Folks like to be thanked, and hiring managers are just folks. Thanking them for their time and consideration, conversation and opportunity is always a good idea; thanking them in writing is even better.
Fans of “fast” make an excellent case for the merits of emailing a thank-you note after a job interview. E-thanks are immediate and invite easy response; they suit this age of speed, technology, and volume. Type, type, type, click!
Even so, it’s hard to match the “sticky” effect of a handwritten note in a hand-addressed envelope with a first-class stamp neatly placed in the corner. “Sticky” means that it’s hard to get rid of because we like it. We like the feeling it gives us and the care it demonstrates. We like it so much that we tack it to a bulletin board or slip it under a magnet on the file cabinet or move it from this spot to that spot without disposing of it.
True sticky story
My boss—the hiring manager—called to say that he’d be late for his appointment with a job candidate; would I please greet her, get her settled in our conference room and engage in conversation a bit while he wrapped up his other meeting? I did.
Later that week, I received a handwritten thank-you note from the job candidate, as did my boss and each person who engaged at all with the candidate. Overkill? Perhaps, but pleasant for the personal attention it conveyed, and pleasant for the surprise factor, and pleasant as it memorialized the little conversation we shared. How “sticky” was that experience? Sticky enough for me to relay it to you just now.
True sticky story two
The trustee of a family foundation kept a letter posted on his office wall. It was written by a college student who had received a generous scholarship from his organization. At the conclusion of the school year, the student submitted a thank you letter—unsolicited—along with a summary of her work during the year. She mentioned each of three subjects she knew were important to the foundation.
- For scholastic growth, she noted that she had reached her personal best GPA during the year.
- For leadership, she noted that she had served as a resident assistant to the 25 girls on her dorm floor.
- For volunteer work, she included pictures of her trip to New Orleans where she joined a team of students assisting with home reconstruction after Hurricane Katrina.
This exemplifies sticky at its very best. Everyday Mr. Trustee glances up from his desk to see the happy results of his wise investment sandwiched between an opening “thank you” and closing “Again, thank you.”
A visual reminder, pleasant, lasting.
Morris Sampler 