January 18, 2008 at 4:29 am
Hello,
My friend has recently faced the usual interview question.
why are you looking for change ?
How to answer for this question ? i.e How to satisfy the interviewer with our answer.
Say for example,
if we jumped out from the current company within short period,then what we have to say for the above question ?
if we jumped out from the current company after long period,then what we have to say for the above question ?
Thanks in advance.
karthik
January 18, 2008 at 4:43 am
The best way to answer any interview question is honestly. Any interviewer worth their salt will pick-up on insincere answers.
You may be leaving because the work that your presented with at your current/last place wasn't challenging enough. Maybe the company have taken their business in a direction that you don't wish you career to follow. It could be that you think that you're worth more and are looking for more money. Your current work may be too far, geographically, from where you want to work and that this new job is closer. You might have had the idea of working for this new company before, and now is your chance.
There are 1001 (and more) reasons why you would wish to leave your present employment, just make sure that you're answer to this question reflects your feelings.
Don't get caught out in an interview, any idea that you may not have been honest will not help your prospects; not only for that job but other's for that company too.
January 18, 2008 at 7:55 am
Tell them the truth. Anything else will get you into trouble.
"I've been working for these insane college kids at this dot com and I can't stand it any more."
I used that one once.
"I've gone through the third reorg in a year, I'm under a new manager, again. I don't like her and I'm tired of constantly being shifted around."
I used that once too.
I got the job both times despite these being, even in my own opinion, somewhat negative reasons to leave a job. But they're honest.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore Roosevelt
Author of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning
January 18, 2008 at 8:10 am
This is really a question you should ask yourself before you look to leave your current job. Are you really making a good decision? Do you think things will get better? More opportunity? More money?
I'd answer honestly and if you are planning on leaving every 6 months, you probably need to get a consulting job.
January 18, 2008 at 8:27 am
And that's ultimately what they're after when the question gets asked: are you likely to stay with them for a while if they should offer you something. If the reason you left is something that happens a lot where they are - then they can pick up on that and go find someone else.
For example - if you're looking for something with no off-hours or little off-hours work, and you're interviewing somewhere requiring constant pager access - then you wouldn't be the right candidate.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Your lack of planning does not constitute an emergency on my part...unless you're my manager...or a director and above...or a really loud-spoken end-user..All right - what was my emergency again?
January 18, 2008 at 8:42 am
And following up on what Matt says, you want to know that too. Except for extreme circumstances (you're about to lose the house, the family is hungry, etc.) lying your way into a job that you're not really suited for is not going to make you happy or the employer happy.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore Roosevelt
Author of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning
January 18, 2008 at 9:16 am
And you want a happy job!
Be honest, even with personality conflicts. Explain it simply, and unemotionally. Tell them you didn't get along, the manager didn't seem to trust you or accept your work and you didn't like it. Be calm and clear and either they'll think you're a good fit or not.
January 18, 2008 at 5:26 pm
hi,
Tell them the truth in a polite,calm way. they will understand.Truth always win.
thx
jith
January 21, 2008 at 6:14 am
I agree that honesty is the best policy, but so is tact.
If you left the previous job because of personality conflict or because you hated the work environment or something, the best way to phrase it is "I just didn't fit in with that particular work culture" or something similar. Do NOT, under any circumstances, bad mouth the people you used to work with or the company you used to work for. If you vent / complain / insult, it will come back to haunt you.
Especially if your interviewer is friends with the boss/collegues you're leaving behind.
I've seen it happen before. So be careful what you say. Be honest, be polite, but phrase the bad stuff in such a way as you're not being insulting or derogatory. A little bit of tact goes a long way to making the interviewer see you as a true professional instead of a disgruntled worker bee who may cause trouble for him also.
January 21, 2008 at 3:00 pm
I agree with Brandie, but I'd add one thing to think about if it was a personality conflict.
What was the problem? Was it just personality? was it conflict in your views? Did you not want to do the work assigned? Be really critical with yourself and if it was your fault, I'd admit that. do it tactfully, but admit your mistakes and show that you've learned something.
If your boss or other co-workers made it intolerable, explain it professionally and detached, and as Brandie mentioned, with tact.
I wouldn't bad mouth someone, but I have said I couldn't work with someone anymore, giving reasons and examples. And I'd always admit that it could have been more my fault than anyone else's.
January 22, 2008 at 5:27 am
I have to agree with Steve on this one. If you've had a conflict (and who hasn't) and that comes up in an interview, you need to be honest about it. I've had down in the gutter knife fights (figuratively) with a person I was managing at the time who went on to become a great team member (and yeah, the fights were as much my fault as his). He's stayed in touch and asked me for several recommendations in the past. Even the disagreements you have with people can work out for you over time and it's worth bringing that sort of thing forward in an interview. You want to sell yourself, sure, but you can't only have positive experiences and nothing but strengths. Everyone has weaknesses. Everyone messes up. Everyone experiences friction with some of their coworkers. If you are unable to identify these things in an interview with me, I won't hire you because I'll know that you're either blind to yourself or a serious liar. Neither of which do we need on our team.
"The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood"
- Theodore Roosevelt
Author of:
SQL Server Execution Plans
SQL Server Query Performance Tuning
January 22, 2008 at 6:43 am
That was really well said by the Editor. It is not good to play the blame game or bad mouth about ur previous employer at an interview.
January 25, 2008 at 12:29 pm
I left a job because of issues with a team-mate (another SQL Server DBA). Instead of telling the interviewer the problems I was having, I said that "I was looking for a new job due to issues with a co-worker that we were unable to resolve even though we involved our managers. I finally felt that I needed to move on since the issues could not be resolved after six months of trying."
Nothing but the truth and doesn't put anyone in a bad light. If the interview wants more information they will ask for it. Then you have to determine how much to give. Just remember this: if all you do is gripe about your issues with the other person, the interviewer will wonder what will happen if you have issues at your new job. Instead, state what happened AND what steps you took to resolve the issues. But again, only go into detail if the interviewer asks for it.
-SQLBill
January 25, 2008 at 1:03 pm
Definitely be truthful, but as others have said avoid being negative about people. The last time I was voluntarily looking (the last time I was looking was due to downsizing) I had to answer this question several times. There were 2 reasons I was looking, instability in the job sector I was working in and a lack of appreciation for IT in the corporation. There was no need for more information in the first case, in the second case I was always asked a followup and I had used q quote from the corporate VP, "IT is a necessary evil and brings no value to the company".
No one had any issues with either answer. Obviously if you are looking you have reasons for wanting out of your current position and usually they are due to some sort of problem. Even if that problem is a lack of opportunity for advancement.
Jack Corbett
Consultant - Straight Path Solutions
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