Chapter 6 - Are You Just Sitting by The Phone? (Following Up)

You have finished your research on your targeted employers. You have introduced yourself to multiple influential people and/or hiring authorities. Your resume is in all the right hands. Now what?

Sit back and wait, and wait, and wait.

And wait, and wait, and wait. What are you waiting for? It’s time to plan your follow up calls.

Go through your database (you have been tracking your efforts haven’t you?). Make a chart of who you have applied to (employer, position, and your contact person), how you applied (response to ad, market call, recruiter, or mutual contact), and the date you applied. List the details that you know of the hiring cycle (goes to HR who then presents it to the manager or goes directly to the manager). The longer the hiring cycle, the more time you should give before following up. The next step is to create a follow up time line.

The following are some suggestions:

Ad Response (1-2 days)
If you applied to a position through an ad response, you could be one of several applicants. One or two days may pass and the employer may not have even looked at you resume yet. Following up with the employer will hopefully get them to pull your resume to the top of the pile. Be sure to allow enough time for the employer to actually receive your resume. The best first response is to call the Hiring Authority or HR representative (whomever initially receives the resumes) and inquire if your resume has been received. They usually have to look at your resume to answer your question, which is what you want them to do. You can then ask when you should expect to hear from them. This will give you a good idea of when to make a second follow up call.

Market Call (7-10 days)
After a market call, when you were inquiring about future openings, you probably followed up by sending your resume. You do not want to follow up again too soon at the risk of seeming too pushy or desperate. Give the employer time to evaluate your resume, but not so much time that they forget about why they have your resume in the first place. The goals for your follow up call is to request feedback on your resume, inquire if there may be an opening for you at that particular employer. If there is, be sure to ask for the interview, “Great, I’m available Thursday or Friday to meet with you.” If they do not currently have an opening, ask if they can refer you to another employer that might be interested. Ask the employer when you should follow up with them again.

Recruiter (2-3 days)
When you are presented to an employer through an outside recruiter, ask upfront when you should receive feedback. If the recruiter has a strong relationship with their client, feedback should come within a day or two unless there are some unforeseen circumstances. Call your recruiter in a couple days if you have not heard from them. Their schedule often gets full and you want to make sure you are on their “to do” list. However, recruiters are known to be persistent and want feedback as much as you do. DO NOT go around the recruiter and contact the employer yourself. You will damage your relationship with your recruiter and may look impatient or pushy to the employer.

Mutual Contact (2-5 days)
If a mutual contact passed your resume on to the hiring authority, your first follow up call would be to your contact. Allow enough time to pass for your contact to find the right opportunity to present your resume to the hiring authority. When you follow up, inquire how your resume was received, what was the employer’s comments or actions? Be sure to say thank you for walking your resume in.

Second Follow Up
When you makes the second follow up call depends on the information you received from the first call. The second time you follow up could be by phone or e-mail. Some recruiters, HR professionals, and Hiring Authorities tend to respond quicker to e-mail. During the second follow up you should be more direct, but remain professional and courteous. Make sure the position is still available. Restate your interest in the position and why you feel you are qualified for the job. Let them know your availability to interview and if appropriate (based on how the conversation is going) ask for the interview. For example, “I’m available to meet with you either Thursday or Friday, which day would be best for you?”

Final Follow Up
If, after two follow up calls you still have not received any type of feedback, your first question should be “Do I really want to work for this employer?” The answer may be yes. If so, send a follow up letter or e-mail that restates your interest and qualifications, the dates that you have contacted them, and ask for feedback.

Keep in mind that many employers are busy, even busier than usual if they have a vacant position. After you have followed up the third time, feel confident that you have done your part in being persistent without being pushy.