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Interview follow-up protocol

Janet

| 0 Posts

29 Jul, 2019 14:18

Hi Community,

I would like your opinion on the follow.

We interviewed a candidate last Thursday (the day of the heatwave), it was for a senior position.  The interview went well but neither myself nor my colleague were ‘blown away’, however the candidate has since followed up with an email explaining that he doesn’t feel that he did himself any justice during the interview and had been affected by the heat.

On paper he is an ideal candidate and has come highly recommended.  However, on the day he was a little lack lustre.  The manager that I interviewed with thinks that the heat is a poor excuse and the follow up email has confirmed in their opinion that this person isn’t right for our organisation.

My question is, in general what is your opinion of follow up emails such as these from a candidate?

Thanks.

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  • Keith

    | 0 Posts

    29 Jul, 2019 14:22

    Certainly follow up emails can be useful if they are used well (largely about thanking interviewer, clarifying any finer points or occasionally supplying additional information) At the very least they can be polite.

    Not sure there is much point trying to make excuses in one (like this) but I guess they have nothing at all to lose if they sensed it didn't go well and it might get them a second chance. At very least they recognise it didn't go well.

  • Janet

    | 0 Posts

    29 Jul, 2019 14:37

    In reply to Keith:

    Thanks Keith.
  • Samantha

    | 0 Posts

    29 Jul, 2019 14:57

    I'm biased, I did exactly this and got the job! (I came across as 'boring' apparently :D )

    Although it would depend on the situation, to be fair I can well imagine the heat affected the candidate. I noticed quite a few of us in here weren't functioning 100% on that day (lacked lustre, if you will), not even 50% at some points, add to that a stressful situation...

    Saying that, we don't have air con here, if your offices were pretty cool then it might be an excuse.
  • Janet

    | 0 Posts

    29 Jul, 2019 15:21

    In reply to Samantha:

    Thanks Samantha,
    Great to hear that the follow up worked for you.
    I'm a believer in the second chance (under certain circumstances of course), I can't say hand on heart, that we were 100% ourselves!
  • David Perry

    | 0 Posts

    29 Jul, 2019 19:01

    In reply to Janet:

    I once did a follow up following an interview. I expanded and/or mentioned a couple of additional points I didn't feel I had explained fully. I too got the job.
  • Steve Bridger

    | 0 Posts

    Community Manager

    30 Jul, 2019 07:03

    I think the consensus is that follow up emails are perfectly acceptable. Still your decision.

    Did you appoint someone else... or are you still thinking about this as there wasn't a better candidate?
  • Annika

    | 0 Posts

    31 Jul, 2019 07:20

    Hi Janet,

    I once had a similar experience: my colleague had her first interview on a very hot Friday afternoon and did not make a good impression to our manager. As I felt she was the candidate best qualified for the job, I asked for her to be invited for a second interview which took place under better conditions. She got the job and was a great colleague for several years.
  • Liz

    | 0 Posts

    31 Jul, 2019 13:20

    From my perspective, follow up from a candidate reinforces their interest and commitment to the job/company. It obviously meant a lot to them to perform well at the interview and show the best version of themselves.

    We can all have our off days and we all have things going on that affect us from time to time. I always like to see the good/positive so if it were me, I would be inclined to have another conversation with the candidate to confirm one way or another (after all, if the shoe was on the other foot, I would hope someone would do that for me!).
  • Robey

    | 0 Posts

    31 Jul, 2019 13:51

    I think a follow-up email like this not only shows a positive ability for self-reflection (very valuable in any member of staff, let alone a senior one) but also an enthusiasm for the role (also, pretty valuable).

    That said, it doesn't oblige you to offer a second bite or to take another look at the candidate. Not right is not right. But it is always useful to quantify "not right" as it's easy to let "not a good team fit" be a fig leaf for "not like me/us", which can also be a fig leaf for uglier motives. If you can articulate specific competencies the candidate didn't show, or where they showed the wrong emphasis or instinct in a situation relevant to your industry, then you've got something constructive to work on. Otherwise, you're ultimately just work on gut, which is wrong 40% of the time anyway.
  • Janet

    | 0 Posts

    31 Jul, 2019 14:45

    In reply to Liz:

    Hi Liz & Others,
    Thank you all so much for your feedback. I couldn't agree more and your collective contribution has definitely added professional weight to the argument. I am happy to report that the candidate has been shortlisted, and his email positively acknowledged.
  • Nina Waters

    | 0 Posts

    5 Aug, 2019 16:34

    Only thing I'd add here to what's been said is that interviewing is a two-way process. When I was interviewing a few years ago, I was really interested in how differently I felt I 'performed' in different situations and with different interviewers. It's something I am mindful of now when I'm recruiting - sometimes it's not the interviewee that isn't performing at their best, but also those on the other side of the table. The heat affects us all!