Emailing to clarify after a bad interview

General Resume and Interview Tips
1

I recently had a second interview at a fortune global 500 company and it didnt go as well as i hoped.

I initially got an interview due to a referral from my current employer who knows the manager at this company.

The first interview consisted of the manager and a HR consultant, this interview went great, lasted about 30 minutes, near the end it got quite casual and friendly. Afterwards they mentioned getting back to me by the end of the week, but 20 minutes later they had already asked me to come back for a second interview.

Fast forward to the second interview this consisted with one of the Senior Head, Manager and HR consultant, this interview lasted between 10- 15 minutes as the Head Manager did majority of the talking. She had only asked me two basic and generic questions and i feel as though she didn’t like my answers. She had a very serious and intimidating aura. She didnt seem too interested or prepared with any questions and just made some up on the spot.

This is essentially my dream Job and one of the few interviews I’ve been able to land.
Essentially my question is should i email the company, if so who? and further clarify my answers and mention my strong interests in working for this company. I dont want to miss out on this opportunity.

Thanks :smile:

2

While it is good practice to email the HR recruiter after your interview thanking them for their time / the opportunity to interview with them, it probably isn’t recommended to provide follow up clarification around your interview responses.

Chances are, follow up emails won’t do too much to change the outcome of an interview, but instead use them to leave a good lasting impression (and avoid coming off as needy or desperate).

In my experience, it can sometimes be so hard to gauge how the interview went from the reaction of the interviewer, so don’t let the post interview anxiety get to you. If anything, if you didn’t get along with them you probably wouldn’t enjoy working with them even if you got the role (even if it is your dream company).

I reckon just accept whatever outcome and take it as redirection towards a role that might be a lot better for you in the long term!

1 Like