Send a thank-you note

One part of post-interview etiquette most senior candidates skip is the thank-you note. A personalised note, sent by email within a day of the interview, sets you apart from the competition and keeps you front of mind with the hiring manager.

According to a TopResume survey, 68% of hiring managers say a thank-you note affects their hiring decision, and 19% have ruled out a candidate entirely for not sending one. At the senior level, where the shortlist is short and every signal counts, that isn’t a detail worth skipping.

In your note:

•       Thank the interviewer for their time.
•       Reference a specific point from the conversation, such as a therapeutic area, a manufacturing scale-up, or a commercial strategy you discussed.
•       Restate your interest in the role and the organisation.
•       Reinforce the skills and experience most relevant to what they need.
•       Clarify anything you didn’t answer as well as you would have liked.

Treat the note as an extension of your personal brand, alongside your CV and cover letter.

If you use an AI tool to help draft it, use it to tighten your phrasing, not to write the note for you. A generic, obviously templated message undoes the personal touch the note is meant to convey, and the recipient can usually tell the difference.

If you were put forward by an executive search firm, ask the consultant to forward this note on to the hiring manager on your behalf.

Draw on your network

Once the interview is done, reconnect with whoever brought the opportunity to your attention, whether that’s a recruiter, a peer or family and friends, and let them know how it went. They may have insight into the organisation or the hiring manager that helps you prepare for further rounds.

This would be a good opportunity to contact your references (excluding your current boss, of course). Get them ready to speak to your leadership record, since the hiring manager is likely to call once you reach the final stages.

If you know someone inside the organisation, a functional peer, a former line report, or a key opinion leader (KOL) you’ve worked with in the same therapeutic area, ask whether they’d be willing to put in an internal word on your behalf.

How long should you wait before following up?

You’ll usually get a feel for the timeline from the interview itself. As a rule, Zippia’s most recently updated guidance (January 2026) puts the typical wait at five to ten working days before following up if you’ve heard nothing. If the interview was on a Wednesday, the following Wednesday is a reasonable point to check in.

If a life science executive search firm placed you in the process, follow up with your consultant first rather than approaching the hiring manager directly. Ask where the decision stands and restate your interest. Never demand a response. Stay polite and patient in every exchange with the hiring organisation, particularly at board or C-suite level, where governance steps and additional stakeholders often add real time to the decision.

If several weeks pass with no reply, you can reasonably conclude the role has gone to another candidate. A short follow-up email costs you nothing and occasionally still gets a response. Hiring processes slow down for reasons that have nothing to do with you, even when the hiring team has the best intentions.

What should you say in a follow-up email?

Keep it short. Include:

•       The date and role of your interview.
•       A restated interest in the role.
•       A direct, polite question on where the decision stands.
•       An offer to provide anything further they need.

Keep actively job searching after the interview

However well you think the interview went, keep your executive search moving. You don’t know what else is out there or who you might meet in the meantime, and you might uncover a role that suits you even better. Worst case, you end up choosing between two offers, which is a good problem to have.

Continue your search until you’ve signed a contract, at minimum. You won’t know whether a role and an organisation are a genuine fit, technically or culturally, until you’ve been in post for several months. Even once you’re settled and happy, keep your network active. In life sciences, where teams reshuffle around pipeline decisions and funding rounds, today’s colleague can be tomorrow’s hiring manager.

Handle rejection gracefully

If the offer doesn’t come, don’t let frustration show. Send a thank-you note or email reiterating your appreciation for the interviewer’s time. It costs little and keeps you front of mind if a similar position opens later at the same organisation.

If a life science executive search consultant put you forward for the role, have them send the note on your behalf, and remember to thank them too and confirm you’re open to similar roles. For the fuller picture on processing a rejection and getting back on the search quickly, read our guide on bouncing back if you don’t get the job offer, which covers applying the W3 model specifically to a rejection and rebuilding momentum afterwards.

For more advice tailored to senior life sciences leaders, read How to Evaluate a Job Offer: Tips for Senior Managers and Executives next.

Fraser Dove International places senior leaders across pharma, biotech, MedTech and CDMO organisations in Europe, the US and Asia. If you are weighing your next executive move in the life sciences, speak to one of our consultants in confidence.