Writing An Employer Thank You Letter: Fill & Download for Free

Sure! Sending a thank you email to your prospective employer after you’ve completed the interview can be a great way to follow up with them and keep yourself “top of mind”.In the hiring that I’ve done, VERY FEW job candidates actually ever reach out after the interview to follow up. Basically, they come in at their scheduled time, do the interview, then disappear - waiting for you to follow up with them later.The problem is, as a hiring manager, after doing several interviews you’re left with a stack of resumes & notes, and limited time to try and remember everything based on the interviews you’ve done. It can be a rather impersonal process.So having a thank-you followup from a candidate is a great way to make that process a little more personal, and in my opinion it will tend to give their resume a bit more weight, because it puts them back in your radar.Additionally, a thank you letter demonstrates that the candidate actually is interested in the job. Sometimes it’s hard to gauge genuine enthusiasm for the position from the interview, because all the candidates to their best to demonstrate it. So the thank you letter is “above and beyond” demonstrating that the candidate truly is interested in the job.Finally, I’d say that a thank you letter helps to demonstrate that self-motivated “go-getter” attitude that you really want to look for in a candidate. It means that they’re not only interested, they’re motivated. That’s big.I’ve written many thank you letters myself, and typically I try to start the letter out with a sentence describing what went right in the interview (obviously don’t mention things that don’t go smoothly). Then, I try to touch on some of the key points discussed in the interview, and offer short reminders of why my skills are a good fit for those requirements. Then finish it up with a “looking forward to contributing to your team” line, and of course your contact info at the bottom. Voila!The “thank you” part is more important than the summary in my opinion - keep it short, don’t write a book. But it is nice to remind them of why you’re a great candidate.Hey - you’re not done yet! Set yourself a reminder to follow up with them in a week, 2 weeks, and then after that, if they still haven’t made a decision, space the followups out a little further apart so you don’t come across as desperate.Sometimes the employer will tell YOU how long the interview & hiring review process will take. If they say “we won’t be finished for 2 weeks”, then don’t follow up with them in a week and expect things to be finished. Although it may be worth following a little early if you’re super eager about the job - I’ve done this a few times in the past. Usually they don’t get upset, and it still demonstrates real interest.Job interview followup is all about balance: do enough so that they know you’re there and you’re ready & interested - don’t overdo things so that it drives them nuts. Demonstrate that you’re ready & eager, not that you’re stalking them.

Hello Employer,Thank you for the offer of employment, I accept. Please let me know what next steps will be.Sincerely,You

Yes, you should.A number of years ago, I was interviewing for an assistant. This was for an entry-level publishing job, something that's considered a desirable position among recent college grads, some of whom have also completed publishing certificate programs and/or summer internships. As you might guess, that also makes the pool of candidates a privileged bunch, which is another subject entirely. I had narrowed the field to a half a dozen people I chose to interview, and ultimately, hired the one who sent a hand-written thank-you, on actual stationary, after the interview. She had other things going for her, but that thank-you really made her stand out.From an employer's POV, it's not just about manners, although that doesn't hurt; in most jobs, especially as you move up in the company, you'll have to get along with a variety of people, above your level, and as you progress, below it as well. Manners are an indication that you have the basic skills to get along without pissing people off. That thank-you also shows that you have follow-through, that you cared about the interview, and assuming you write the thank-you correctly, that you were paying attention.By writing a thank-you correctly, what I mean is that you should refer to the interview itself, ideally offering another reason gleaned from the interview about why you're a good candidate and/or are particularly interested in the job. That note, which may seem overly formal to you, will keep you fresh in the interviewer's mind while other candidates recede into the background.