Cover letter is completely useless and a waste of both parties time IMO.
Look at experience. Look at skills. Do they fit the position.
If yes, interview. If no, do not interview.
The fluff around everything else is just fluff.
Look at experience. Look at skills. Do they fit the position.
If yes, interview. If no, do not interview.
The fluff around everything else is just fluff.
I guess it depends a lot on the industry. Most of the cover letters I've seen when hiring are following a template or pattern gleaned from a website or book telling you how to write a cover letter.
Also, you're never 100% sure that a job seeker didn't get someone to help them write the cover letter or if it's copypasta.
Admittedly, if I was looking for a job, I'd provide a cover letter just to satisfy arbitrary expectations, but I hate writing them. All I do these days is regurgitate the list of the advertised requirements and for each item, indicate if I meet, have comparables or don't meet it. It beats having to come up with a bunch of made up platitudes about why they should hire me.
In the same vein as cover letters though, I don't put much weight on post-interview thank-you letters.
And yes, I couldn't care less if the candidate gave a post-interview thank you. That's not going to influence my decision.