post-interview thank you letters

[mary poppins]

I interviewed for a position this afternoon and intend to follow up with one or more thank you letters. I am seeking input about how many letters to write.

The interview process consisted of me sitting in a conference room and consecutively meeting with five employees who came and went. The first four interviews were scheduled for and lasted a half an hour each - first with a person who would be a peer, then three people who are in supervisory positions. The last interview, which was scheduled for half an hour but lasted an hour, was with the department head. Since the interviews were separate, some of the employees raised the same issues or we discussed the same topics, but some of the topics varied.

I took some notes during the interviews and added more in my car after I left. It was a long afternoon (1-4 p.m.), so I forgot some specifics from a couple of people.

Would you write five separate thank you notes to each, or one to all? If I write separate notes, I figure they might compare them and it's hard to be original about similar things five times. Plus, there's more risk that I will make typographical, spelling or grammatical errors when writing five letters instead of one. But is it bad etiquette to send one letter to all?

 

[baby monster]

I'd do separate thank you notes. One group letter sounds odd. You don't need to make them very different. Short and sweet is best.

 

[Harpertoo]

I agree - you can be brief, but you should write a note to each separately.
good luck with the process.

 

[chrono]

I've participated in such an interview and wrote individual thank you letters, customizing each one to highlight a different point if necessary.

 

[mary poppins]

Thank you for your input.

After searching internet, talking with a friend and then reviewing your responses, I decided to write the five letters. I've copied several suggested letters from the internet to help me get variety for the base and will tailor them a bit later for particular discussions. As of now, the letter to the fourth interviewer will have to be more general because nothing in our conversation really stood out. I'll have to keep thinking back, though.

I agonize over cover letters and thank you letters. I think they are the worst part of job hunting.

 

[baby monster]

IMHO, thank you notes are either sent by interviewee or not. The contents won't make it or break it for you.

 

[chrono]

IMHO, thank you notes are either sent by interviewee or not. The contents won't make it or break it for you.

I think where it might be a bonus is where the applicant is neck to neck with another potential candidate. It shows good follow up (conscientiousness), common courtesy and brings about the perfect opportunity to sell your technical and people skill sets again.

 

[mary poppins]

I had a friend review my five letters and then sent them to the interviewers today. Yesterday would have been better, but I think today is fine. The company is interviewing more candidates during the next couple of weeks, so I will be a while before I hear about a decision. Thanks again for your thoughts on the topic.

I agree - you can be brief, but you should write a note to each separately.
good luck with the process.

Thank you, Harpertoo!

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I have only sent a thank you to the hiring manager. My last job required 5 separate interviews, (HR, manager, Surgeon, 2 psychologists). I only e-mailed the manager since I was guessing the last three have very busy jobs and HR doesn't really have a say.