Not As Fast As You Think

Not As Fast As You Think

I was checking in with a client the other day. While he had learned he would be losing his job in January, it was not until the end of January that the job ended, and he could devote full time to his search. During February he was a model client. He looked to connect with those in his network. He identified jobs which aligned well to his skill set and looked to apply to the ones that made sense, and also looked to connect to individuals in those companies. Additionally, he looked at skill sets the jobs were looking for, evaluated against his set of skill sets, and determined how to find certification courses to strengthen himself in those skill sets.

During the month he had a number of screening interviews, and even in companies where there were not immediate openings, he looked to have informational discussions and shared what he could do to help those companies if an opportunity arose. As we were having our check in discussion during the last working day of the calendar month, he said to me in passing, I guess I really did not accomplish anything this month, since no one made me an offer. I was a bit taken aback by his comment, and quickly corrected him that on the other hand, he had actually accomplished a great deal. The connections he had made, the initial conversations he had had, and the fact that some of those first interviews promised to have follow up discussions attached to them, said to me that he was well on his way to ultimately receiving several offers. They just might not occur in the timeframe he thought.

One of the things that those in job search quickly learn is that the speed with which they feel things are moving does not align with the speed that hiring companies have in filling their openings. Yes, a hiring company will want to fill openings in their company. And, certainly, the more critical the position, the more likely they are going to want to fill it. However, they are going to want to make sure they have the “right candidate” to fill the role. And, that is where the time disparity comes in.

For the individual job searcher, their entire focus when in job search transition is the looking for, and eventually landing a job. A particular adept searcher, may very well spend their entire 40 hour week in pursuits with that in mind, whether they are applying for jobs, going to networking meetings, going on interviews, taking training classes, etc. For most companies, during that same period, there are customers to serve, strategy to act upon and lay out for future ventures, meetings to attend, business trips to make, etc. And, yes, oh by the way, fill those staff openings for which we are now interviewing candidates.

Coincidentally, at the same time, I have another client, who without a doubt is “the top candidate” for a position for which she is interviewing. In fact, in the initial conversation the hiring manager, while not making an “official offer,” definitely inquired to her interest in the job and her desire to be the candidate to fill it. HOWEVER, before an official offer could or would be made, there were still factors to consider. The candidate to take the role must provide continual support to 3 other areas in the organization. Their leaders still had to interview and feel they could work with the person selected for the role. There was a question of salary, as the position’s initial target write-up and salary expectations were significantly below those of my client’s. (The hiring company was hoping to get someone with at least “some of the skills” my client possessed, and were pleasantly surprised when they found out all that she had done). And, my client is currently located out of state to where the job is, only transferring to the new area because of a recent transfer of her spouse to the area where his job is newly located.

So, even in the most ideal of circumstances, the point of contact with a company to an eventual offer often can be a many weeks to months’ process. As such, both the preparation one does up front to best present themselves and their skills, and how they are of value for those who need their services, is essential. Beyond that, once they have that communication in strong order, good candidates know to identify, explore and apply for as many opportunities as possible. I say to my clients for every 10 opportunities you may have going, 5 may fall away through no fault of your own. It may be decided to fill the position with an inside candidate. Money for the opening gets pulled from the budget. You are one of several candidates for the position, and they happen to like another candidate better than you. The reasons are endless.

Might you receive an offer quickly while in search? Perhaps you will. It does happen. But, the general rule of thumb I have found is the larger the company, the more people the job position role touches, the more candidates that apply, the length of time before the actual budget kicks in for the position, the longer you are likely going to wait to receive an offer. And, even at that point, I encourage my clients not to turn off their search entirely. The possibility of another offer coming along, or the possibility of the offer from the initial company you accepted an offer from, may be rescinded. These are all things that may occur during this process called “job search.”