Pushy Recruiters & Anxiety

[SCT]

First - the good news: I have been offered a role in a medical devices company and the start date is for Monday 20th August. Its the same job that I wrote my other thread on - about the 100 day plan. Its a senior role, good salary, good benefits package etc. So I should be jumping up and down with joy, right? Well, to tell you the truth, its been a nervy, anxious experience. In a bizarre twist - here's what's been happening in the past 3 weeks since I accepted the role:

Recruitment agencies have been calling almost every day, with offers of similar roles!! Even now with only a week and half to go before the start date, one recruiter is insisting on getting me an interview with a rival company - she keeps saying:

"I understand your loyalty towards your new employer, but you have nothing to lose by talking to other companies - especially with an offer already in hand. Don't worry, it happens all the time - people often reject offers and take new ones at the last minute."

For me, this seems like a dangerous game! I mean why put myself through extra hastily arranged interviews, when I already have an offer? I just want to start my new role now and settle down into a routine. In short, what should have been a happy few weeks in the run up to starting, has instead been a confusing and anxious time.

[Dick Woodward]

SCT:

You have just accepted a position that excites you - why would you want to look elsewhere at this time? Your surmise that this is a dangerous game is correct - what happens if the word gets back to your soon-to-be employer?

As for the pushy recruiter - have you asked if the recruiter is retained or a contingency recruiter? I would bet the latter - these people are almost always pushy, and often do not even have a mandate from the company that they claim to represent.

Politely tell them that you are not interested.

Some time back, Dave Jensen and I wrote an article on "The Care and Feeding of Executive Recruiters." It's at https://www.contractpharma.com/issues/2008-01/view_managing-your-career/the-care-and-feeding-of-executive-recruiters. You might want to take a look at it.

Best of luck,

Dick

[Dave Jensen]

Interview with another company AFTER the acceptance of an offer?

Whoever suggested that is pure sleaze. Someone's trying to toy with your credibility. No, that is NOT correct -- people do NOT do this all the time.

Don't even take calls from such characters.

Dave

[SCT]

@Dick - yes, you're spot on! The pushy recruiter (from a well know global recruitment agency) is not the main recruiter whom I normally deal with but a younger person covering over the summer holidays. I should have heard the alarm bells just from her informal chatting tone and general sweeping statements such as "I'm sure we can work with our client on getting you the best possible deal since we've worked with them for years." Anyway, thanks for the link to the article - will read it now.

@Dave: Quite right too - its not just unprofessional, but also underhanded (even deceitful!) to suddenly pull out of an offer at such a late stage just because "something better appears to have come along." So as of now, I am pulling down my CV from the various online agencies I have registered with and if anyone still rings, I shall politely decline. There is such a thing as professional integrity.

Cheers all.

[Andrew]

Dave,

In fact, it does happen all the time these days. See my thread on millenials. I have recently had two people back out a few days before starting work and another on that just didn't show up on their start date and went radio silent. I consider it pure sleaze as well, but it is difficult to imagine real consequences for the employee. I suppose I could stalk them to find out their new employer and send their signed acceptance letter to their new boss in a childish and vindictive move, but I am trying to build an organization and do not have time for this nonsense. The most I will do is send a nasty email reply and forget about them.

Andrew

[PG]

What people should not forget is that this is a small World and biotech/pharma is even smaller. IF you on top of that limit yourself to a certain geography and potentially a more specific sector there are not that many hiring managers and companies around.

Even if nothing happens in the short term would you consider these people for a future position? Also most likely you hare no the only one that has been involved in the process from your Company. With time you and these other people will spread out to work with different companies and probably to more advanced positions than you have today.

The question to ask yourself before you do something like this therefore becomes, do you really want to burn those bridges or bet on that people wont remember your name in the future?