I was offered a job and declined it but I have since changed my mind. The job is still available. Will I look like a flake if I call and say I’ve reconsidered?
I’m a little suspicious by nature, so if I’m the hiring manager my initial thought is, what happened? Did something fall through? Am I your second choice? Or are you a flake and will this be what you are like to work with? But the bigger and more generous part of me wants to believe that upon further reflection you realized that you made a big mistak🌌e and now you want me bac🍷k. (OK, high-school dating flashbacks may be working their way into this.) If you’re 100 percent confident in your decision (this time) that you want the job, then absolutely call the employer with a great explanation for why you turned down the job and why you realize it was a mistake. I think you’ll stand a good chance of success. Much better than Stella in high school when she declined my offer to take her to the prom, but that’s another story.
I had an employment contract which said that if I left the company, I couldn’t hire anyone from there for a year. Well, I have left and there are several employees who have reached out looking for new jobs who want to work for me. They’re going to leave anyway, and they asked me rather than vice versa, so can the company still stop them from working for me?
If I had a dollar for every time executives who signed contracts agreeing to certain terms, then acted surprised that their obligations under the contract were meant to be taken seriously, I could retire on that alone. The “they are going to leave anyway” rationale is up there with “the dog ate my homework.” The agreement not to poach a company’s most valuable asset — their talent — is meant to protect the company. An employer can’t prevent an employee from leaving, but they can enforce their contracts and prevent you from hiring their talent. Check how strongly and restrictively the contract is written. My advice — don’t try to be cute with the language. Talk to your former employer and your lawyer and get clarity about what’s acceptable based on🐷 your agreement.
Gregory Giangrande has over 25 years of experience as a chief human resources executive. Hear Greg Weds. at 9:35 a.m. on . E-mail: GoToGreg@btc365-futebol.com. Follow: GoToGreg.com and on Twitter: @greggiangrande