Page 60 - James Caan - Get the Job you Really Want

Conversely you need to be careful about showing too strong,
too passionate a dislike for your previous employer. One of the
earliest questions you are going to get in the process is, ‘Why
are you leaving?’ At that point i would say as many as

thirty per cent, even forty per cent of candidates fail

because of their response to that single question.
However you respond to that question the potential employer
is thinking, ‘How are you going to feel about our organization?’

If your reply to the question is, ‘I am leaving because there are no
career prospects,’ my immediate reaction is, ‘Well, actually I need
to know whether you can do the job you are applying for with
my company, before I even contemplate the next stage.’ Saying
that there are no career prospects in your previous company is

not a great response.
People seem to feel a need, because they’re leaving an
existing job, to justify the act of departure, and they think the

way to do that is to reinforce the decision with a raft of nega-
tives. I don’t think that’s a smart thing to do at all.
Saying anything negative about your existing employer is
generally not going to be a mark in your favour. Treating the
recruitment process as therapy for your personal woes, sitting

there moaning about your previous company, doesn’t help
me one bit, and in my analysis more often than not it will go
against you.

You know you are going to be asked the question about why
you want to leave your current employer. It’s not a trick question,
and it is never a surprise. So, you should be fully primed and
ready with your answer: ‘It’s a great company. I’ve really enjoyed

48 get the job you really want