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Thursday, December 13, 2007

Unethical

I accepted a job for January 2008 back in early September. This may come as a surprise to anyone who noted that I was in Los Angeles last weekend interviewing for a (different) job.

To my credit, I did stop applying for jobs when I accepted my first offer. Company A just moved very quickly, while Company B moved very slowly. I sought advice of those in industry (an experienced mentor) and others who love me (parents) and was told that I should go on the second interview, and really, do what was best for me. If nothing else, I could use the weekend to find an apartment.

I have not received the formal offer from Company B, but notification that HR is putting something together. I anticipate it will be similar to the other offer--at least as good, maybe slightly better.

Here is the thing: I want to work for Company B significantly more. I met a lot of great people and liked the atmosphere a lot more. However, I have committed to Company A with a start date of late January.

I do know it is unethical to back out of my first offer, but I think I will do it anyway. I will allow myself this mistake in my career, and will never do anything like this again. I will keep myself out of this position. It is a bad place to be in. At the same time, I have to do what is truly best for me. If the company lost a contract tomorrow, they wouldn't feel bad about calling me up and saying "Never mind, you aren't hired". Still. It is not something I am proud of. I just want to say, I'm not asking advice over whether or not to do this, just HOW to handle it.

I'm drafting a letter of "resignation" (or rather, "renege-ation"). For the sake of getting the information to them as quickly as possible I probably will man up (woman-up?) and call them, as unpleasant as that may be. Ok, let's be realistic--I probably will send them an email? I will also send a formal letter (I think). I don't know how to handle this situation, because it is not the types of situations I usually get myself in.

Please offer any suggestions on how to handle this. Here is my first draft:
With great apologies and regret, it is necessary to inform you that I will not be starting employment with Company A this January 2008. I understand that backing out of my commitment is disrespectful to you, and I have wasted the time of you and your company. I am truly sorry for this and will not make this mistake again with any company.

I do not wish to start my career with Company A only to leave for something that is better fit after a short period of time, and waste more of your time invested in me as an employee. With this in mind that I have chosen a different path. My choice was not for monetary reasons, but simply I felt that the job was a better fit for me. Of course, I stopped applying for jobs at the time of my acceptance, however the process moved very slowly with the second company and I'm only now finalizing my decision. I understand that accepting an offer that I was not entirely confident in was a poor choice on my part. I should have, at the very least, requested more time to consider all my options, before making a commitment that I could not keep. Again, I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience I have caused for you.

Thank you for the time you have already spent on me as a candidate and for your gracious offer of employment. I can not apologize enough for backing out of my commitment.

Sincerely,
Me

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Although, it is your decision on what is best for your career. However, I will offer two recommendations 1) keep your resignation short 2) avoid the use of the word waste. You may be burning your bridges at Company A by indicating working for them is a waste of your time.

mcb said...

I wouldn't say that you won't make this mistake again with any other company. Frankly, they won't care whether you're doing this again or not. I would also not apologize quite so much as the purpose of the letter is not to make you feel better about the decision, but for you to back out of a job with professionalism.
Good luck.

Sasha said...

Thanks for feedback. The only "tip" I could find on the internet was give them a reason, apologize profusely, and don't do it again. The apologizing doesn't make me feel better--I know sorry is pretty meaningless to them. Perhaps I'll pare it down a little. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Please don't take this the wrong way - but I feel that this letter needs quite a bit of work. At this point, it just does not feel professional enough. Your writing needs to be more formal and concise. They don't care how bad you feel; they only care about why you can't take the job. Don't make any promises about the future either because 1) you don't know what's going to happen in the future, and 2) the company doesn't really care whether you do it again or not. Their time with you is lost. Your promise can do nothing for them.

Plus, I think you should write 2 letters - one to the HR, and one to the person who hired you from your department. The content would be pretty much the same.

Good luck!

Sasha said...

not offended at all! If I don't want opinions, I don't ask for them. I asked! I have never written a letter like this before and couldn't really find any good samples on the internet either. Thanks for your thoughts!

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Unethical

I accepted a job for January 2008 back in early September. This may come as a surprise to anyone who noted that I was in Los Angeles last weekend interviewing for a (different) job.

To my credit, I did stop applying for jobs when I accepted my first offer. Company A just moved very quickly, while Company B moved very slowly. I sought advice of those in industry (an experienced mentor) and others who love me (parents) and was told that I should go on the second interview, and really, do what was best for me. If nothing else, I could use the weekend to find an apartment.

I have not received the formal offer from Company B, but notification that HR is putting something together. I anticipate it will be similar to the other offer--at least as good, maybe slightly better.

Here is the thing: I want to work for Company B significantly more. I met a lot of great people and liked the atmosphere a lot more. However, I have committed to Company A with a start date of late January.

I do know it is unethical to back out of my first offer, but I think I will do it anyway. I will allow myself this mistake in my career, and will never do anything like this again. I will keep myself out of this position. It is a bad place to be in. At the same time, I have to do what is truly best for me. If the company lost a contract tomorrow, they wouldn't feel bad about calling me up and saying "Never mind, you aren't hired". Still. It is not something I am proud of. I just want to say, I'm not asking advice over whether or not to do this, just HOW to handle it.

I'm drafting a letter of "resignation" (or rather, "renege-ation"). For the sake of getting the information to them as quickly as possible I probably will man up (woman-up?) and call them, as unpleasant as that may be. Ok, let's be realistic--I probably will send them an email? I will also send a formal letter (I think). I don't know how to handle this situation, because it is not the types of situations I usually get myself in.

Please offer any suggestions on how to handle this. Here is my first draft:
With great apologies and regret, it is necessary to inform you that I will not be starting employment with Company A this January 2008. I understand that backing out of my commitment is disrespectful to you, and I have wasted the time of you and your company. I am truly sorry for this and will not make this mistake again with any company.

I do not wish to start my career with Company A only to leave for something that is better fit after a short period of time, and waste more of your time invested in me as an employee. With this in mind that I have chosen a different path. My choice was not for monetary reasons, but simply I felt that the job was a better fit for me. Of course, I stopped applying for jobs at the time of my acceptance, however the process moved very slowly with the second company and I'm only now finalizing my decision. I understand that accepting an offer that I was not entirely confident in was a poor choice on my part. I should have, at the very least, requested more time to consider all my options, before making a commitment that I could not keep. Again, I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience I have caused for you.

Thank you for the time you have already spent on me as a candidate and for your gracious offer of employment. I can not apologize enough for backing out of my commitment.

Sincerely,
Me

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Although, it is your decision on what is best for your career. However, I will offer two recommendations 1) keep your resignation short 2) avoid the use of the word waste. You may be burning your bridges at Company A by indicating working for them is a waste of your time.

mcb said...

I wouldn't say that you won't make this mistake again with any other company. Frankly, they won't care whether you're doing this again or not. I would also not apologize quite so much as the purpose of the letter is not to make you feel better about the decision, but for you to back out of a job with professionalism.
Good luck.

Sasha said...

Thanks for feedback. The only "tip" I could find on the internet was give them a reason, apologize profusely, and don't do it again. The apologizing doesn't make me feel better--I know sorry is pretty meaningless to them. Perhaps I'll pare it down a little. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Please don't take this the wrong way - but I feel that this letter needs quite a bit of work. At this point, it just does not feel professional enough. Your writing needs to be more formal and concise. They don't care how bad you feel; they only care about why you can't take the job. Don't make any promises about the future either because 1) you don't know what's going to happen in the future, and 2) the company doesn't really care whether you do it again or not. Their time with you is lost. Your promise can do nothing for them.

Plus, I think you should write 2 letters - one to the HR, and one to the person who hired you from your department. The content would be pretty much the same.

Good luck!

Sasha said...

not offended at all! If I don't want opinions, I don't ask for them. I asked! I have never written a letter like this before and couldn't really find any good samples on the internet either. Thanks for your thoughts!

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Unethical

I accepted a job for January 2008 back in early September. This may come as a surprise to anyone who noted that I was in Los Angeles last weekend interviewing for a (different) job.

To my credit, I did stop applying for jobs when I accepted my first offer. Company A just moved very quickly, while Company B moved very slowly. I sought advice of those in industry (an experienced mentor) and others who love me (parents) and was told that I should go on the second interview, and really, do what was best for me. If nothing else, I could use the weekend to find an apartment.

I have not received the formal offer from Company B, but notification that HR is putting something together. I anticipate it will be similar to the other offer--at least as good, maybe slightly better.

Here is the thing: I want to work for Company B significantly more. I met a lot of great people and liked the atmosphere a lot more. However, I have committed to Company A with a start date of late January.

I do know it is unethical to back out of my first offer, but I think I will do it anyway. I will allow myself this mistake in my career, and will never do anything like this again. I will keep myself out of this position. It is a bad place to be in. At the same time, I have to do what is truly best for me. If the company lost a contract tomorrow, they wouldn't feel bad about calling me up and saying "Never mind, you aren't hired". Still. It is not something I am proud of. I just want to say, I'm not asking advice over whether or not to do this, just HOW to handle it.

I'm drafting a letter of "resignation" (or rather, "renege-ation"). For the sake of getting the information to them as quickly as possible I probably will man up (woman-up?) and call them, as unpleasant as that may be. Ok, let's be realistic--I probably will send them an email? I will also send a formal letter (I think). I don't know how to handle this situation, because it is not the types of situations I usually get myself in.

Please offer any suggestions on how to handle this. Here is my first draft:
With great apologies and regret, it is necessary to inform you that I will not be starting employment with Company A this January 2008. I understand that backing out of my commitment is disrespectful to you, and I have wasted the time of you and your company. I am truly sorry for this and will not make this mistake again with any company.

I do not wish to start my career with Company A only to leave for something that is better fit after a short period of time, and waste more of your time invested in me as an employee. With this in mind that I have chosen a different path. My choice was not for monetary reasons, but simply I felt that the job was a better fit for me. Of course, I stopped applying for jobs at the time of my acceptance, however the process moved very slowly with the second company and I'm only now finalizing my decision. I understand that accepting an offer that I was not entirely confident in was a poor choice on my part. I should have, at the very least, requested more time to consider all my options, before making a commitment that I could not keep. Again, I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience I have caused for you.

Thank you for the time you have already spent on me as a candidate and for your gracious offer of employment. I can not apologize enough for backing out of my commitment.

Sincerely,
Me

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Although, it is your decision on what is best for your career. However, I will offer two recommendations 1) keep your resignation short 2) avoid the use of the word waste. You may be burning your bridges at Company A by indicating working for them is a waste of your time.

mcb said...

I wouldn't say that you won't make this mistake again with any other company. Frankly, they won't care whether you're doing this again or not. I would also not apologize quite so much as the purpose of the letter is not to make you feel better about the decision, but for you to back out of a job with professionalism.
Good luck.

Sasha said...

Thanks for feedback. The only "tip" I could find on the internet was give them a reason, apologize profusely, and don't do it again. The apologizing doesn't make me feel better--I know sorry is pretty meaningless to them. Perhaps I'll pare it down a little. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

Please don't take this the wrong way - but I feel that this letter needs quite a bit of work. At this point, it just does not feel professional enough. Your writing needs to be more formal and concise. They don't care how bad you feel; they only care about why you can't take the job. Don't make any promises about the future either because 1) you don't know what's going to happen in the future, and 2) the company doesn't really care whether you do it again or not. Their time with you is lost. Your promise can do nothing for them.

Plus, I think you should write 2 letters - one to the HR, and one to the person who hired you from your department. The content would be pretty much the same.

Good luck!

Sasha said...

not offended at all! If I don't want opinions, I don't ask for them. I asked! I have never written a letter like this before and couldn't really find any good samples on the internet either. Thanks for your thoughts!

Thursday, December 13, 2007

Unethical

I accepted a job for January 2008 back in early September. This may come as a surprise to anyone who noted that I was in Los Angeles last weekend interviewing for a (different) job.

To my credit, I did stop applying for jobs when I accepted my first offer. Company A just moved very quickly, while Company B moved very slowly. I sought advice of those in industry (an experienced mentor) and others who love me (parents) and was told that I should go on the second interview, and really, do what was best for me. If nothing else, I could use the weekend to find an apartment.

I have not received the formal offer from Company B, but notification that HR is putting something together. I anticipate it will be similar to the other offer--at least as good, maybe slightly better.

Here is the thing: I want to work for Company B significantly more. I met a lot of great people and liked the atmosphere a lot more. However, I have committed to Company A with a start date of late January.

I do know it is unethical to back out of my first offer, but I think I will do it anyway. I will allow myself this mistake in my career, and will never do anything like this again. I will keep myself out of this position. It is a bad place to be in. At the same time, I have to do what is truly best for me. If the company lost a contract tomorrow, they wouldn't feel bad about calling me up and saying "Never mind, you aren't hired". Still. It is not something I am proud of. I just want to say, I'm not asking advice over whether or not to do this, just HOW to handle it.

I'm drafting a letter of "resignation" (or rather, "renege-ation"). For the sake of getting the information to them as quickly as possible I probably will man up (woman-up?) and call them, as unpleasant as that may be. Ok, let's be realistic--I probably will send them an email? I will also send a formal letter (I think). I don't know how to handle this situation, because it is not the types of situations I usually get myself in.

Please offer any suggestions on how to handle this. Here is my first draft:

With great apologies and regret, it is necessary to inform you that I will not be starting employment with Company A this January 2008. I understand that backing out of my commitment is disrespectful to you, and I have wasted the time of you and your company. I am truly sorry for this and will not make this mistake again with any company.

I do not wish to start my career with Company A only to leave for something that is better fit after a short period of time, and waste more of your time invested in me as an employee. With this in mind that I have chosen a different path. My choice was not for monetary reasons, but simply I felt that the job was a better fit for me. Of course, I stopped applying for jobs at the time of my acceptance, however the process moved very slowly with the second company and I'm only now finalizing my decision. I understand that accepting an offer that I was not entirely confident in was a poor choice on my part. I should have, at the very least, requested more time to consider all my options, before making a commitment that I could not keep. Again, I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience I have caused for you.

Thank you for the time you have already spent on me as a candidate and for your gracious offer of employment. I can not apologize enough for backing out of my commitment.

Sincerely,
Me

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Although, it is your decision on what is best for your career. However, I will offer two recommendations 1) keep your resignation short 2) avoid the use of the word waste. You may be burning your bridges at Company A by indicating working for them is a waste of your time.


mcb said...

I wouldn't say that you won't make this mistake again with any other company. Frankly, they won't care whether you're doing this again or not. I would also not apologize quite so much as the purpose of the letter is not to make you feel better about the decision, but for you to back out of a job with professionalism.
Good luck.


Sasha said...

Thanks for feedback. The only "tip" I could find on the internet was give them a reason, apologize profusely, and don't do it again. The apologizing doesn't make me feel better--I know sorry is pretty meaningless to them. Perhaps I'll pare it down a little. Thanks.


Anonymous said...

Please don't take this the wrong way - but I feel that this letter needs quite a bit of work. At this point, it just does not feel professional enough. Your writing needs to be more formal and concise. They don't care how bad you feel; they only care about why you can't take the job. Don't make any promises about the future either because 1) you don't know what's going to happen in the future, and 2) the company doesn't really care whether you do it again or not. Their time with you is lost. Your promise can do nothing for them.

Plus, I think you should write 2 letters - one to the HR, and one to the person who hired you from your department. The content would be pretty much the same.

Good luck!


Sasha said...

not offended at all! If I don't want opinions, I don't ask for them. I asked! I have never written a letter like this before and couldn't really find any good samples on the internet either. Thanks for your thoughts!