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写作技巧:面试后的Thank-You Note

本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛大家都知道,面试后回到家中,应该立即给面试你的hiring manager写一个Thank-You Note,再次推销自己。对申请竞争激烈的中、高级技术或行政职位的人来说,Thank-You Note尤为重要。

来自国内的专业人士,英文口语大都较弱,但英文写作大都不差,为了弥补面试中口语表达的不足,就更应该重视这个面试后的Thank-You Note。一个漂亮的Thank-You Note,可以使你stand out of other candidates,不仅有利于加强hiring manager对你的信心,有时还能在面试后起到“扭转局面”的作用,成为你获得职位的关键因素。

然而,大部分求职者的Thank-You Note都有一个通病:过于简短,结构和用词落入俗套,内容干瘪,仅仅是直接或间接地重复resume的内容。这样的Thank-You Note不如不写,因为它除了费你一张邮票或让你跑一趟腿,基本不会对你获得职位起到作用。

据一位hiring manager说,每逢hiring season,他们都会收到不少这种Thank-You Note,基本上他们不会去读,而是直接丢进废纸篓。

怎样才能写出不会被直接丢进废纸篓的Thank-You Note?很遗憾,这没有固定模式,而要分析你的具体情况,然后充分发挥你的想象能力和写作天才,“八仙过海,各显其能”。但在写Thank-You Note时,请注意以下几个tips:

1.以personal letter的形式,将Thank-You Note写成Thank-You Letter。

篇幅过长(例如超过3页)固然不好,篇幅过短(不足1页)更是浪费时间。合适的篇幅应为2到3页左右。这里强调“篇幅适中的personal letter”,是因为,据一位hiring manager说,“As an interviewer myself, I share the experience with other interviewers. When I receive thank-you notes, I throw them away immediately. When I receive real letters, I can’t help opening and reading them…”。Personal letter的形式可以起到沟通感情、建立rapport的作用。

2.对未来老板的工作成绩或事业成就表示赞赏,这样能进一步沟通感情、建立rapport。但要发自真诚,恰到好处。切忌说过头话。

3.找出和未来老板的共同之处,更深一步地沟通感情、建立rapport。共同之处可以是shared vision、philosophy、work style等等。

4.清晰无误地列明你对该职位及其职责范围的理解。

5.再次强力促销你的soft skills (communication skills, personal skills, self-promoting skills and personalities etc.)和hard skills(工作经验)。如同在面试中回答behavioral questions一样,在推销自己时要举例子,例子不能和所申请的职位不搭边。关于如何应对behavioral questions,可以参考贴子“如何在北美找工作面试”。

6.再次表达你对获取该职位的热情。

Thank-You Letter的重中之重是要设法与未来老板沟通感情、建立rapport,这样就能使其在作hiring 决定时向你倾斜。对自我感觉在面试中发挥不太理想的人来说,就更应该写好这个Thank-You Letter。

再次说明,Thank-You Letter没有固定写法,要具体问题具体分析,要充分发挥你的写作才能。要逻辑严谨、用词得当、结构清晰,不要有语法和拼写错误。

下面是一封为hiring manager所接受的Thank-You Letter(摘自"55 Interview Traps",下载网址:http://www.onlinetestprep.com/interview.html),以期激发灵感、抛砖引玉。这封Thank-You Letter的作者(中国同胞)申请的是北美一家上市IT公司的business analyst职位,她在竞争激烈的面试中表现平平,本来很难得到该职位,却得到了该职位,后来她的老板告诉她,是她的Thank-You Letter最终改变了他的hiring决定。请注意她在信中是如何对面试她的人表示赞赏,如何试图与面试她的人沟通感情并建立rapport,如何列明她对该职位的清晰的理解,如何表达她对获取该职位的热情,以及如何用一种轻松愉快的语调配以具体事例来强力促销她的soft skills和hard skills。

Dear Mr. [??? Last Name],

Thank you for spending time interviewing me yesterday. I very much enjoyed our pleasant meeting and am looking forward to the opportunity of working with you at [Company A].

I am most impressed by the amount you have accomplished in such a short time as the General Manager of Information Technology who heads up five divisions. This morning, I looked at the company's Web site again. The worldwide fiber optic network that [Company A] is planning and building brought me a strong feeling of connectivity, especially when I was looking at the network plan to connect China where I was born, and North America where I received my higher education. I remain very interested and enthusiastic about the business analyst position and believe that my education, professional experience, leadership competencies, and strong work ethic will definitely be great assets for [Company A].

I understand that you are seeking a business analyst/project manager who shares your vision and is open to implementing creative and cutting-edge changes. I share your vision and am looking for such a professional opportunity in the telecommunications field. I am looking for one that will allow me to create and implement policies and procedures to ensure the efficient use of internal resources, to refine and improve internal processes and to coordinate and build relationships at all levels including operations, enterprise planning, IT systems and corporate senior executives teams. I will be supporting internal IT projects, analyzing business information, gathering/documenting requirements and specifications, creating work plans, directing technical resources, tracking the progress of projects, communicating results, preparing ongoing assessment summaries for the senior management team and ensuring all projects are completed within the allotted timeframe.

My formal education and training in engineering and business management, particularly in telecommunications, together with my working experience involving almost every aspect of the business cycle including design, production, business analysis, project management, sales, and marketing have equipped me with strong interpersonal, facilitation, negotiation, leadership and written communication skills. I understand business/technical concepts and terminology, possess the ability to quickly understand and articulate business issues and goals, and effectively build up relationships at all levels of an organization and am able to manage multiple projects concurrently.

I share your philosophy about the importance of communication skills. I understand that in business, good communication skills are not only the way that we express ourselves, but also, more importantly, the way that we work with people. I would like to share with you some of my philosophies that have evolved from working at [Company B].

I helped start [Company B] from the ground up and expand the company into one that provides 13-language Website translation and promotion services to clients worldwide. Our continuously improving communication skills play an important role in this progress.

One of the skills that I have learned from work is the importance of keeping clients informed.

One example is when we were working on the project for [Company C], a logging equipment manufacturer in the UK. One of our translators in Argentina experienced an emergency in the middle of the work and it became impossible for us to deliver the service within the time schedule. Thanks to the telecommunications industry, I was able to call and email the client, keeping them informed of our progress. Although our work was delayed for a few days, the client understood our situation, and as a matter of fact, was quite satisfied and returned for more service. He told me that what made him happy was the way I kept them informed during the process. I believe that keeping people informed helps establish close client relationships. I also ask my employees to keep me informed so that I know what they are doing, where they are heading, and how I can integrate their individual work into my planning.

Another important skill I have learned is to put myself in somebody else's shoes when communicating with them.

One of our largest clients is [Company D] located in New York. They made an inquiry about our service, indicating that they planned to get part of their 500-page Website translated and promoted in three languages. The challenge was that they had a tight budget for the Internet marketing campaign. I organized a team of people analyzing their business and market needs and made a proposal. We earned the initial business and went on to receive repeat business. Later, the marketing director told me that they actually approached a few of our competitors before coming to us. What made us earn their business was neither our price nor our résumés; we won their business because we put ourselves in their position by analyzing their business and translating the needs into a proposal that worked within their budget, while other companies only submitted their quotations or pricing information. This experience taught me the importance of understanding the client's perspective and is something I use to guide my work on a daily basis.

Establishing personal relationships with clients is another communication skill I have learned through experience. As a manager, I truly understand the importance of this skill. [Company E], an Internet company based in Victoria, British Columbia, is one of our largest clients. I regularly visit with the managers even when there is no urgent business to discuss. Personal visits show my respect to them and help me to establish a good working relationship. The close personal relationship smoothens our business relationship and makes my daily work much easier.

One of my strengths is the ability to motivate staff from different cultural backgrounds to work together to achieve a common goal. At [Company B], I manage 26 translators, eight proofreaders and five programmers who are based in different countries. Working with translators from one country requires a different strategy than working with translators from other countries. When I tell an American translator to correct a mistake, he/she may delightfully follow my instructions and make the same mistake the very next time. If I tell a Japanese translator to correct a mistake, he/she may feel embarrassed about the mistake and then quit the job. If I tell a German translator to correct a mistake, he/she may become angry and argue with me for the rest of my life. If I tell a Mexican translator to correct a mistake, he/she may simply ignore me until I threaten to fire him/her. I have realized that my level of cultural familiarity and ability to keep an open mind has helped me to communicate with people from different cultural backgrounds.

My greatest success has been in transforming individuals into a working team and turning new programs into highly effective operations. Maintaining an attractive and stimulating physical environment is one of the keys to the success of the operations.

I like the dynamic and fast-paced environment in your IT group. Though working at a big start-up company could be frustrating sometimes, it is also challenging and rewarding. I would appreciate you giving me the opportunity to work with you and to grow with the company. I enjoy learning and am looking forward to the possibility of this challenge.

Thank you very much again for considering me for this position.

Best regards,

??? Chen更多精彩文章及讨论,请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net
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  • 工作学习 / 事业与工作 / 写作技巧:面试后的Thank-You Note
    本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛大家都知道,面试后回到家中,应该立即给面试你的hiring manager写一个Thank-You Note,再次推销自己。对申请竞争激烈的中、高级技术或行政职位的人来说,Thank-You Note尤为重要。

    来自国内的专业人士,英文口语大都较弱,但英文写作大都不差,为了弥补面试中口语表达的不足,就更应该重视这个面试后的Thank-You Note。一个漂亮的Thank-You Note,可以使你stand out of other candidates,不仅有利于加强hiring manager对你的信心,有时还能在面试后起到“扭转局面”的作用,成为你获得职位的关键因素。

    然而,大部分求职者的Thank-You Note都有一个通病:过于简短,结构和用词落入俗套,内容干瘪,仅仅是直接或间接地重复resume的内容。这样的Thank-You Note不如不写,因为它除了费你一张邮票或让你跑一趟腿,基本不会对你获得职位起到作用。

    据一位hiring manager说,每逢hiring season,他们都会收到不少这种Thank-You Note,基本上他们不会去读,而是直接丢进废纸篓。

    怎样才能写出不会被直接丢进废纸篓的Thank-You Note?很遗憾,这没有固定模式,而要分析你的具体情况,然后充分发挥你的想象能力和写作天才,“八仙过海,各显其能”。但在写Thank-You Note时,请注意以下几个tips:

    1.以personal letter的形式,将Thank-You Note写成Thank-You Letter。

    篇幅过长(例如超过3页)固然不好,篇幅过短(不足1页)更是浪费时间。合适的篇幅应为2到3页左右。这里强调“篇幅适中的personal letter”,是因为,据一位hiring manager说,“As an interviewer myself, I share the experience with other interviewers. When I receive thank-you notes, I throw them away immediately. When I receive real letters, I can’t help opening and reading them…”。Personal letter的形式可以起到沟通感情、建立rapport的作用。

    2.对未来老板的工作成绩或事业成就表示赞赏,这样能进一步沟通感情、建立rapport。但要发自真诚,恰到好处。切忌说过头话。

    3.找出和未来老板的共同之处,更深一步地沟通感情、建立rapport。共同之处可以是shared vision、philosophy、work style等等。

    4.清晰无误地列明你对该职位及其职责范围的理解。

    5.再次强力促销你的soft skills (communication skills, personal skills, self-promoting skills and personalities etc.)和hard skills(工作经验)。如同在面试中回答behavioral questions一样,在推销自己时要举例子,例子不能和所申请的职位不搭边。关于如何应对behavioral questions,可以参考贴子“如何在北美找工作面试”。

    6.再次表达你对获取该职位的热情。

    Thank-You Letter的重中之重是要设法与未来老板沟通感情、建立rapport,这样就能使其在作hiring 决定时向你倾斜。对自我感觉在面试中发挥不太理想的人来说,就更应该写好这个Thank-You Letter。

    再次说明,Thank-You Letter没有固定写法,要具体问题具体分析,要充分发挥你的写作才能。要逻辑严谨、用词得当、结构清晰,不要有语法和拼写错误。

    下面是一封为hiring manager所接受的Thank-You Letter(摘自"55 Interview Traps",下载网址:http://www.onlinetestprep.com/interview.html),以期激发灵感、抛砖引玉。这封Thank-You Letter的作者(中国同胞)申请的是北美一家上市IT公司的business analyst职位,她在竞争激烈的面试中表现平平,本来很难得到该职位,却得到了该职位,后来她的老板告诉她,是她的Thank-You Letter最终改变了他的hiring决定。请注意她在信中是如何对面试她的人表示赞赏,如何试图与面试她的人沟通感情并建立rapport,如何列明她对该职位的清晰的理解,如何表达她对获取该职位的热情,以及如何用一种轻松愉快的语调配以具体事例来强力促销她的soft skills和hard skills。

    Dear Mr. [??? Last Name],

    Thank you for spending time interviewing me yesterday. I very much enjoyed our pleasant meeting and am looking forward to the opportunity of working with you at [Company A].

    I am most impressed by the amount you have accomplished in such a short time as the General Manager of Information Technology who heads up five divisions. This morning, I looked at the company's Web site again. The worldwide fiber optic network that [Company A] is planning and building brought me a strong feeling of connectivity, especially when I was looking at the network plan to connect China where I was born, and North America where I received my higher education. I remain very interested and enthusiastic about the business analyst position and believe that my education, professional experience, leadership competencies, and strong work ethic will definitely be great assets for [Company A].

    I understand that you are seeking a business analyst/project manager who shares your vision and is open to implementing creative and cutting-edge changes. I share your vision and am looking for such a professional opportunity in the telecommunications field. I am looking for one that will allow me to create and implement policies and procedures to ensure the efficient use of internal resources, to refine and improve internal processes and to coordinate and build relationships at all levels including operations, enterprise planning, IT systems and corporate senior executives teams. I will be supporting internal IT projects, analyzing business information, gathering/documenting requirements and specifications, creating work plans, directing technical resources, tracking the progress of projects, communicating results, preparing ongoing assessment summaries for the senior management team and ensuring all projects are completed within the allotted timeframe.

    My formal education and training in engineering and business management, particularly in telecommunications, together with my working experience involving almost every aspect of the business cycle including design, production, business analysis, project management, sales, and marketing have equipped me with strong interpersonal, facilitation, negotiation, leadership and written communication skills. I understand business/technical concepts and terminology, possess the ability to quickly understand and articulate business issues and goals, and effectively build up relationships at all levels of an organization and am able to manage multiple projects concurrently.

    I share your philosophy about the importance of communication skills. I understand that in business, good communication skills are not only the way that we express ourselves, but also, more importantly, the way that we work with people. I would like to share with you some of my philosophies that have evolved from working at [Company B].

    I helped start [Company B] from the ground up and expand the company into one that provides 13-language Website translation and promotion services to clients worldwide. Our continuously improving communication skills play an important role in this progress.

    One of the skills that I have learned from work is the importance of keeping clients informed.

    One example is when we were working on the project for [Company C], a logging equipment manufacturer in the UK. One of our translators in Argentina experienced an emergency in the middle of the work and it became impossible for us to deliver the service within the time schedule. Thanks to the telecommunications industry, I was able to call and email the client, keeping them informed of our progress. Although our work was delayed for a few days, the client understood our situation, and as a matter of fact, was quite satisfied and returned for more service. He told me that what made him happy was the way I kept them informed during the process. I believe that keeping people informed helps establish close client relationships. I also ask my employees to keep me informed so that I know what they are doing, where they are heading, and how I can integrate their individual work into my planning.

    Another important skill I have learned is to put myself in somebody else's shoes when communicating with them.

    One of our largest clients is [Company D] located in New York. They made an inquiry about our service, indicating that they planned to get part of their 500-page Website translated and promoted in three languages. The challenge was that they had a tight budget for the Internet marketing campaign. I organized a team of people analyzing their business and market needs and made a proposal. We earned the initial business and went on to receive repeat business. Later, the marketing director told me that they actually approached a few of our competitors before coming to us. What made us earn their business was neither our price nor our résumés; we won their business because we put ourselves in their position by analyzing their business and translating the needs into a proposal that worked within their budget, while other companies only submitted their quotations or pricing information. This experience taught me the importance of understanding the client's perspective and is something I use to guide my work on a daily basis.

    Establishing personal relationships with clients is another communication skill I have learned through experience. As a manager, I truly understand the importance of this skill. [Company E], an Internet company based in Victoria, British Columbia, is one of our largest clients. I regularly visit with the managers even when there is no urgent business to discuss. Personal visits show my respect to them and help me to establish a good working relationship. The close personal relationship smoothens our business relationship and makes my daily work much easier.

    One of my strengths is the ability to motivate staff from different cultural backgrounds to work together to achieve a common goal. At [Company B], I manage 26 translators, eight proofreaders and five programmers who are based in different countries. Working with translators from one country requires a different strategy than working with translators from other countries. When I tell an American translator to correct a mistake, he/she may delightfully follow my instructions and make the same mistake the very next time. If I tell a Japanese translator to correct a mistake, he/she may feel embarrassed about the mistake and then quit the job. If I tell a German translator to correct a mistake, he/she may become angry and argue with me for the rest of my life. If I tell a Mexican translator to correct a mistake, he/she may simply ignore me until I threaten to fire him/her. I have realized that my level of cultural familiarity and ability to keep an open mind has helped me to communicate with people from different cultural backgrounds.

    My greatest success has been in transforming individuals into a working team and turning new programs into highly effective operations. Maintaining an attractive and stimulating physical environment is one of the keys to the success of the operations.

    I like the dynamic and fast-paced environment in your IT group. Though working at a big start-up company could be frustrating sometimes, it is also challenging and rewarding. I would appreciate you giving me the opportunity to work with you and to grow with the company. I enjoy learning and am looking forward to the possibility of this challenge.

    Thank you very much again for considering me for this position.

    Best regards,

    ??? Chen更多精彩文章及讨论,请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net
    • Good tips. One question though, is that I'm wondering what type of manager is patient with a 1200-word thank you letter?
    • 听起来是很有道理,但是没有抓住重点。但是确实像前面的人评论的,我不相信你写的东西都是自己用过而且有效果的,这么一通长篇大论是不适合新移民的。
      • 很对不起,不是要贬你,很感谢你的Sharing,和你的热情。希望继续贴。
        • Same thoughts. and up for you...
    • 需要补充一下,Thank You letter必须在面试后一个工作日内发出。否则就没有必要了。但是,切记这个Thank You letter
      也仅仅是礼节上的,不能根本上改变面试结果。这就跟相亲一样,相中了就相中了,相不中再凭你说得天花乱坠也没用。其它专业我不清楚,IT方面,基本上Cover Letter和Thank You Letter都是浪费时间。短短几句,表达自己对职位的兴趣和基本的礼貌,足够了。
    • Thanks a for sharing, but I think
      本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛a thank you NOTE/letter merely serves to say thanks and perhaps briefly remind HR of you. A several-liner will do and a personal touch is very important. Focus all your efforts during interview, especially the first 30 seconds. I am of different opinon about a few points.

      "Personal letter的形式可以起到沟通感情、建立rapport的作用。"---> This is probably true for HR/Mgr of an older age. If it goes to a young HR/Mgr(in most cases) , the risk is that they feel bombed upon seeing it so long and never even attempt to read. A brief email/note serve the purpose I believe.

      2.对未来老板的工作成绩或事业成就表示赞赏,这样能进一步沟通感情、建立rapport。但要发自真诚,恰到好处。切忌说过头话。-->would not recommend commenting so. Beware that you may not be IN A POSITION to comment on the achievement of someone high above if you apply for only a junior position. A hostess of a high social status and good wealth would be seriously offended if you ever attempt to complement her cooking or her property. It is taken for granted that everything of hers is devine and perfect. She does not expect/need YOU to complement, never. Same is the case with career achievemnent. Be senstiive to the wordly difference of ranking and social class.

      Instead, given short time, one feels more comfortable when one finds the other party mirrors oneself . So, briefly drawing attention to some common traits would established rapprt more effectively. Again, you should do that at the interview.

      4.清晰无误地列明你对该职位及其职责范围的理解。-->not likely necessary. Risk is that you may misunderstand if you did not listen or read correctly what HR describe to you the job duties at the interview. Practically you would not have full understanding of a position until you are 1-3 months into the job. Not now, you should have discussed it freely at interview already. Communicaiton was done. Why repeat?

      5.再次强力促销你的soft skills (communication skills, personal skills, self-promoting skills and personalities etc.)和hard skills(工作经验)。如同在面试中回答behavioral questions一样,在推销自己时要举例子,例子不能和所申请的职位不搭边。关于如何应对behavioral questions,可以参考贴子“如何在北美找工作面试”。--->if everybody writes so, nobody's will be read. Again, you should have discussed it freely at interview with good examples and you should have demonstrated at the interview through oral communication, eye contact, body language and tone of your voice already. It is almost possible to change a person's 1st impression about you obtained in the 1st 30 seconds. Communicaiton was done. Why repeat? It is not fair competition that you would rely on a thank you letter at a later time to make up for your communication not sufficienly demonstrated at the time of interview.

      Instead, why don't you briefly mention one thing that does interest you from talk with hr/mgr to
      1.make your letter personal
      2. show that you are proactive with new information and you effectively listened, understodd and reflected
      2.build continuous rapport,


      "再次表达你对获取该职位的热情"--->yes, need to do so, but do it with style. Be very confident and express it in a polite but silently aggressive way. e.g " I look forward to hearing from you soon as this position is top listed among my other job applications. Should you need any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me by ...."

      At last, don't forget to add a nice wish with some personal touch, say, if HR has mentioned to you that she will be on vacation soon in Cuba, say "wish you enjoy you a lovely cruise in Cuba!" the more specific the better. Such personal attention would win a heart a bit.更多精彩文章及讨论,请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net
    • 从上一篇文章就看出来了你不专业,写的这些基本都是闭门造车,或者哪个社区老外教的。不过精神可嘉,顶一下。
    • It is too long.
    • 关于本贴的原始英文作者
      本贴由楼主翻译并改写,大意取自英文"55 Interview Traps",原始英文作者介绍:“Over the years, both as a corporate Human Resources professional and now as an Executive Search Consultant, I have personally interviewed hundreds of candidates for various positions. This interview experience has taught me a valuable lesson: qualified candidate doesn't necessarily get the job offer; job offer belongs to candidate who is well prepared and knows where the interview traps are and how to avoid them. ”参见:http://www.onlinetestprep.com/img/intro2.html。欢迎就本贴进行辩论,希望给出有说服力的论据,而非空洞的否定。
      • 文中的范例确实太长了。没有人会有时间、心情看2页长的信。
    • 没有用的.如果真写上这么长的THANK YOU LETTER,可能本来想用你也不用了.应当简短,不是每个都相同的.. you are different.
    • 2页长的thank you letter没人看吧?除非hiring manager闲的很。
    • 这个“精华”选的。存在的主要问题大家也都看出来了,又臭又长,庸俗乏味,啰嗦的对象也没选对。没人愿意看下去还是小事,搞不好还弄巧成拙,起了反作用。
    • 你不说我还不知道,原来你就是想卖书来的,难怪我就想什么人这么好心,码了这么多看起来有道理的字。
    • 既然上了精华就要经得起推敲以免误导大家。精神可嘉,但感觉像是刚毕业的,见本书就抄。这种长篇大论细嚼慢咽的东西早过时了。