Candidate following up after interview
Discussion
If you interviewed a candidate who otherwise did well but gave a poor answer/example to a specifically-worded competency based question, would it make it better or worse in your eyes if they acknowledged this in a followup thank you email?
I guess mentioning the wording of the question would be inadvisable, as other candidates might have been fine with it; it was along the lines of 'an example of a time where you used multiple data sources to solve a problem at work, how did you go about identifying and gathering the data sources, and what was the outcome' - with most of what I do (and most of what the prospective job would be) all the data sources are known and accessible in advance and we're providing insight, so really struggled with it. Think it was a company-standard question set by HR.
Is a candidate following up on the contents of an interview ever okay, or is it 'you had your shot, deal with it'?
I guess mentioning the wording of the question would be inadvisable, as other candidates might have been fine with it; it was along the lines of 'an example of a time where you used multiple data sources to solve a problem at work, how did you go about identifying and gathering the data sources, and what was the outcome' - with most of what I do (and most of what the prospective job would be) all the data sources are known and accessible in advance and we're providing insight, so really struggled with it. Think it was a company-standard question set by HR.
Is a candidate following up on the contents of an interview ever okay, or is it 'you had your shot, deal with it'?
From personal experience from either being interviewed or interviewing myself the decision is made more-or-less straight away, however in my case all candidates are interviewed on the same day. So I doubt a follow-up would make a difference should that be the case here too.
That said, as an interviewer, what you've said in your OP basically says that you have no experience of sourcing information yourself from multiple sources. If that is a key part of the job they are recruiting for, then that admits openly that you don't have that skill (even if you actually do). So word your follow-up carefully, perhaps offering suggestions as to how you would solve such a challenge should it arise.
That said, as an interviewer, what you've said in your OP basically says that you have no experience of sourcing information yourself from multiple sources. If that is a key part of the job they are recruiting for, then that admits openly that you don't have that skill (even if you actually do). So word your follow-up carefully, perhaps offering suggestions as to how you would solve such a challenge should it arise.
If you've actually been given an interview, regardless of the outcome, you should always follow up in my opinion.
I wouldn't be specific. Just ask the question requesting personal feedback from the interviewer or panel. If you really messed up on one question, it should come out. You lose nothing by asking, in fact, when I'm on the other side, I find it professional & try and give constructive feedback. Answering a question you struggled with "after the fact" would come across a little strange and I wouldn't take it into account in the decision process.
Best feedback I got when asking (via e.mail) was a 1:1 call for 15 mins with the hiring manager walking through pro's & con's (I impressed them, but didn't get the job...but very useful feedback going into next interviews about how I came across).
I wouldn't be specific. Just ask the question requesting personal feedback from the interviewer or panel. If you really messed up on one question, it should come out. You lose nothing by asking, in fact, when I'm on the other side, I find it professional & try and give constructive feedback. Answering a question you struggled with "after the fact" would come across a little strange and I wouldn't take it into account in the decision process.
Best feedback I got when asking (via e.mail) was a 1:1 call for 15 mins with the hiring manager walking through pro's & con's (I impressed them, but didn't get the job...but very useful feedback going into next interviews about how I came across).
Steve Campbell said:
Best feedback I got when asking (via e.mail) was a 1:1 call for 15 mins with the hiring manager walking through pro's & con's (I impressed them, but didn't get the job...but very useful feedback going into next interviews about how I came across).
I am always amazed at the lack of response some people seem to have to not getting the position on offer, did they not want it? I think it’s happened 3 times in the 25+ years of interviewing people, probably over 200 interviews in reality...
To the OP, ring up and ask them what went wrong in detail compared to everyone else. If they say nothing, you have lost nothing in asking, as long as what they say is truthful, it’s all good helpful stuff for the next interview.
bucksmanuk said:
To the OP, ring up and ask them what went wrong in detail compared to everyone else. If they say nothing, you have lost nothing in asking, as long as what they say is truthful, it’s all good helpful stuff for the next interview.
Hang on, I haven't not got it yet. 
They're recruiting for a few positions so it'll be the week after next before I hear back. It's an internal move to another department so a bit more easy going on both sides than interviewing for a brand new company as there's already a shared knowledge about how the company works. I followed up at the end of the same day with a thanks-for-your-time email, I did say I wasn't happy with one of the examples I gave and if she wanted to follow up further on any part of my CV then I'd be happy to drop by (follow up interviews aren't uncommon in this company, and they do give feedback after the process has finished).
To be honest she didn't seem that enamoured with behavioural questions either and pretty much stated she was asking it because she had to, and the rest of the conversation went pretty well so maybe it'll go by the by.
I guess with an interview you have to convince the other person that a) you're employable, b) you're employable in this role, and c) you're the most employable person for this role out of all the candidates, so if I've at least managed b) I'll learn and move on.
I think the most important question the interviewer asks is, "is this guy/gal competent and would I be able to work with them?"
If you get to interview stage, technically you meet the minimum requirements and could feasibly perform the job.
You simply cannot understate rapport and trust. Of my last 4 interviews, I landed 4 offers. And all of the roles were above my skill level i.e. I went for a stretch target. I struck a great conversational tone and rapport with the interviewers. Once you do that, you are almost there.
Truth is most people who are interviewed have the skills or could obtain the skills with a bit of support (i.e. genuine potential). Employers don't mind either as long as they have integrity, trust, reliability etc and can see that "this is a person I could work with in my team"
So don't fret you didn't answer the question perfectly. Learn from it and move on until you hear from them. It's likely they decided that very day who they were going to hire.
If you get to interview stage, technically you meet the minimum requirements and could feasibly perform the job.
You simply cannot understate rapport and trust. Of my last 4 interviews, I landed 4 offers. And all of the roles were above my skill level i.e. I went for a stretch target. I struck a great conversational tone and rapport with the interviewers. Once you do that, you are almost there.
Truth is most people who are interviewed have the skills or could obtain the skills with a bit of support (i.e. genuine potential). Employers don't mind either as long as they have integrity, trust, reliability etc and can see that "this is a person I could work with in my team"
So don't fret you didn't answer the question perfectly. Learn from it and move on until you hear from them. It's likely they decided that very day who they were going to hire.
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