Don’t Make The Call
So you have applied for a job. Now do you follow up with a phone call to HR? I have never fully understood why this was a trend that caught on. What is the expected outcome? It is rare that contact is made with an actual person in HR. And if a hopeful candidate does speak to someone, the outcome of the conversation is usually nothing but redirecting the person to the application process.
Ultimately, the real outcome of trying to follow up on an application with a phone call is more frustration and disappointment. It is a natural tendency to want to do things that make us feel productive; however, making phone calls will be an emotional drain. By making a follow up call, you are opening up the door to another way for a company to reject you. Why put yourself through that?
Being in HR myself, I can tell you that the messages candidates leave are simply deleted, and does not sway our objective review of the applicants.
Now, there are times when applicants have real questions that need answered. If you are going to leave a message regarding an open job, there are a few things to keep in mind.
1.Speak clearly and with some level of energy in your voice. When I hear people on my voice mail who sound like they just rolled out of bed I sometimes take note of their name—not in a positive way.
2.Get to the point quickly. If I do not know what you want (ie, you have a question) within 10-15 seconds– if you are still telling me your name and what you applied for and it is taking forever– I am moving on. Think about all of the calls an HR person receives regarding open positions. Tons! HR people are not about to listen to a full message from an applicant unless that applicant has given them something to listen to up front.
3.Provide your contact information. Do not call and ask a question and then assume that the HR person can go collect your contact information off of your resume. Big no-no.
My recommendation is to not waste your time with follow up calls, but if you must call be ready with what you want to accomplish on that call before you ever pick up the phone. The last thing you want to do is annoy the person you are talking to.
May 13th, 2010 at 3:24 pm
Follow up phone calls that end up being productive are seldom directed towards HR personnel. Unfortunately this point is lost on some candidates. Frankly the role the HR department is limited to a cursory review and screening of a resume and forwarding it on to someone better qualified to make a hiring decision. I do not mean to disparage the role of HR professionals, it is just that when I have been a candidate I thought it ridiculous that I was trying to articulate my skill set as pertains to for example, data modeling and financial analysis to someone whose exposure to spreadsheet software was limited to compiling the Birthday List that gets emailed monthly.
May 13th, 2010 at 6:46 pm
Eddie……You hit the nail on the head!
May 13th, 2010 at 7:14 pm
I suppose that everyone has their opinion of the HR department and the HR department believes they are doing a wonderful job. Apart from letting everyone know once a week through MS office that someone is having a birthday, telling us to post their weekly whereabouts and booking conference rooms for the VIPs that dont really need them….They dont know anything about the job description other than what has been given to them (unless ofcourse it has to do with HR).
I do agree with the energy in the voice thing as I wouldnt consider anyone without any verve in their voice and yes, get to the point quickly, speak clearly and leave your contact details.
However, nowadays due to many applicants and a pile of resumes to go through, that somebody who has good experience and knowledge of the specific job, is sometimes overlooked. I have come across, many a time, where the HR department has just selected the first top section of the resume pile and dumped the rest in the bin, where that particular person who may be able to do the job properly, is at the the bottom section of the of the pile.
Being a manager myself, I have always recommended to give that follow up call, so that it prompts the HR department to look for their resume in that bottom section, so that it ends up on the top of the pile. It also gives the HR consultant a chance to properly screen all the applicants that have applied for the job. Thus, a proper sifting of resumes is achieved, allowing the heads of departments to choose a candidate for the job with a better selection of resumes.
May 13th, 2010 at 9:46 pm
I disagree. When someone calls me as a hiring manager, it shows they are taking initiative, and really are interested in the job. The few minutes it takes are worth it. It makes me revisit their resume if nothing else. Go ahead and call, but don’t leave more than one message.
May 13th, 2010 at 11:20 pm
I think It depends on HR personnel/Managers.
My friend got a job in a good engineering company by making a call that he is interested in that specific job.
HR contact person help him to get a job. No body knows, when ur luck will helps u.
May 15th, 2010 at 12:46 pm
I disagree with the author and agree in most part of Eddie.
I am not a big supportter of HR departments as they in most part have a function that protects the company however when it comes to viewing the applicants or even doing interviews they do not have the back ground to determine if this applicant is the right applicant unless it has to do with HR.
As for call back. It shows a little something of the individual as it shows drive, go getter and a wanting to work for the company. I can understand HR does not want to handle all these calls but that the business of HR is people. HUMAN Resources
I have found that HR people or more intrested in making their life easirer then the companies or the other departments.
May 16th, 2010 at 12:55 am
Was expecting a bigger picture of the nice lady that wrote this article. However a big no-no -(
November 30th, 2011 at 4:26 pm
HR -What you need to know
We are Front line Gatekeepers… However, we are knowledgeable, resourceful and savvy when it boils down to getting the right technical, behavioral, business and cultural fit. In essence our role is not limited to recruiting individuals with skill sets that match the wording on a job description or answering a phone call from an individual seeking to bump up his application, it goes beyond that.
In many cases HR creates and develops competency based tools that reflect Recruiting requirements for all positions within the organization. We work hand in hand with our Management teams to identify skill sets, competencies and theory/technical requirements for all positions and in return this enables Managers to make crucial decisions when selecting candidates. We provide guidelines, structure, advice, input, and support our Managers throughout the recruiting process. Our Managers depend on our support and knowledge and they enable us to spearhead all recruiting initiatives.
We also design and develop training plans that identify and outline the short and long term development of employees. We create programs and tools to promote the overall wellbeing and On boarding of our employees. We promote and foster an encouraging and dynamic environment for all employees.
A follow up call, or you require information based on the position, BRING IT ON!
HR representatives provide people oriented services, we are in the people business and we will be more than happy to take the call. In return please understand that we put procedures, guidelines, tools in place that make the recruiting process efficient and effective and enables us to target key information.
Thank you or motivational emails are always welcomed and we mention that gesture to the Hiring Managers, it does not go unnoticed. Note that we can assess two things from a follow up call or thank you note: motivation and interest (we covered that in the initial interview) but is a common gesture made to reinforce the interest and motivation of a candidate.
We know our industry, our business requirements, our staff, our programs and our tools and above all WE KNOW OUR CANDIDATES! Believe me when I say that knowing YOU is my business.
So if you were re directed to the job posting and asked to submit your resume, keep in mind that it is structured as such for the sole purpose of identifying the right fit and submitting your resume is where knowing you begins.
After all… what prevails…. The global overall fit.