Speaking with an employee is a time to showcase your leadership skills. Whether you have to impart congratulatory news of a job offer or unfortunate news of a rejection, you must come across as a professional.Writing an appointment letter for an employee can be challenging. If your letter is too informal, you risk not being taken seriously enough. If you make it overly formal and stiff, you might not make a good impression as the face of a company that values comradery and teamwork. Most people simply cannot afford to put their careers on the line because of a poorly written letter.Sharpen your skills by studying the nuances that go into crafting effective correspondence. Use our appointment letter for employee templates to discover the best method of communicating your optimism when hiring a candidate.
Appointment Letter for Employee Template
The following is a letter written by Natalie Johnson, a manager at a sales firm. A recent position opened for a team leader to spearhead a market initiative at the company’s new location. After interviewing several candidates, Natalie feels she has the perfect employee in mind; he’s one of the top salesmen in the department and always goes the extra mile toward motivating his coworkers.
Notice that Natalie does a great job of professionally giving the employee the good news. She uses an authoritative yet personable style to welcome him.
Dear John,
After interviewing over 25 candidates in the department, I welcome you to the position of Associate Manager at Five Star Insurance’s Bridgeport location, effective October 15, 2017. Your dedication of going above and beyond to hit sale goals as well as your ability to take charge of a team stood out as impressive characteristics and valuable skills for this company. Therefore, it is with great pleasure that I offer you the management position.
I have attached the conditions of your appointment. Please read over them carefully, and if you wish to accept this offer, sign and date the acceptance letter and return it to my office before October 1, 2017.
If you’re no longer interested in accepting this job, please let me know as soon as possible so we can continue interviewing candidates. If we don’t hear from you by October 1, the offer will be automatically withdrawn. We would like to gather the employees appointed to our Bridgeport location for a celebratory gathering soon, and if you decide to accept, you can expect an email with more information.
If you have any questions, please ask. I look forward to potentially working with you in the future.
Sincerely,
Natalie Johnson
How to Write an Appointment Letter for Employee
The purpose of an appointment letter is to congratulate a candidate for receiving a job offer and to outline the acceptance process. Often it is the first formal communication a candidate receives from a company, so it also serves to paint a positive picture of the organization’s culture and values. While writing an appointment letter is usually a happy occasion, you should nonetheless take care to maintain a professional tone.
Begin by getting straight to the point. Inform your candidate that he or she is receiving a job offer from your company. Feel free to express your satisfaction about this arrangement. Personalize the letter by mentioning a few stellar characteristics that separated the candidate from other applicants.
Don’t forget to mention the necessary details. Work in when you expect the candidate to start, how to accept the position, and what the latest response date is. Especially if this is the candidate’s first position with the company, he or she might not know how to direct an answer to your offer. Always keep your audience in mind. You might want to consult with an employee from HR before sending your letter out to make sure you included all the necessary information.
Close on a cordial but strong note. Notice the appointment letter for employee template ends with an invitation to ask questions and a congratulatory comment suggesting the future success of the candidate. You can be polite without sacrificing the upper hand. In fact, this approach protects the good reputation of you and the company you represent.
What to Avoid in Your Appointment Letter for Employee
There are several common mistakes to avoid when writing your appointment letter. Sometimes people don’t express their pleasure in offering a position to a candidate. This lack of warmth makes your writing sound too cold and clinical and can possibly discourage the candidate from saying yes to the offer. Instead, adopt a welcoming tone. You want to make the receiver of the letter excited about working for your company.
Secondly, take care not to assume that the candidate will accept the offer. This assumption is easy to make, since the candidate applied for an interview. However, you never know if he or she might not be able to accept the position because of personal obligations or because something better came along. Use conditional statements such as “if you decide to accept” to suggest that the candidate can say no.
It’s important not to mix up your dates. The wrong start day or deadline for a response can confuse the candidate and result in a penalty from your boss.
How to Follow-Up After Sending Your Appointment Letter for Employee
Sometimes a follow-up to an appointment letter isn’t necessary. If you mentioned in your letter that you need a response before a certain date and that the offer will be withdrawn if the candidate doesn’t respond, then you have clearly set the terms for the candidate. However, if you don’t let the appointee know that there is a response deadline, you might consider conducting a follow-up.
Send another appointment letter with all the necessary documents and with a brief amendment that mentions this is the second time you’re contacting the candidate about the offer. Also, include when you need his or her response. If the applicant still doesn’t answer, it isn’t your responsibility to try a third time. Instead, concentrate on finding another fit for the position.
Top 5 Appointment Letter for Employee Writing Takeaways
1. Start with congratulations
A candidate receiving a job offer is a happy occasion, and for good reason. He or she might begin a fulfilling new career. Set the tone by giving your letter a warm yet professional tone from the beginning.
2. Double check your dates
Often managers have to recruit candidates for several different training sessions or starting dates. Make sure you don’t mix up the scheduled first day for your new hire.
3. Include necessary attachments
An appointment letter might need to accompany a hefty introduction manual or several forms that the candidate will need to sign. Make sure you have every document that your company requires.
4. Write an elegant ending
Express your pleasure at hiring the candidate to emphasize you value him or her as an individual. End your letter with a nod toward positive future relations. Close with a warm “sincerely” or “best regards” rather than a standard “thank you.”
5. Remember to spellcheck
An appointment letter with poor grammar immediately loses its professionalism. Since most are short, it’s especially easy to spot words that are misspelled and sentences with bad construction. Run your letter through a spellcheck program on your computer and read it closely before printing it out.
