Lots of debate on the question of sending a thank you message after an interview. The follow up email or message is a “nice” thing to do but not something that should be expected or something that should sway the hiring manager.

It does give you another opportunity to “thank them” and to also provide supplemental materials such as links to work samples or documents you might not have been able to share in the interview.

Some professionals, on the other hand, feel it is a waste of time as these notes can get lost, end up in spam and waste their time in their busy day.

Wanting to dig further on this question and topic, I created a LinkedIn Poll (823 votes) where 91% of the respondents felt you should send a message after the interview. Link to the poll as reference.

Some comments for sending a thank you message.

  • Of course! It is always a nice gesture to thank the person for interviewing you and then also if you took good notes during the interview you can also tie that into the email to show the interviewer how you could be an asset to the company and the specific role you applied for. I don’t feel like there is ever a reason NOT to send a thank you email as it only takes 5 mins or so and helps you stand out from those who chose not to.
  • Yes and timing is important. Are you interviewing with 2 more people in the organization tomorrow? Maybe wait and follow up after that. Otherwise, absolutely and not a generic thanks for the interview. Be specific about why you are still or more interested, share a thought you didn’t tell them during the interview, ask an intelligent question, something they makes it obvious you aren’t sending a “form letter” email and that you have good communication skills.
  • My personal experience is, even if you don’t hear that you have the job, being polite and expressing gratitude for someone’s time, is the right thing to do.
  • Follow-up emails to the recruiter or hiring manager can seem like you’re being pushy. And, as someone else in the comments said, they may not help you GET the job (as was my case here). But they certainly make you a candidate that is on the top of that person’s mind when they think about their shortlist.
  • I think being gracious is always the best course of action. Even if no one reads it, thanking people for their time, reflecting on the interview, and practicing gratitude for another learning experience will always be beneficial and help keep me in a positive headspace.

Some comments for not sending a thank you message

  • This is simply the way I conduct myself. The anxiety is used to better myself in other ways. Cope effectively with your stress, and understand that being anxious only drags you down.
  • No. There’s no purpose to this. Everyone knows you’re only doing it “because you should/were advised/other people do.”
  • I also have the opinion that that’s a two-way street. Did they thank me for spending an hour filling out their application? Did they thank me for spending 2 hours taking their compatibility tests? Did they reply back to my thank you for interviewing me letter? Is my time worth any less than theirs?
  • It’s never one helped me.

When you do send the thank you email, take the time to personalize it, include details from the interview and any supporting links.

At the end of the day, do what you feel is best for yourself with the understanding it’s a courtesy, not expected and this isn’t a follow-up email

I’m in the camp of yes, it doesn’t hurt to send a thank you follow up message. Does it work…who knows but it does give you another chance to get in front of the hiring manager.

Do you have thoughts on this? Leave those in the comments.

Best of luck in your job search.