The interviewer shakes your hand and you leave the interview room. Does this mean your responsibility is over, and it’s completely up to them to make the next move now, whatever you do?
If you answered “yes”, it’s unsurprising: most people have forgotten that how they behave after the interview can have just as much of an impact on their chances of getting the job as their actions before and during it.
Politeness is key! Most people know that being polite will open far more doors than being rude or hostile, but some people still leave the interview without thanking the interviewer, treat the receptionist abruptly, or fail to acknowledge anyone else who works there. None of these will leave a good impression on your possible future employer. In fact, some interviewers will go out of their way to solicit the feedback of receptionists and other “lower ranking” employees on potential new hires. If you are a constantly rude person and only act politely to those who could do you a favor, expect to get found out.
A mostly forgotten art that can earn you great credit is writing a letter of thanks to your interviewer. Experts disagree on whether an email is sufficient, so unless you were interviewed by a high-tech organization that relies almost exclusively on email, try to write a letter or thank-you card instead. You don’t need to “suck up” or write too eloquently, simply state that you enjoyed the interview and look forward to hearing from them.
Another major component of proper post-interview etiquette is avoiding pestering. If you haven’t heard from the company and it has been a while since the interview, you can certainly call them to inquire on the status of your job application, or ask when you can expect to hear from them. Never call to follow up more than twice, and leave a good length of time between follow-up calls if you do follow up more than once. Any more calls and you’ve crossed the line from polite inquiry to pestering, which can hurt your chances of getting the job and make you seem impatient ant pushy.
One last thing you can do is let your references know that you have applied for a job and they may receive a call inquiring about you. It’s polite to give them some advance warning, and will likely get you a better reference than if they receive an unexpected call and have to scramble to get their thoughts about you together.
Finally, try not to pin all your hopes on one interview. Unless you have been told otherwise, you are free to interview with other companies. If you receive more than one job offer, you can even play one against the other by telling them that you received X offer from another company, if you’re very careful and confident.
How you behave after the interview might not save you if you gave a really bad interview. However, if the decision to hire is a close call between you and another candidate who doesn’t behave as well as you did and has equal qualifications, who do you think has the better chance of getting the job?