How to Ask for an Informational Interview
An informational interview is a short learning conversation about someone’s work and path. Asking well is a skill: you earn time by being clear, prepared, and low-burden.
Decide what you want to learn
Write two or three learning goals before you reach out. Goals keep the chat focused and help you choose the right person.
Examples: understanding a function day-to-day, evaluating a career switch, learning how a team hires, or getting feedback on your targeting.
If your real goal is only a referral, say you want advice first and earn trust—do not disguise the ask.
Make the ask easy to accept
Propose 15 minutes. Offer modalities. Show why them. Keep the email scannable on a phone.
Avoid attachments. Avoid long autobiographies. Avoid guilt language.
If you met briefly before, reference that context in the first sentence.
Prepare like it matters—because it does
Research their role and company. Draft questions. Prepare a 60-second overview of your interests if asked.
Be ready to take notes. Manage time explicitly.
Have a forwardable blurb ready in case introductions come up.
Follow up the same day
Thank them with a specific takeaway and an action you will take. Add notes to your tracker immediately.
If they offered help, make the next step easy for them.
Update them later when you complete a milestone related to their advice.
Track informational interviews as a portfolio of insight
Over a month of chats, patterns emerge about skills, culture, and process. Those patterns improve applications and interviews.
A networking CRM keeps the portfolio organized.
Informational interviews are relationships—treat them accordingly.