saying that, no, I was not hired. Gee, thanks.

Sorry for the rant…I'm obviously still bitter.

AUD - 79
BEC - 82
FAR - 79
REG - 86

DONE

FAR - PASSED 11/14
AUD - TBD
BEC - TBD
REG - First take 2/16

[Anonymous]

If your interviewing for a spot within your current company (slight promotion) with your current boss do you still send a thank you. It's awkward to me to send a thank you to someone I know and speak to everyday. It's even more awkward to interview with someone who already knows the answers to all the questions they are asking.

[Anonymous]

@ Lindsey

I have had experiences similar to that. I once interviewed for a position I really wanted. They said the process would go quickly. First interview went well had second interview exactly one week later. I called two weeks after the second interview they said they still have not come to a decision. I emailed and they were ignored. I called a month after the second interview and was told they were no longer hiring for that position. I saw the position posted on their website two weeks after that.

If you didn't want to hire me just tell me. It makes me happy I didn't get the job.

[Lindsey_p87]

@ ajmallie

I really don't understand when companies do that. Are you really afraid of telling someone no? Or do you just not care enough to give them a response? In your case it sounds like they didn't want to tell you no, so they kept stalling.

I think in my case they just didn't care. But like you said, I'm really glad I don't work there. The whole process with them was very indicative of what it would be like to work there.

AUD - 79
BEC - 82
FAR - 79
REG - 86

DONE

FAR - PASSED 11/14
AUD - TBD
BEC - TBD
REG - First take 2/16

[Anonymous]

Thank you notes? I've been living under a rock, I guess.

Never sent any, not even follow up emails. But even if I did, I won't expect potential employers to respond. I'd be surprised if I do get a response.

[mla1169]

Well there are a couple of things at play. First, the time issue. No the interviewers time isn't more valuable than yours, BUT he or she likely has less of it. You as an interviewee have to send ONE lousy thank you note, but the interviewer may have talked to 12 or more people. When you go on 2-5 interviews in the same day, then you're on a level playing field time wise.

Second, sometimes its better for the interviewer not to close the door completely. Example, my previous employer hired someone ( I wasn't involved in the decision) who turned out to be a total dud that couldn't even print from excel. He was fired about 3 days later because using excel at an EXPERT LEVEL was clear in the job listing and he flat out lied.

So the company was able to call the runner up and she started a week later and was FABULOUS. Had she not been available we might have gone to #3 or 4 on the list.

FAR- 77
AUD -49, 71, 84
REG -56,75!
BEC -75

Massachusetts CPA (non reporting) since 3/12.

[trish_1234]

Thank you guys for this topic.

I would have never thought of sending a thank you note! I will now.

AUD 69, 92 7/15 Gleim and Ninja test bank
FAR sometime in 10/15 Gleim
BEC not taken
REG not taken

[Author]

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