What to do after the interview!

What to do after the interview

Are you actively looking for a new job? You’ve had a couple of interviews and not heard back? There are a couple of things you could consider doing after the interview.

Send a thank you

During my in-house recruiter career, I interviewed well over 10,000 candidates. Rarely did I receive a thank you letter or email. I didn’t expect to receive any thanks. Some people may feel a little uncomfortable sending an email after the interview. If you do feel the need to send a thank you email, keep it light and brief. It’s a thank you and nothing more than that. Sending a thank you email will stand you out from the other candidates.

Self-reflection and self-evaluation

Self-reflection is a powerful tool if implemented properly. Think about the questions you were asked. Consider what questions you handled well and the questions you could possibly improve on. Self-reflection is attempting to be objective and review the facts. It’s not about reviewing what went wrong and focusing on the negatives. There’s a lot more to evaluation than looking at what didn’t go so well. It’s an over view of the entire process. So, don’t forget to review what went well.

Follow up

It’s best to ask during the interview about the next stage and when you’re likely to hear back. Ask the interviewers if you can expect feedback once a decision has been made. If your application hasn’t been successful, request feedback. Unfortunately, today you’ll likely not to get any decent feedback. When I was an in-house recruiter I offered feedback to every candidate going through the interview process. Not all candidates actually want feedback however, it was offered.

Don’t take it personally

It’s difficult not to take rejection personally. It can be disheartening and disappointing not to get offered a job you really wanted. And it’s particularly difficult if you’ve spent a lot of time researching and preparing. However, just because you didn’t get offered this job doesn’t mean you weren’t good enough. Just because you weren’t offered this job doesn’t mean you aren’t being considered for another job.

The purpose of an interview is not just to check whether you can do the job. It’s also about how you fit with the team, the department and the company culture. There’s so much more being measured and assessment that’s not necessarily on the job description. Good companies are also attempting to future proof their organisations. So, with this in mind they may be looking at candidates with the ability to take on future requirements.

Keep the door open

Don’t get angry at the decision, this is a sure way to close that door for good. They may have other opportunities. They may be considering you for other vacancies or other teams. I’ve rejected more candidates than offered jobs to. Handling the rejection positively demonstrates strength of character.

Some business like to build up talent pools. Talent pools are qualified candidates that are ready to be hired. Those businesses that build talent pools and a pipeline of ready candidates are future proofing their organisations.