Friday, March 29, 2024
Human Resources

Key Differences Between Offer and Appointment Letter

The Offer Letter is a letter written by a company, specifically addressed to a candidate who has the training and experience that the corporation needs to perform a certain function and fill a vacant position.

The offer letter contains the expression of the company’s will in which you are part of its team. Through this letter, the management makes the recipient aware of the need to have their services occupy a certain position.

On the other hand, an appointment letter is a formal document offered to candidates that proposes to them the designation they have applied for and defines aspects of their position. 

Typically, hiring managers send appointment letters well before the probable start date to provide the prospect enough time to examine the offer and decide whether to accept the work or negotiate terms. 

Offer letters are usually the first version of the employment contract and inform a candidate that they are the right fit for the position in question.

Once the communication has been received and read, the next step is to respond to the company and return the signed letter within the period described in the communication. 

We want to warn you that the offer letter is NOT a contract and should not be confused with an obligation. Through the offer letter, the company resorts to offering an “at-Will” category job.

A job with the name “at-Will” means that you will work in the company by your will and their will as employers; that is, it does not constitute a contractual obligation. Instead, it is a job proposal that contemplates an indefinite duration. 

The employment relationship can be terminated when one of the parties expresses it. Both the employee and the employer can terminate the employment relationship at any time.

The at-will category covers those employees who are not under the protection of expressly established employment contracts where companies can only fire someone for a justifiable compelling reason, that is, for a good reason.

Do not be afraid of the “at-will” doctrine, and it is common to want to remain in the company. However, what is not common is to see a contract that binds you to work. 

Suppose you accept the job and stay for at least one year. In that case, the employment relationship does not apply to contracts that establish a defined duration time, that is, for specific activities that must be carried out in a certain time.


Differences Between Appointment Letters and Offer Letters

If the candidate says they hope to accept the position, the enterprise can provide an appointment letter with additional details.

Offer letters generally reprise information from the interview, and anything else considered essential, such as the start date. In contrast, appointment letters are very precise, like a contract, but they aren’t the contract.

Key differences between offer letter and appointment letter: 

  • Both are an essential part of the recruitment process.
  • When a candidate has been selected for a particular position in the company, an offer letter is provided.
  • The offer letter has information such as designation, salary structure, joining date, etc. 
  • An appointment letter is the second step to completing the recruitment process and is provided once the candidate has accepted the offer letter.  
  • Both documents guarantee the candidate’s job in the defined terms and conditions.

Also Read: Offer letter vs Appointment letter: Major Differences To Know


Tips to keep your appointment letter process sharp:

Only forward one letter at once 

It is essential that you only offer one appointment letter at a time to provide a smooth onboarding and hiring process. 

Include checklists

You can maintain a checklist and share it with the candidate to inform him about the documents and information he needs to provide before joining your company. 

Keep up with the follow-up.

If your ideal candidate hasn’t responded to you, make sure you send them a follow-up email regarding the closure to make sure they received the appointment letter. 

The major difference between an offer letter and an appointment letter is that an appointment letter is always preceded by an offer letter. The offer letter is just a narrative of the offer created by the enterprise, while the appointment letter is evidence that the firm finally hired the candidate.

Now, if you’re responsible for handling the recruitment process, feel free to make your tasks automated with HROne and easily download offer letter and appointment letter templates to have a smooth workflow.

Amit Kumar

Amit Kumar is a Digital Marketing Strategist in a leading organisation. A creative marketing strategist with over 8 years of experience developing digital marketing strategies and guiding business development