am I annoying my recruiter with weekly follow-up?

by Alison Green on January 25, 2010

A reader writes:

Just before Thanksgiving, I had an initial phone interview with a company. It went well and in the first two weeks of December I was called back for a second and then third interview, as I was up for two different slots in this company. Since then, I was told I was one of the final two for one of the slots. Also since then, the holidays have happened, a [reorganization], and now someone gave notice in the group I was one of the final two for. I’ve been touching base weekly with my recruiter just to see if there was any news. In my last email with her, she told me she would let me know when something changes. Should I still keep touching base every week or so, or am I becoming an annoyance?

How much post-interview follow-up is too much?

Checking in weekly when you’ve been told that you’ll be notified when something changes is too much! “I’ll let you know when something changes” can be a polite way of saying, “Please back off a little bit.”

Keep moving forward with your job search. If this job comes through great, but you don’t want to rely on it. Keep job searching just as vigorously as you would be if this weren’t out there. Good luck!

You may also like:
{ 5 comments }

{ 5 comments… read them below }

  1. Anonymous*

    I have a similar problem. I applied at a former employer in early December. Heard back just before Christmas and had a phone screen just before New Year's. The recruiter seemed very interested in me esp since I'd been with the company for 10 years before leaving. (on good terms) And now it's "I'll call you early next week with an update" which has happened twice now and she hasn't. I know she's busy but it's frustrating! I hope I'm not annoying her but I feel like if I don't email her a few days after her promised call she'd never get back to me.

  2. Jonathan*

    I'm glad you brought this up. Weekly follow ups are way too much. It'll turn recruiters off (it certainly doesn't endear candidates to me).

    I know it must be frustrating; in fact, I know it is; I've been out of work, too. Patience is tough, but patience is key. Good luck to those currently fighting the battle.

  3. Chad*

    I disagree. I often invite candidates to follow up, also I make a point to follow up with many candidates and let them know that I am going to do that. If they don't like it they can let me know. A big part of my job is knowing what the candidate is going to do ahead of time. Will she accept the job at $20 and decline it at $16? Is she considering other jobs? Perhaps she changes her mind the day after talking to me and decides to ride a bike across the state.

    In any event I need to know. I consider a candidate who calls in as still active and I would return her calls. If you are ever working with me calling me an additional time is not a problem. In fact I call and check with candidates each week whether we have anything new to talk about or not.

    1. Gi*

      I agree. Keeping in touch shows that you are being proactive and interested. Also, the recruitment agent needs to know we are still available to work. Touching base daily might be a bit too much but once a week is perfectly acceptable in my view.

  4. Kavitha*

    It happens to me too.. Its not only frustrating but u don’t know how to proceed if some other offer comes up. It would be nice if recruiters are like u Chad!

Comments are closed.