For hiring people..and anyone elseI had an employee come into my office this morning and ask me if she could have a couple hours extra for lunch because she is going on an interview. I really have no problem with that, it just meant that if I couldn't get anyone to cover the phones I would have to do it my own self. Well, she came back and stated that she hopes I don't mind but she listed me as a reference. I told her the truth, I have no problem with looking up her file and reporting back, if contacted, that her attendance is excellant and that I don't see any reports of non-compliance in her file, but I haven't worked with her for very long and I really don't know her well enough for a comprehensive reference. Technically, I am not her supervisor even though I am the supervisor for the file clerks and her job grade falls within that category. (I didn't hire her so my boss is her supervisor and I am the supervisor for after hours receptionist). I asked her what company she went to the interview for and she showed me the ad. Personally, I think it is a big mistake because the salary listed for the position is way under what she currently makes. But, the actual job is what she is looking for and she is looking to leave the legal field. She asked me if I would look over her cover letter and resume and make any changes I thought would be appropriate. I just wanted to know what other hiring people thought of the following paragraph. It is something that she put in between her paragraph introducing herself and the paragraph outlining her main responsibilities. I told her I would ask some other people as well. "I am searching for an position in a field outside of what I have been doing for the past ten years which will allow me to utilize my abilities, skills and knowledge but will also provide me with the opportunity for growth and flexibility." To me it is kind of strange in her case because 1) she has been a receptionist for our firm for 15 years, 2) our firm has afforded growth and opportunity up the ying yang and 3) the job she interviewed for and told me she sent resumes to other place for, is a receptionist so she would be doing the same dang thing she is doing here only, according to the ad, she will have less work since there are four receptionists. So, my other question is, should I try to talk her out of it? I don't think she will be happy having to share the phones with three other people because that is just not her personality from what I have seen. She is very possesive with the phones and has a particular way of doing things which suggests to me that she is not easily "swayed" to another person's way. There's the reasons people tell prospective employers why they are looking to change jobs and then there's the REAL reasons. In this case, a potential employer is going to look at that paragraph and say Hmmmmm... She wants to change industries but not position??? To me it sounds like she just doesn't like the place she works. A potential employer won't know there are plenty of opportunities at your place so there's no conflict there. You seem like you are willing to help her. maybe you can start by talking to her and getting more into the reasons she wants to leave. Could be more personal than she wants to share, hence the confusing paragraph. Danger Will Robinson. Something is very off kilter here. First off, employees rarely tell their employers that they're job hunting and even more rarely ask for their help to do it. That's just an odd dynamic and it puts you in a very awkward position. You're not her supervisor but she's asking you for the reference. That probably means she doesn't want to ask her actual supervisor for some reason. There is likely some bad blood there. Since her boss is also your boss, you could easily get caught in an ugly vortex here. And what's her boss (who is your boss) going to say when he finds out that you knew she was job hunting and even helped her to do it? I can't believe that is going to play very well. And I'm further concerned because, as you said, she's going from a job doing what she's doing to a job doing what she's doing and for less money. A lot less money. People don't do that very often either. They go to jobs paying less because: Something is dramatically wrong where they are They're changing fields and have to start over or take a step down Quality of life takes a big improvement (less commute, fewer hours something like that) Personally, I think you should tell her that you've thought it over and she's put you in an uncomfortable position and that you'd rather just forgot you know anything at all about it. You should also suggest that if she's having problems that she take them to HR. Your mileage may vary. Tess As she explained it to me, she doesn't have any interest in secretary (legal or otherwise), she doesn't like to "boss people around" (she doesn't want to be a supervisor. She, in short isn't a very driven individual and really doesn't even "have" to work because her husband pulls in a six figure salary as a technological biologist (whatever that is), she works because she has no children and is bored at home all day alone, and she came to me initially because her immediate supervisor wasn't at work today and so I was his backup. As a matter of fact, he is gradually giving me more of his supervisory nonsense...er, responsibilities because he is being sent out of town on a more frequent basis. So her coming to me wasn't a huge surprise; rather it was unexpected. She isn't unhappy, she just has seen more and more advertisements for opportunites where the applicant has to have a certain number of months or years experience in a law firm (we actually require 6 months in a law setting for clerks ourselves) and figures this way people will be able to gain experience with us and since we offer advancement opportunities after 9 months someone who is interested in the legal field can learn. Personally, I am glad that she owned up to having sent out resumes and will be going on interviews because I would rather know right off the bat that be blindsided in the end. | |
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