|
A Right Recruiting Newsletter, 11/2008
It might sound a little crazy to choose this topic when candidates are hoping for even one job offer and the idea of receiving multiple offers sounds like lunacy. Well, there’s a method to this madness. Let me explain.
First, for years, when jobs were plentiful, this Newsletter counseled people on the benefits of career management and networking. Those who listened and planned for the inevitable downturn will have a much better chance in the market now than those who didn’t. Now, when jobs are shrinking, we know that there will be an inevitable uptick and now is the time to plan for how you will deal with that uptick. Make no mistake, there is a long-term, systemic shortage of skilled professional workers in this country. This downturn will end and those who can plan for a longer horizon than a week will get back on track. Those who don’t think ahead, like those who thought they would never get laid-off, will suffer.
The second reason that I think this is a useful topic is a practical one. In my experience, many of the people who receive offers, even after months of unemployment, get a second offer within a sort period of time. Sound strange? It’s really not. Think about it.
When unemployed, people answer ads, send out resumes and have a few interviews. Often, nothing comes of the interviews immediately and the situation just drifts, with no feedback or resolution. Then, the economy perks up and more ads start appearing. After all, if the business climate improves, it improves for more than one company and more than one industry. If the company you interviewed with a month ago is now secure enough to extend an offer of employment, why would you think they are the only company in the region whose business has improved? That’s not logical. If one company is experiencing growth because the business cycle has turned, so will others. Hence, more than one company has a greater need to hire and this can lead to multiple offers in a short time. It can throw a candidate off-center when this happens if they are not prepared.
Here is a typical scenario. You’ve been out of work for 2 months and had 4 interviews. Two companies have told you the job has been filled, one says you are still in the running and one has told you nothing. You’ve continued to work your process and send resumes out and you get a call from two companies about possible interviews. OK, so over the next 2 weeks you have two new interviews scheduled. After the interviews, you like one job a lot and don’t like the other. However, at this point you want someone, anyone, to hire you. You are now in what I call “Paycheck Maintenance” mode.
A week later, one of the original 4 opportunities for which you interviewed calls out of the blue and wants you back for a second interview. The next day the company with the job you like calls and asks about salary. Two days later the company with the job you don’t like makes you an actual offer, but they want a quick decision. You are now in a pickle.
It’s clear what happened. Business is improving so companies are more confident about extending offers. However, you need to balance taking a job you don’t really like with at least getting a paycheck. You might miss your daily fix of Judge Judy but you will be glad to be back at work. How do you handle this to maximize your options?
The first thing to do is thank the company that made you the offer and let them know you will get back to them quickly. Do not jeopardize that job by getting cocky about the other potentials. The second thing to do is gather info from the other firms. Here is where openness and communication skills help. One company is speaking to you about salary but has not made you an offer. Get them on the phone. Let them know that you received another offer but that you prefer their job. You don’t want to make a rash decision and you want to know their time frame and intention. Remember, you are not asking them to hire you then and there. You are asking about their timeframe. Let them know that the other company is pressing you for an answer and that you can hold them off, but only for awhile. If the firm that has asked you about salary acts like you are pressuring them, you’ve gotten the info that you need. They are not close to a decision and were just gathering preliminary info from you. Your request of them for specifics on a timetable would be well-justified in this instance and if they can’t provide one, it means that they have no timetable and are not close to an offer. On the other hand, if they react positively and give you a timetable, then comes the next question, an important one. You must ask how many others are they considering for the job. Please keep in mind that even if the company reacts with enthusiasm to you at this point, they can still be evaluating 2, 3, 4 or more people. Maybe they can come to a quick decision only because you were their last interview. If so, you need to evaluate your probabilities of getting the job. Are you the only person they are considering or are you one of five? I would not risk an existing offer on a 20% chance of landing that better job.
Now, what about that company that wants you back for a second interview? You liked them better than the job offer you’ve received but have the same issues. Should you risk an existing offer on unquantifiable hopes? Once again, get the company that wants you for another interview on the phone. Let them know you have an offer but prefer their job. Can they arrange a speedy interview? Can they get back to you quickly after that interview? How many people are they bringing back? These are all important questions and you are well within your rights to ask. If they balk at answering or are not co-operative, that, in itself, is informative. However, if they bring you back quickly for the second interview, there is one other question you need to ask- why the long delay between the first and second interviews? There is a positive answer and a negative answer. The positive answer is that they wanted to be sure business conditions had stabilized enough to warrant filling the job. The negative answer is that they had extended the job to someone else who turned it down. Now, if you hear the negative answer, you need to evaluate how that makes you feel about the job. Is it still better, in your mind, than the offer you have? People react differently to situations like that. Some are insulted and some are challenged. My advice would be to tone down the tendency to be insulted. Emotions have no place in something as critical as a career decision.
OK, you’ve received all your data. What to do now? At this point, everything is specific to an individual situation. How much do you dislike the job offer in hand? How deeply into “Paycheck Maintenance” mode are you? You have to measure your risk on a personal basis. But, having gotten your questions answered from all parties, you are more likely to maximize your chances of making a good decision. However, one warning – make sure all you questions are from you directly to the potential employer. Do not let a recruiter get in the way. The recruiter has a vested interest in keeping you “in-play” for a job, even if you are 1 of 20 people the company might consider. The questions and answers are too important to delegate to a third-party with murky loyalties.
Now, let’s play pretend. You’ve taken that job for a paycheck and still don’t like it. Should you keep looking or be thankful you have a job? What is the ethical answer to this conundrum? There are two scenarios here. One easy and one not so easy.
Scenario one, a company calls in response to a resume you sent out 5 weeks ago before accepting your current job. They want to meet with you. Here is what you should do. You should listen to them. What is the job? Is it better than your current job? If it’s not better than there is no need to pursue it farther. If it’s better, than you need to be upfront with the people on the phone. There is nothing wrong with saying the following, “ I was very interested in the job when I sent the resume. In the intervening time, I have taken a position but it does not fit my long-term goals as well as your job does. I would love to speak in greater depth. Since I’ve just started a new job, can we arrange something that will minimize my time off from work, at least in the early stages?”
You need to be upfront about your current situation and let them know you have found a job. If not, they will assume you are very free to interview and will think it squirrelly when you have a hard time with your scheduling. Also, it is a very small world and it’s best to assume that eventually the truth will come out. If you try and hide things, you will get defensive. If you get defensive, you will interview poorly.
This leads to the second scenario, one a little more dicey. You’ve just started a job that you don’t really like. Should you keep sending out resumes? This is a bit more problematic than the first scenario because it means you are doing more than just reacting to an earlier, legitimate resume submittal when out of work. In this scenario, you are continuing an active job search after accepting a job. Some will say that unethical because you just “committed” to a job. Let me start by saying that I think that argument is nonsense. You can start a job on Monday and get laid off on Friday, even though the company “committed” to you. However, even if the ethical argument holds no water, there is a reason to consider laying low so awhile.
Consider the state of your resume. If, in your last 5 years of employment you’ve had 4 jobs, you should lay low and stop your search. At that point you need to stay somewhere for at least 2 years. You need to stop the pattern of job changes. That may sound unfair but it’s the best advice I can provide. If you’ve made bad choices earlier in your career or put yourself inadvertently in bad places, you need to break that cycle. Sorry. On top of that, consider your situation if your current employer finds out about your continuing job search and fires you after two months. Now you have a really really bad resume and are forced to explain a termination. Most career decisions are a balance between risk and reward, a battle of probability. Is a good outcome worth the risk of a bad outcome? If you still feel the need to continue a search, use some discretion. Don’t post your resume on Monster or CareerBuilder, even anonymously. I’ve seen those resumes and it’s not hard to figure out where the person works. There is no anonymous on the Internet. Try and avoid sending out resumes to companies in your current employer’s industry. Some industries can be very incestuous and managers know each other and gossip enough to increase the danger of a blowback. Be selective, work through a trusted recruiter and try to do your job to the best of your ability while being patient. Time heals all wounds.
As always, I hope this info helps. Any questions or comments, don’t hesitate to contact me.
|