Dear Stephen,
I really need your advice on something I’m going through concerning changing jobs right now. I’ve been ready to get out of my current job for months, and I finally found what I think is a good company, a good offer, and a job that I know I can be successful in. The combination of summertime, along with the new employer’s starting schedule, has created a unique scenario in which I am not starting my new job for one entire month.
Suddenly, when it rains, it pours, and although I’ve accepted the new job, which I have not announced yet, I’m getting the opportunity to interview for additional jobs. And in one case, one of them might be a way better job than the one I have already accepted!
Let me be clear – I have not been offered another job; I’m simply being called about interviewing for other jobs. That’s because I’ve left my current employer without telling anyone where I’m going. And since the start date for the new job is a month away, I have all of this downtime. Part of me feels it is unethical to continue to interview because I’ve formally accepted a job offer. And I even have a real start date… But on the other hand, these new job opportunities are coming to me unsolicited; recruiters or sales managers are calling me directly, asking to interview. My wife says I should keep my options open, and I’m tempted to. What do you think? Is a bird in the hand worth two in the bush?
Signed,
A Bird In the Hand!
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Dear Bird,
As always, the wife is right… happy wife, happy life. Interview your heart out until you start the new job. My advice to every candidate when the situation you described comes up (which is more frequently than you think) is always to continue to interview.
I can’t comment on the ethical dilemma at hand because that is individual to you, but I may be jaded by the fact that I have seen some people be offered jobs with a start date of one month away and somehow the start date never materializes from the employers. So, it works both ways.
I also caution those of you who are reading this that are hiring authorities. It is ridiculous to allow so much downtime between extending a job offer to someone and letting them start more than two weeks from that date because this is exactly the problem you will find yourself in.
It would be something else if a company gave you a sign-on bonus to start immediately, which might I add, is the smart thing to do here. When a hiring company allows a month to go by between the extension of the offer and the start date, they’re only asking for trouble. The hiring company should be cautious that they’re leaving themselves vulnerable by allowing someone like you to have so much time on your hands to interview for other jobs.
So, in my opinion as a career coach and an executive recruiter, it is perfectly legitimate to continue to interview and explore all your options, especially when the company approaches you unsolicited. Hiring company beware.
Here’s a tip to employers, the way to avoid this happening to you, even if you want to delay the start date: offer an immediate sign-on bonus to the candidate that would need to be paid back if the employee does not remain in the new job for one year. That’s very typical, and it’s the way that smart companies hire a candidate today.
So should you accept one job offer, yet still entertain other offers? Do what’s best for your career and for your family. Which always means keeping all your options open.
Signed,
Stephen