Send Thank You Note After Interview

Dear Deb,
Q. I am in the IT space and just came back from a job interview that I was sent on by a recruiter. What is the proper etiquette with regards to sending thank you notes in a 3 month contract situation? I didn’t think to get the interviewer’s business card, so I don’t even have his information. I would be interested in hearing your thoughts on this.

PZ, Tampa, FL

A.   Should you send a cover letter? I would say unequivocally YES. You have already spent time and effort preparing your résumé, getting dressed for the interview, researching the company, and meeting the hiring manager.  Why be lazy at the end? 

While sending a thank you note may be a “waste of time” if you were not the ideal fit for the role, it may leave a lasting impression that will result in future opportunities; and at the very least, it is a sign of good manners – more importantly, an extension of your professional brand. 

You want to demonstrate good etiquette by copying your recruiter on all correspondence between you and the hiring manager. In this particular case, since you did not obtain a business card with contact information during the interview, ask your recruiter for the email and snail mail (US Postal) address of the manager.  Be sure to get the correct spelling of both his first and last name. 

Send an email with a cc to the recruiter and then send a hand written note. While it may not help, it will definitely not hurt. In some cases, with contract engagements, the hiring process may move quickly, but sending a handwritten note is a bonus step that could make a difference if you are competing against one or two other finalists.

A thank you note can give you an opportunity to follow up on some of the items addressed during the interview and clarify your strengths and value.  If nothing else, it will show your recruiter that you are professional; should an alternate role at a different company become available, she will be more likely to contact you if you have good business acumen.

If you have a question you would like to ask Deb, please email Debra@careersdonewrite.com.

The Ask Deb column appears every Friday on the Careers Done Write Blog at http://www.careersdonewrite.com/blog.