Typical timing of an offer package?

Question

I had a phone interview with a recruiter, then got a face to face interview with the team. 1 week later I got a phone call from the recruiter, they said congrats you've been chosen to move forward, and they would start working on a compensation package for me. That was almost 2 weeks ago.

I decided to reach out to the recruiter 3 days ago through email, and have not received a response to date. I've worked for the same company for over 25 years and am new to this process. Should I try to call the recruiter? Should I just wait? I don't understand why the recruiter wouldn't reply back to my email. My email was simply asking for a status update.

Any help or advice as to what potentially could actually be happening would be greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

Should I try to call the recruiter?

At this point with 2 weeks of radio silence, you should try calling the recruiter. Reiterate your excitement about the position and ask for the an update on when you'll receive your offer package.

Normally I recommend following up after 1 week has passed from initial communication with no response.

I don't understand why the recruiter wouldn't reply back to my email. My email was simply asking for a status update.

As my office's in-house recruiter would say to this question, it's unfortunately the busy season for recruiters now. I still think the recruiter should have gotten back to you sooner if the company is making you an offer, but there's no way to tell what's happening on their side.

Just remember don't stop interviewing until you sign an employment contract!

Answer 2

While jcmack's answer is good for this specific case, if we're trying for a general Q/A site, we should have a general answer.

It's good to ask about timeframes when you talk with people about getting a new job or promotion. Different people are different, so different companies are different. Some are quick enough to satisfy the most impatient people, and others could actually take in excess of two weeks to manage this step.

If you asked about the timeframe, use that as guidance on when to talk to them next if they don't get back with you. Otherwise, I'd recommend calling back the next day and asking about the timeframe then would be in order. I understand the next day you may be wanting to know status, but by asking about the timeframe, you're communicating that you are interested, and that you're patient enough to wait if you need to.

If you don't have a timeframe from them to go by, you certainly want to call and ask about it before a week is up. I think it's short-sighted, but I've heard of places rescinding offers "on principal" if there's no followup "after about a week".