I’ll probably get a lot of downvotes for this, but why exactly should I send a thank-you email?
What about the potential employer – why don’t they send one to me? I took the time to prepare my application, sent them all my documents, and showed up for the interview.
I’m not begging for a job – I’m applying for one. They’re looking for someone who will generate more value for the company than they’ll pay in salary. That’s a business transaction, not charity.
So again – why should I be the one to send a thank-you email?
Personally, I think it’s enough to thank them in person during the interview.
Why would you get downvoted in a community called LinkedIn Lunatics where we are expressly making fun of the content of the post?
I’ll probably get down voted for this opinion, but the earth is round and orbits the sun.
False! The Earth and Sun orbit the center of gravity between the two of them!
False! They all exist in a complex system of gravitational pull where all bodies, not just these two, have differing degrees of influence on each other dictated by distance and mass!
False! What you wrote is true, but it doesn’t make the comment above false!
False! Bears beat Battlestar galactica
The barycenter of the earth-sun orbit is within the surface of the sun, therefore the earth is understood to orbit the sun.
The JUPITER-Sun orbit barycenter, however, is outside the surface of the sun.
I liek spec
False!
You forgot to prefix your comment with “False!”.
Objection!
Uh. False objection!
False, the barry center is currently outside the sun but will return to a point within the Sun’s surface sometime in 2027 and will then exit again sometime in 2033.
The center of solar system is not always between those two objects. Half the time they’re both on the same side of the center
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I’ll probably get downvoted for this opinion, but people should return their shopping carts to the corral and not poop in the street.
100%. I’ve never heard of this practise - maybe it’s an American thing?
They tell us to do it in Canada too. But seriously, if you hiring me depends on me sending a mail to kiss your ass, fuck off, I take back my application.
God I love society programming humans to be ok with corporate subjugation of our species.
No, it’s not.
That being said, I’ve interviewed dozens, if not hundreds, of candidates, and have received thank-you notes from a handful of them. These notes are not part of the rubric used to evaluate them for the role. They also tend to come from weaker performers, so if anything, such a note is a red flag.
Exactly this! Additionally I cannot think of a single person I’ve interviewed who hasn’t said thanks at the end of the actual interview. How big a lunatic must this guy be to be SO out of touch with reality on this one?
he runs his aspect of the business as a tiny fascist dictatorship. he wants yesmen, not actual applicants
When I was growing up in the US in the '80s and ‘90s, our business classes did tell us it was proper send a thank-you letter a couple of days after an interview. This was, of course, in the days before email and workers’ rights got even more abysmal in the US. Not sure if this one data point helps.
It is.
It is an older American thing. IMO if Im hiring someone for a non-retail sales gig it can be a nice way to demonstrate your manners which are important in customer facing roles.
you are in the wrong sub, lunatic
Downvoting you specifically for saying you’ll get downvotes for expressing a rational thought in response to a linkedinlunatic post. How dare you.
But also you’re right, bullshit tests should be called out as bullshit and employers should be shamed for pulling stupid shit like this. This is a business transaction where I’m selling you my time and skills for less than their worth so you can exploit that for a profit. You(the employer) should be fucking thanking me.
I honestly use it as a passive aggressive “hey it’s been a week and I haven’t heard from you, am I still being considered.” email.
It’s perfect for that. Also, “did you lose my fucking email, you incompetent boob? Here it is again.” but couched as politeness.
But they want you to beg.
The more you beg for the job, the more it signals to a prospective employer that you need it and don’t have alternatives. That means they can string you out much easier.
Desperation facilitates exploitation.
It’s often far less malicious. People don’t get positions of mediocre responsibility because they’re evil. Usually they’re just mid managers who need more help and want to pick people who actually want to work, and their own job rides on making a good decision.
Because ya’ll, you would be astonished how many shitty people show up for shitty interviews.
When I was a hiring I never wanted anyone to show subservience or beg. But I didn’t want to lose my own job for making a poor decision, and if I interview 30 people in a week, I am more likely to remember and think more about people who make extra effort, which can look like a lot of things.
If I have a tough decision to make, unfortunately it does come down to a contest of who wants it most. At least I know if someone really wants the job they’re less likely to slack off and jeopardize my position.
I was taught that the point of a thank you note is to get your name in front of them one more time. It’s a form of advertising; they might have done 5 interviews that day, 5 the previous day, and have 5 more scheduled for tomorrow. You want them to remember you over the next person who has the same qualifications.
Commenting just to get my name out there.
You’re hired.
Also a final opportunity to emphasize anything that went well in the interview, or downplay/explain anything that didn’t.
Anyone who’s judgementally dismissing applicants for not sending a thank you is an asshole, but this does not change the fact that sending a thank you is a good idea if you actually want to get the job.
I’ve been looking for work lately and getting told the same thing by the employment offices around me (job search assistance).
It feels so bizarre and pushy to email back after an application/interview. I showed up and did my part, the balls in their court now, I’m just waiting for a response. To reach out again seems like I’m leaning over their shoulder and asking ‘have you made a decision yet??? How about now, can I have a job now?’
They already know what I want, what I can offer, and how to reach me. What more do they need?
Their ego stroked, apparently.
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I usually get the thank you when they want to bring me to the next round of the hiring process. Maybe the thank you acts as a kind of signal that a party is interested in keeping the process moving? I’m sending a follow-up email if I’m eager to keep things moving (and it’s not simply “thank you for the interview;” I’m including a couple brief points reiterating why I think I’m a good fit). If I’m ambivalent or not interested I wouldn’t put the effort in.
This is how I’ve always understood them. If after you’ve had some time to digest how the interview went (and evaluate, based on the questions you (should have) asked during the interview, whether you think the position is a good fit for you) you still want the job, you send a quick email basically saying “Hey, thanks for meeting with me - it was nice to meet you / your team. Based on our interaction, it looks like this position would be a great fit for me / I’d be a great fit for it - here’s some things I took away from it (which also serves to show I was attentive / not just going through the motions) - looking forward to hearing from you to continue the process!” To your point, it’s not an ass-kissing email, the ‘thank you’ portion is just a polite formality to open the conversation.
It’s not functioning as a thank you, it’s honestly just an indication that you’re willing to take an extra 5 minutes to do something when the stakes are high.
If you really want the job, how you treat that conversation might be similar to how you treat a client once you’re hired. If you don’t really want the job, or you really don’t want to send a thank you, that’s fine, but with 5 applicants to choose from, wouldn’t they opt for the candidate who put in the best/most work?
I’m not saying it isn’t annoying and transactional and a lot to ask, but as someone who’s applied for hundreds of jobs, the reason to do it still feels clear.
It’s a race to the bottom imo, and once everyone does it, its just a chore that wastes collective effort of society
It’s also an attempt to psychologically trick them into remembering you over someone else who may have had a similarly good interview.
It’s also a simple signal that you are still interested in the job. You’d certainly never send one of you weren’t. From the hirer’s perspective, it makes their job easier by not calling someone and having them turn it down.
This assumes that a hiring manager would choose not to call a favored candidate just because they didn’t get a thank you. That would be insane to me. None of my top performers sent me thank yous, and if I passed on them for that reason alone, I would deserve the dregs who would take their place.
it’s been my position for a while now that job interviews evaluate, more than anything, how much the candidate is willing to humiliate themselves for the employer. that’s more important to employers than actual skill
Most upvoted comment I’ve seen on Lemmy in a while
Not even close to being wrong. No thank you is needed. Honestly I see no reason to thank them at the end of the interview.
And no down votes from normal people, this is absolutely an insane person posting this.
There’s a completely transactional reason for post-interview “thank you” notes, whether you’re applying to college or for a job. It’s to remind the person, who’s probably interviewing a lot of applicants, of your existence and your qualifications. A good one includes a reminder of any parts where you think you shone. And if there’s something you thought of later, it’s okay to add that.
If their ego makes them take your thanks as sincere sucking up, fine. But you really do it for yourself, and the “thank you” is pro forma.
Of course this assumes you still want the position after having sat the interview. If not, feel free to ghost.
I’ll probably get a lot of downvotes for this, but
I’m like 50/50 on this part being sarcasm, it doesn’t read like that to me at all but it’s also hard for me to picture expecting disagreement with a linkedin headcase to be an unpopular opinion anywhere outside of linkedin.
I neither engage in it as an applicant nor value it as a hiring manager. It would be difficult to assess if this has hampered my career, but I am doing fine.
Because keeping the line of communication open is good. You’re one of dozens of applicants, so you want them to focus on you.
I’m a hiring manager and the thank you notes I sometimes get after an interview have absolutely no sway on my opinions. Sure it’s nice, but for me personally it doesn’t matter at all. It’s just part of the “show” and I try to not care about that.
However, I do encourage people that are applying for jobs and interviewing to send the thank you. It definitely doesn’t hurt.
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It’s probably different for lawyers since they tend to work in firms and work as peers (partners) instead of just being regular employees. Even so, I would assume a “thank you” email would still not be expected, but perhaps a follow-up to ask about the status if there’s no response after a couple days.
Because even if you do everything right, if I’m struggling to find a candidate because my own ass is riding on it and I talked to 30 people in a week, I might be more likely to remember someone who makes an extra effort over someone I just saw or heard from once. It’s not about me the hiring manager, it’s about who you’re competing against for that position and specifically how many are competing against you.
It’s not rocket science, it’s not fun, but if you’re serious about getting a job, it can help.
Honestly I’m constantly taken back by how hateful and bitter people are at the things you just need to do to get ahead in the world. You can raise very valid points that our system, our capitalist hellscape we all share makes us feel like tools, but we still gotta eat and pay our bills. How serious you are about getting those bills paid is entirely up to you.
The alternative is to embrace a victim-identity, and ask yourself if you really wanna be that.
I trend to agree with you. The world is messed up, interviews aren’t supposed to be fair to you, and you’re probably competing with dozens of people.
No matter how good you are, and if you tick all the employers boxes (which may be unfair in itself and takes quite some luck to do), that’s not enough. What is enough is that you’re the best candidate among dozens of qualified people, according to the subjective criteria of this particular interviewer, and you have no clue what to do to get there. So random gestures may take you over the line, as well as they may not.
Your “Thank You” email should be used by you to put some of the points you hit on in the interview in writing to remind the company why they should hire you. Don’t think of it as gratitude. “Thanks for the opportunity to get to know the company. As I mentioned in the interview, I think I’d be a great fit because … blah blah blah.”
If it’s a business transaction to you, you have to market yourself if you want to be picked over someone else. Do I buy one of the robots that just showed up and told me their specs, or do I buy the one that has a little extra pizzazz for the same price?
Yu are thanking them for considering you for the job.
why exactly should I send a thank-you email?
It’s a shopping-cart test.
It’s not a shopping cart test. There’s no social cost to not getting a thank you email, and the candidate likely already provided thanks verbally. It’s redundancy, and as a hiring manager I do not care for it.
For shopping carts, I even take back those that are not mine if they are nearby.
There’s no social cost if you abandon your shopping cart. That’s why they use that as a test.
Hey. I get you don’t like them. That’s totally okay. I consider them pointless, personally. But it’s more than my own preference or else it would be false consensus.
But it’s like spelling: if you keep pluralizing ‘mail’ with an S, or using a comma for a period, no one who also doesn’t know better is gonna notice. The time when you will need proper spelling or etiquette – or smoke detectors or seatbelts, for that matter – will be when you least expect it.
There is a social cost to abandoning your shopping cart; it’s just not borne by the abandoner. Carts left in the parking lot can block parking spots or damage cars if moved by wind or gravity. Additionally, if no one returns their cart, there will be none available at the storefront for use by the next customer. That’s part of the “test” as I understand it - there’s no one grading you individually on whether you fulfill your communal responsibility to return the cart, but that doesn’t mean there’s no impact from your failure to do so.
Feels like we might be talking past each other or conceptualizing the shopping cart theory differently?
As a hiring manager, how many times have you picked a candidate, called them, and they’ve decided against being hired by you? That’s you, having to go look for a shopping cart. Of course anyone who is going to write the note also said thanks in person. But if they write to remind you of the good points in their interview, maybe address some omission, you know they didn’t thank you to your face but mock you in private.
This comment belongs in its own post
If someone gets an offer that meets their needs better (pay, interest, whatever), I just go to the next viable candidate from my pool. That’s hardly an imposition or a personal slight, and the potential for this to occur doesn’t change any of my behavior when hiring (other than, perhaps, trying to make a quicker offer for highly-talented candidates so I don’t lose them to a different opportunity).
Fuck bullshit tests
As a hiring manager, I can confidently say, please do not send me any more email - even if it is to thank me.
Seriously, who wants yet another email to have to skim and delete, besides narcissistic interviewers I guess
Most lawyers I have met are pompous jackasses. I’ve met exactly one who was the kindest, most humble person, especially to his staff.
Maybe it’s like an excuse to waste some time if you’re done with your work but can’t leave yet? That’s my only guess
Exactly. I’m so fucking tired of narcissistic people in power, whether in corporations and politics.
When I have clients like these, I’m supposed to keep a smiling face and handle their bullshit, because my bosses are hopeless people pleasers. Instead of you know, standing up to the bullies, drawing boundaries, and upholding values.
If the world keeps going into this direction, leaders putting egos and emotions ahead of rationality, humanity is doomed.
thank you for your input, i found it valuable
Also, no cover letters. If I’m looking through 50 applications ain’t nobody got time for that shit. If you can’t organize your credentials in a 2-3 page resume (and that is being generous) then that says enough about how you’ll handle communication on the job for me to pass.
Shit, now I sound like a LiL.
To anyone reading this, don’t take it as permission to skip cover letters. I know plenty of hiring managers who want their ass kissed and if you didn’t take the time to put their name and title on the top of a special letter they’re not interested in bossing you around. I mean hiring you.
I like a cover letter. Not to get my ass kissed, but so I can see you draw the lines between your work experience and the job posting. My field is niche enough that there are few applicants with directly related experience, but there are many ways to gain the basic skills required. I can make all sorts of inferences based on a resume, but I don’t want to guess when choosing who to interview. Just tell me how you match up and what you think you’ll bring to the table. This helps me separate people who are applying for any job they can vs those who know (at least kind of) what they’re getting into.
If it asks for a cover letter, I’ll write a real short and direct 3-4 sentence thingyto quickly summarize why I think I’m the right person for the job. It usually includes what got my interest about the posting, and what relevant qualifications I have or would be willing to get if I lack.
💯. A cover letter is ok just to orient the recipient about the job you are applying for, but not needed (or wanted) from my perspective.
“Lick my boots or I will not consider you for a job.”
Reeks of insecurity.
Yep, that a big red flag right there…
Suck my dick harder and better than the others, to see if you are fit for this dick-sucking position we have available. Communicate clearly that you have no self respect or any other healthy boundary that would prevent the power dynamic I enjoy to play from ever happening.
I really fucking hate corporate and their fucking culture. And this LinkedIn buffoons, pretending to be influencers just make me want to vomit.
Dear Assface,
I’m writing to thank you. Not for the interview. For making a stupid post on a job site that you treat as social media. You are clearly deranged. I know that I don’t want to work for you or with you or anywhere near you. Thank you for making that clear to me. Suck a fuck.
Best, some_guy
Dear some_guy I would like to set up a second interview for you to explain how does one “suck a fuck”. This has piqued my interest and would like to discuss in person. Let me know your earliest available time.
Ironic that he’s a divorce lawyer, because his behaviour is exactly the sort of insane mind games that leads to failed relationships.
Real answer: I usually say thank you in person at the end of the interview. Like “Thank you for your time.” Sending an email restating that would be wasting their time, no?
Nah, these people stir air for a living. They appreciate others who also know how to stir air. Sending a pointless time wasting email is the epitome of this discipline. If you want in, you need to show them you can do it too. If you want to be an actual productive member of society, you wont do it and find a position where you don’t have to resort to such menial tasks.
You can always respond like.
“Hello,
As we discussed earlier today, you will be giving me an employee contract for $XXX,XXX
Best regards. “
Then CC as many people as possible.
…
That’s how these people work, right?
as someone who hires people, yes, it would
I guess you just got to know your audience
I won’t mark you down for it but I won’t even bother responding and it won’t influence my decision either way
I’ve never grovelled for a job, and I’m not starting now.
I actually think it’s a good, no GREAT system. Because I would never do that and I wouldn’t want to work for anyone who expects it.
What I «like» most about that situation was that he started the meeting with saying thank you
I might be old school but I see nothing wrong with a little politeness, especially if it gets my foot in the door. But then again, I’m not going to continually kiss someone’s ass for what should be a mutually beneficial situation.
It’s the idea that everything can go perfectly, but they have one specific secret test they don’t tell you about that’s also completely irrelevant to the position you’re interviewing for.
A lot of the people jerking their knees at these “rituals” we do have never been in the position of actually having to hire someone.
Whatever your principles and attitude might be now, if you get into a role that requires you to make good decisions on who you’re paying a ton of company money to, with your ass riding on it, you WILL adjust your ideas for how to make the best decisions.
FWIW I’m jerking my knee at this ritual and interviewed someone who’s starting on Monday. I’ve been on both ends of this and find the rituals exhausting. If I had extra time for frivolous emails, then we wouldn’t be hiring!
This lemmy forum is far more about kids crying about authority existing than it is about actual structured critique of the business world and processes. It is absolutely exhausting hiring, and sadly most of the people here will never know that stress, and will hold onto these cartoonish notions that only elite, wealthy, privileged cartoon villains are the ones who make decisions who to hire and how.
Meanwhile, people like us have to somehow dance around pleasing both bosses and employees and potential employees without making mistakes that everyone seems to be looking for you to make with a hunger.
While this person definitely sounds like a giant douche, it is in fact best practice to send a thank you email after an interview.
Yeah, it’s unfortunately good advice. Hearing it from a hiring manager in a “dance my puppet” way makes me want to vomit though.
The asshat in OP’s image isn’t representational of people who hire people in the average, every-day world.
In reality, most hiring is done by mid-level managers who have to interview dozens of people a week on top of doing their own work, and it’s tiring and you don’t get paid extra for it, and if you pick the wrong candidate your own ass is canned.
Yah, it really does help your chances if you show even a shred of actual desire to work there.
LOL fuck that. We each shared our precious time. I will thank you for yours at the end of each session.
Actually, this did remind me of the time that a recruiter gave me a thank-you gift at the end of an interview. He was very respectful of my time.
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The interviewee is getting an opportunity. There’s a clear imbalance of power, but it’s not wholly exploitative.
That being said, I do remind my interviewees to not worry about my time during the interview, because I’m getting paid to be there, and it’s more fun than a meeting.
The interviewee is getting an opportunity.
Yes, thank your masters for considering you for further exploitation
This is normal
This is good
🙄
You know, you don’t HAVE to get a job.
Do you have a good relationship with your parents?
Do you have any older, wealthier people in your neighborhood who expressed that you’re attractive?
Do you or your family have paid-off land that can be worked for sustenance?
There are TONS of options other than working!
The idea that the person who gets nothing from an interview should be thankful for the opportunity is utterly brain dead.
The other perspective is that after digging through literally hundreds or thousands of applications, I picked you and we both took a huge chunk out of our day to try to connect. Did you like the interview? Did you have questions after? Did I do a good job explaining the role? There’s so much left unsaid after an interview that it does help to give a hiring manager closure, particularly if they have to interview a dozen other people that day. You’re not dancing for my enjoyment, you’re showing you care more than the 11 other people who shrugged and wandered off after without thinking about it. And the hundreds more in the following week or weeks.
I’m just more likely to remember people who seem engaged and enthusiastic to work.
FFS what’s your colon smell like from the inside?
Grovel at their feet from the beginning to show they can walk all over you in the future.
It’s so weird tbh. It’s a mutual need, they want people I want a job — why don’t I ever get an email thanking me for my time?
To increase your chances send an additional email offering to wash your interviewer car for free. /s
Just no.
Say ‘thank you for your time’ when leaving the interview.
I don’t think I’ve ever gotten the hiring manager’s email address on any of the interviews I’ve done throughout my career, as communication is usually with the HR recruiter for the entire hiring process.
This. It’s time consuming and it sucks, but it makes you stand out. Job hunting is truly half skills, half theatrics after all
Lol half? I’d say about a 20-80 split.
Throw in an extra 30-50% of networking/connections.
I’ve hired (low) dozens of people in public sector environments, and neither myself nor anyone on my hiring panels has ever cared if we receive a post-interview thank you. Maybe private sector is different, but I’d just as soon not have you clog up my inbox with thanks or make a post-interview pitch about your skills/excitement.
If you say thanks in the room, we’re square. Likewise, I always thank people for their interest and time in the role.
Not in software development. Maybe in other career paths though.
if a thank you email is the difference between being hired and not, you are a cog
keep your resume up to date
Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t, I wouldn’t want to work for anyone who expects one and I’m glad that me not sending one cements that. I also don’t do cover letters. A resume is already a summary of the exact information you’re asking for in the application (and going to make me repeat as if you never had a chance to see it beforehand in the interview); a cover letter is just another step, summarizing the resume. If you can’t take the time to even look through my resume, don’t bother, you’re probably too “high speed” for me in your “fast paced work environment” and I’m not looking to “wear multiple hats” to earn your paycheck for you.
I have yet to see any place with a good hiring procedure, this nonsense included. People saying they work in HR should generally be looked at as if they just admitted to being in a cult, which is terrifying because it means cultists will be deciding whether you get to do the thing you do to keep from starving in the street.
People saying they work in HR should generally be looked at as if they just admitted to being in a cult
I mean, what else do you have to evaluate a resume and some thinly sourced references except chicken entrails and prayer? It’s not exactly a hard science.
People saying they work in HR should generally be looked at as if they just admitted to being in a cult
I’ve never heard it described like this but you nailed it.
To be honest, you’re not entirely wrong. It’s so risky to ever be “mask off” in corporate settings.
Thank you email? Do employers make house visits or take you out for dinner when interviewing in the US?
It is as far as I know that is the case.
It is cultural dependent. In South Korea and Japan, you are expected to go for drinks with your boss.
Typically you aren’t going out with a company for a primary interview unless they really wanted you
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It’s been largely phased out in Korea as well.
