Whether you are an HR personnel, recruiter, or hiring manager, you might have come across an appointment letter. It is a formal document issued by a company when a candidate formally joins the organization. Apart from the candidate’s roles and responsibilities, it also includes terms and conditions of the employment. If you are new to this or puzzled by what and what not to include, then you are at the right place. This article will help you with what is an appointment letter, the steps to write it, and also provide ready-to-use pdf templates for free.
An appointment letter is a formal document that officially confirms a candidate’s employment in the organization. HR department sends this letter to selected candidates once their entire recruitment process is complete or after negotiating the job offer. Generally, in practise the after interview HR professional offers the employment first, and then candidate gets some amount of time to review the offer and negotiate its terms and conditions, once the candidate agrees to everything and accepts their employment offer, then they are provided with this letter, that is why it is also known as a job joining letter.
The candidate responds to this letter by signing and giving it back to the organization as a token of acceptance, and it can be used for records and future references. There are certain details that must be included in this letter, such as:
Consider the below mentioned points to help you write an employee appointment letter for your next joinee:
Hence it is a formal document, It’s important to make it look professional, and the best way to do that is by adding a nice formal heading. At the top of the letter, write the recipient’s name, contact information, and the date. At the bottom of the letter, mention your name and contact information so that it will be easier for the recipient to contact you. If possible, also add your company’s logo.
After the heading, you should include a greeting and introduction. Try to make it professional by using the candidate’s last name and a salutation like “Dear”. You can also begin with a brief introduction sentence, thanking them for their valuable time during the interview process.
While writing the contents of the letter, you can choose from one of these two common formats. You can either write in a traditional paragraph style, with contents written in full sentences. Or you can use a new modern style, with key sections separated and in bold font. It can be easier to read when the content is separated and in bold fonts, but both formats are acceptable.
You may have offered the job position through an offer letter or email already, but it is still important to clearly mention that information in this letter because this document will get stored in records and can serve as an official record describing the terms of the position.
Describe the role and duties for the mentioned position briefly. You can do this by listing a few bullet points or in a brief paragraph. Ensure that the candidate fully understands their new role by keeping your expectations clear.
You may have already mentioned the expected starting date in the offer letter or during the candidate’s interview, but it is still important to put it in here so that you can get the candidate’s response and start preparing for their onboarding process.
In this letter, you should include the mentioned role’s salary and clear that whether they are getting paid hourly or as a salary. Also, consider mentioning benefits briefly, as it is an important part of the compensation package and can be helpful for records and future references. If any benefits begin at a certain date or after some specific amount of time, then mention it clearly in the letter.
At the end of the letter, include further steps (if any) like, whether the candidate needs to sign and send back the letter or fill up any online form. Also, mention the deadline for accepting the offer. Then end the letter with a formal close, like “Sincerely,” and sign your name.
Getting this letter from the organization is an extremely important moment for any candidate, and providing it to the candidate is an utmost priority for the HR department. So when you are creating an appointment letter or looking for it online then, you need to ensure that your letter has covered all the important aspects. By following our steps to create the letter or using our format, you will find yourself with an ideal appointment letter in your hand.
An offer letter is used to inform candidates that they were found suitable for the vacant position in the organization. On the contrary, an appointment letter is provided to the candidate only after they confirm that they want to accept the job.
An employer can withdraw a job offer if there are any valid legal reasons behind it, But if they do it without any legal reason, then the candidate can take legal action against them.
This kind of activity only happens when companies don’t have any formal HR processes in place. In some cases, the companies use only job offer letters to appoint any employee.
