How often to follow up after interviews

Question

Hey all,I recently applied at a hot tech startup (in the 100-200 employee range), did all the interviews, and am now waiting for a decision - for what feels like a weirdly long time.After my last interview I was told that I should wait for about a week for feedback. After not hearing anything for two weeks, I followed up and I was told something along the lines of "we need to see if we can find the right fit for you, we are currently planning our roadmap".After that, silence again.That was 2 weeks ago, so in total it has now been 4 weeks since my final interview.Is this normal? Or am I being ghosted?Are they keeping me in this limbo state while they are trying to find someone better? Or am I simply too impatient?Should I follow up again? Or would that seem to desparate?Anyone experienced something similar?Thanks for your thoughts!

19g6ukzgk8wti · Accepted Answer

Depends on the company, some have a really long process and it can take months. Or they have multiple openings with similar requirements, and they're not ready to say yes or no in case they want to move a candidate there.

Like you said, they could still be in interviews with other candidates.

In my experience there is nothing wrong with following up every few weeks within the timeline they tell you.

Getting ghosted is common, so I would generally expect the worse. Nothing wrong with checking in or staying hopeful however.

Also worth noting, sometimes the opposite can be more of a red flag. If you interview and they offer right away, or are in a major rush, it could be an omen for what you're walking into.

Just make sure you try and find out why they're hiring as part of the process. Replacing head counter, natural growth, etc...

Atomflunder · Answer

Update: followed up yesterday and got a rejection today :‘)

bringee · Answer

First, don't worry about seeming desperate. You would only seem that way if you were emailing them every day for the entire 4 weeks, but you've been doing what is generally pretty normal and acceptable. I think weekly follow ups are probably the most frequent I wouldn't mind handling.

But the vagueness of what they're doing has me guessing that they probably like your interview and want to hire you, but there's probably some back end administrative nonsense that's going on and preventing them from doing so.

I would say following up one more time here wouldn't hurt you at all, just make sure you continue saying like, "Really excited to consider the opportunity and potentially join the team, let me know if you need anything else on my end."

And then if they continue without any word after that, then it's probably best to just move on from it.

4 weeks is an absurdly long time to turnaround after the final interview, but they're probably banking on it being a tough market and you not having any other offers to consider right now.

alstein35 · Answer

Happens all the time. They are likely considering other folks. At this stage, it's unlikely it works out for you for this role. Continue to follow up, but build a pipeline of opportunities. If I can help on that front, just reach out to me here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alanjstein/

JustJ · Answer

I’ve found that startups may not have a systematic process like in house companies and may take more time. I agree with the other suggestions and follow up one more time to see what they say. Weekly follow ups is fine. See what their next response is and act accordingly.

How often to follow up after interviews

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