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2013-7-29 07:36
I’ve been headhunted by the leading company in my field. The position is attractive and the salary is higher. Friends say it’s a “no-brainer”. Yet I have found its dealings with me almost insultingly desultory. I was approached by the chief executive, but the executive designated to follow up can take a week to reply to emails, and his responses are brief and devoid of flattery. It feels like being wooed by a good-looking man who assumes I’ll jump into bed with him because everyone else does. Am I silly to think this way?
Executive, female, 50 Lucy’s advice If you insist on viewing this as a romantic courtship, you’ve reached the wrong conclusion. Suitors who pile on the flattery most outrageously are generally those whose interest is of an urgent, carnal sort. Those who let their interest build more slowly can be a better long-term bet. Think of Mr Darcy, one of the most satisfactory romantic heroes in English literature, and how grumpy and standoffish he was at first. If there had been email in those days, he would have let weeks elapse between messages and would have dispensed with flattery altogether. But actually this isn’t a courtship and you aren’t Elizabeth Bennett. You are a grown-up woman, and this is a job. You are right to expect potential employers to be super-keen; if they can’t be bothered to go through the motions, why should you be bothered to talk to them at all? But if, for a minute, we rise above the crassly offhand approach, there are two reasons to allow this desultory corporate wooing to continue. First, this company might be a better place to work than where you are now. Yet I don’t see why this should be so. There is no necessary link between being number one in the market and being a great employer. In fact, the largest companies are often not great places to work as they are too big and too political. They are also likely to be too complacent – and complacent companies don’t stay number one for long. Your experience suggests this company is all of the above. The CEO issues orders his underlings do not want to carry out, but they do not dare oppose him and so drag their feet instead. The only other reason to continue is that a leading company looks good on a CV. This argument always applies, though one of the beauties of being 50 rather than 25 is that you can afford to ignore it. In case the above isn’t enough, you should try to find out if this Mr Unkeen would be your direct boss. If so, you have the strongest reason to break off all talks at once. It is quite clear that he doesn’t want you in the job; if you ended up getting hired despite him, he would move heaven and earth to ensure you were a complete failure. Your advice No honeymoon How refreshing! A company that clearly deals with its potential recruits in exactly the same way as it deals with its own people. In most cases, the “honeymoon” period in a new role wears off as the reality of the organisation kicks in – at least you know how it really operates before you start. No honeymoon ahead, perhaps – but no crushing disappointment either. Looks like a smart recruiting strategy to me. Chairman, male, 58 Do you want it? Do you want the job or not? If yes, who cares about the soft stuff? Anon More research You are judging this company on one executive who, for all you know, might be too busy to find time to flatter you. Before jacking in an opportunity to work for a market leader and more money, get some other perspectives. Ask the CEO for the contact details of two other executives you would like to speak to about working for the company. If they treat you the same way, walk – but not on the basis of one interaction. Anon First impressions Experience as a management consultant suggests that you do well to be guided by your initial impressions. If he is trying to impress you, he is doing a poor job. Why would you want to work for somebody like that? Give yourself a break: walk away. Management consultant, female Hard questions This is poor form and points to other potential problems. You do owe the CEO a call or email telling him/her what has happened, that you appreciate the interest, but believe it has now fallen off. Unless the CEO comes back with a sincere mea culpa, drop them. If they do (and you are still curious), you need to ask some very, very hard questions. Male, anon Liar’s Poker This reminds me of Salomon Brothers in Michael Lewis’s Liar’s Poker: it would not make an explicit job offer because then you couldn’t say you turned it down. That pettiness is perhaps why those who did work there found that it was “a great firm to be from”. Male, anon 我所在行业的一家领先公司在挖我。他们提供的职位很吸引人，薪水也更高。朋友们说，这是不用费脑子就能做出的决定。可是，我发现这家公司与我打交道时毫无章法可言，简直有点侮辱人。该公司的首席执行官首先与我接触，但被指派跟进招聘的高管却用了一周的时间来回复电邮，而且他的答复非常简短，没有任何奉承。这就好像是被一个长相帅气的男子追求，他认为，我会不假思索地跟他上床，因为其他人都这样做。我这么想是不是有点愚蠢？
高管，女，50岁 露西的建议 如果你坚持把这件事视为一场爱情追求，那么你的结论是错的。那些极力奉承你的追求者一般都是急不可耐的好色之徒。而那些对你的兴趣如细水长流慢慢递增的人则可能是更好的长期选择。想想英国文学中最让人满意的浪漫男主人公之一达西(Darcy)吧。他一开始是多么的乖张和冷漠啊。如果那时有电子邮件的话，他会好几周都不写信，而且完全没有恭维之词。 然而，你说的事情其实并非谈情说爱，你也不是伊丽莎白?班内特(Elizabeth Bennett)。你是一名成年女性，这是一份工作。你指望潜在雇主对你超级喜爱并没有错；如果他们不愿费事具体执行的话，你又为什么要费事与他们交谈呢？ 然而，如果我们能够暂且不去理会这种冷漠的敷衍方式，有两个理由让这种不合章法的企业挖人行为继续下去。首先，与你所在的公司相比，这家公司可能是一个更好的工作场所。然而，我并不真的认为情况是这样的。市场领先企业与优秀雇主之间没有必然的联系。实际上，最大的公司往往不是优秀的工作场所，因为它们规模太大，而且过于政治化。它们还可能会过于自满：自满的公司不会长久保持行业第一的位置。你的经历显示，这家公司具有上述所有的弊病。CEO下达了指令，下属不愿执行，但他们又不敢违抗，于是使出拖延的招数。 另一个让这种行为继续下去的理由是，在一家领先企业供职会让你的简历好看一些。这个理由总是适用，尽管50岁而不是25岁的美妙之处之一是，你可以忽略这点。 如果上述建议还不够的话，你应该试着搞清楚，那位“不情愿先生”是否会是你的顶头上司。如果是这样，那么你有最有力的理由切断所有联系。很明显，他不希望你担任这个职位；如果尽管有他的阻挠，但你还是被录用，那么他会竭尽全力确保你是一个彻底的失败者。 读者建议 没有蜜月期 你的故事让人耳目一新！很明显，这家公司与潜在新人打交道的方式与其内部员工完全一样。在多数情况下，随着公司现实变得越来越明朗，新职位的“蜜月”期会逐渐结束，至少你在开始工作之前就明白了该公司实际上是如何运转的。或许未来没有蜜月期，但也不会出现让人崩溃的失望场面。我看这是一种精明的招聘战略。 董事长，男，58岁 你想要这份工作吗？ 你是否想要这份工作？如果是的话，谁在乎那些软绵绵的一套？ 匿名 多研究一下 你在根据一名高管对这家公司做出判断，据你所知，这名高管可能太忙，没有时间奉承你。在你打算放弃为一家市场领军企业以及更多金钱工作的机会之前，从其它一些途径做一些了解吧。向CEO索要另外两名高管的联络方式，跟他们谈一谈你为该公司工作的事情。如果他们也是一样的态度，那么你就放弃吧，但不要根据某一个人的态度做决定。 匿名 第一印象 作为一名管理咨询顾问的经验显示，受第一印象的指引是有用的。如果他试图给你留下印象，那么他做的真不怎么样。你为何要为这样的人工作呢？让自己轻松点吧：走开。 管理咨询顾问，女 很难回答的问题 这是一种糟糕的姿态，还指出了其它潜在问题。你确实该给CEO打个电话或者发一封电邮，告诉他或她实情，说你很感激他对你的兴趣，但认为现在这件事似乎被搁置了。除非这位CEO诚心诚意地回复并致歉，否则就放弃吧。如果他们这么做了（而且你仍很好奇），那么你需要提出一些很难很难回答的问题。 男，匿名 《说谎者的扑克牌》 这让我想起迈克尔?刘易斯(Michael Lewis)所著的《说谎者的扑克牌》(Liar’s Poker)一书中的所罗门兄弟公司(Salomon Brothers)：该公司不会发出明确的工作邀请，因为那样你就不可能说你拒绝了他们的邀请。或许正是因为这种琐碎小气，那些确实在该公司工作的人们才会发现“跳槽离开这家公司很棒”。 男，匿名 译者/梁艳裳 |