We all know that resumes only get 9.893 seconds of our time before we decide to keep them and move on. After we have verified basic qualifications, made sure they graduated and don’t list their mom as a reference, we spend seconds 7.231 – 8.002 looking at dates of employment. Why? Well, first of all…to make sure this person isn’t too old, silly. Pfft. But, really to see if this person is what we would call a “Job Hopper.” You know…the guy that spends a short period of time at multiple jobs. Clearly there is a story around why this person moves, but if they look too hoppy, we don’t want to waste our time when we have so many other candidates applying. Wait…we do have so many other candidates applying, right?
When you are interviewing candidates, are you considering them for this project right now? Or, are you thinking longer term? This project will end, what comes next for Bobbi-Sue? If you’re like us, you probably interview for the latter. We look for people that will be here for the long haul. Not forever, of course. But we’re certainly thinking years. Five? Ten? Hey, why not until retirement?
With this in mind, the sight of a resume that bounces all over the place instinctively causes me to cringe and consider moving on. I’m sure I am not the only recruiter out there who has said/thought, “This person has had too many jobs. I’m moving on.”
But, is this really fair? Is it even realistic?
One of the reasons Microsoft thinks long term when we hire is because we’re huge. A person can change, not only jobs, but careers multiple times before they leave the company. It’s, in my opinion, a huge benefit of working here. When you accomplish your goals in one area, you simply move on to the next while keeping your swanky window office.
But, that doesn’t work in most companies. Most companies are much smaller and have a bigger challenge creating unique opportunities for employees to grow. So…is it really that bad if someone leaves to seek growth?
So, I am seeking out opinions. How much job hopping is too much? How much time in one job is too little? 5 jobs in 10 years sounds like a lot. But, 2 years in one roll is nothing to laugh at. If a person only works 9 months before leaving for their current job, are they chasing better opportunities? Or showing that they can’t live up to their commitments. What if they had been in their previous role for 5 years? Does that impact the view?
Of course, with everything, there are stories around a person’s decisions about when to leave one job for another. Clearly, we should be concerned about 6 months here and 6 months there. 2 years here, 2 years there? That could simply be the sweet spot. Imagine spending 2 years working on one project. You see it through to launch, marvel at its success and then you wonder, “What’s next?” What if the Next can’t be met at the same company? Does that person move on or work with their boss to create new opportunities?
Nah…never mind. I think they just quit because they were going to get fired.
I’m glad you decided to write about this, Jason. Job hopping is a common problem and I recently covered it on my blog (http://bit.ly/KVfFuk). Too often, people blame bad companies or brutal bosses for their job hopping tendencies, but in reality, I think they jump ship when the tough gets going. There is something to be said about working through a difficult job situation and figuring out how to make the best out of a not so great environment. I think the amount of jobs and time spent in those roles dictates if a person is a job hopper…it also depends on their age and how many different careers they’ve had.
People don’t leave jobs, they leave managers. That is a very, very true saying, and while companies are able to do background and reference checks on prospect employees, can employees do the same checks on employers? How many employers would allow a candidate to take a walk around the office and talk to people at random to ask them about the conditions of the office and the management style of the senior team? How many employees would actually answer such questions in an honest way?
I’m a recruiter and I never ever look at job history because i like to give the candidate the benefit of the doubt. If he/she meet all the technical, educational and other requirements for the job, i’ll call them in and ask them to explain why they had a number of jobs in a short period of time. Its very rare to find someone who meets all the requirements so to miss out on such a candidate would be a loss to the company, not the candidate.
One more point to keep in mind: some recruiters, especially those working in agencies, are looking to ‘complete the sale’: deliver a candidate that is acceptable to the client and forget about them in the future. This actually creates a difference in expectations that plays a very, very integral role in why people leave jobs within a year: it takes that much time to be part of the company, the team and the ‘bigger picture’, and if that picture is different from what the candidate was expecting, why should he/she remain in the job? especially if they are qualified and capable of moving on to something that suits them more?
I had an incident where a consultant was pushing VERY hard for me to accept a role; i asked 3 questions: how many would report to me, what kind of budget would i be responsible for, and what kind growth can i expect. The consultant was stumped, took a week to get back to me, and then said “why dont you just ask those questions in your 3rd and final interview?”. Imagine if i did not ask these questions, and imagine if i accepted that job only to find out on my first day that nothing was as promised; would i be expected to remain? should I be expected to stay on the job? My answer: heck no.
I don’t think you can have a black and white answer.
I try to give the benefit of the doubt on job hoppers or gaps. If you’ve been able to do and accomplish things in between hops and can articulate a good story on why you’re making moves then I’m cool with it.
My concern is about how long it takes in many places to really ramp up and make a contribution. Think about sales folks in IT, for example. The ramp is usually pretty darn long. You don’t do much in many places that first year. And if you repeat that with a few hops, I see red flags that say you’ve haven’t accomplished as much as I’d like.
Considering the state of the economy, it’s perhaps a little unfair to hold job history against someone. Sure, there are people who constantly quit jobs…but on the other hand, there are plenty of people who simply had the misfortune to work for companies that made bad financial decisions. In the past year alone, I’ve worked for three different companies…but one of those companies canceled some projects and laid off the project workers due to budgetary issues, and another was a startup which failed within a matter of months.
My longest time ever spent at any one position is one year, which probably gets my resume fed right into the shredder at many companies, but the reality is that I would much prefer to have a long-term position. I’m sick of settling into a new job only to have my position and my project eliminated three months later. In the recession, though, that’s easier said than done.
I tell my managers that you shouldn’t expect more than 2-3 years from an employee in the role we are hiring for. Ideally they will develop or move into another role within our organization, but if that’s not a possibility, then don’t be surprised if they leave.
Why? Because most people want to develop, learn new things, and change.
So if I see someone with that kind of track record – where they have changed jobs every 2-3 years, I look at whether there is progression or relevance to their moves. This isn’t a job hopper to me. Someone who does the exact same job at five different places or jumped from one industry to another all over the place, trying this that and the other thing – that’s a job hopper and someone I’m more concerned about.
I’m a recruiter and have learned not to read into “job hopping” when all I have is just a resume. The points made by Max about job insecurity and Julie about career progression are two good reasons why. Writing resumes is a learned skill (and everyone giving advice about it will tell you something different), so you won’t always know the real story until you hear it from the applicant.
The automatically negative connotation of changing jobs died along with the expectation of lifetime employment. Employers don’t hesitate to get rid of employees they don’t need or can’t afford, so employees are becoming less inclined to stick around when they stop learning or are in bad work environments.
Typically, I give job seekers the benefit of the doubt, that I could be okay if I saw one 9 month stint on a their resume, especially if the job prior to following that stint was more substantial. I think we all get a freebie so to speak; that one job that wasn’t a good fit, but the next one was or hopefully will be. If I see a resume full of less-than-a-year assignments, or 3 2-year jobs in a row, then I become a little more concerned about that individual’s staying power.
As with all cases, though, if I see someone who has a great deal of experience, I’m willing to at least talk to them to determine the reasons for the short-term positions. Maybe it truly was a small, flat organization and the opportunity for growth just wasn’t there. We all have had to work at jobs that weren’t the best fit for us and had to move on. So, no, I don’t rule someone out just for this.
I don’t know … I’m obviously not a recruiter or even in HR … but I can tell you my perspective from the other side of the desk:
I have been in my job 2 years and will likely be here for many more. I love it and can’t imagine a day without it. But I have a lot of talented, capable friends who are job hopping for various reasons:
— No visible opportunities to move up
— Ridiculous work environment (actually ridiculous, not normal ridiculous)
— Job description and interview process were not accurate (either ignorantly or deceptively so)
— Bad managers
— Incapable coworkers or hostile work environment
— Bad managers
— Bad managers
— Bad managers
Anyway, you get my point.
These are people who WANT to settle down. They want to find a job they’re happy in, but they just hate their jobs 6 months in. And @Tom (above), you might say you just need to work through a tough situation, but I don’t know if I (or the rest of Gen Y, for that matter) are with you on that one point. We spend more time at work than with our families. And if you recognize a fundamental crack in the foundation of the way the company runs, the managers lead or the capacity and weight at which individuals are allowed, recognized and encouraged to contribute, why not try to find somewhere you’re excited about?
If everything else on a candidate’s resume looks great — and the only thing is that they worst case: had some commitment problems, best case: are really looking to contribute in a serious way to a company they can call “home,” I don’t see any reason to knock ‘em off the list for that.
I think that it can be a diffcult one to assess. From personal experience I know that sometimes people may not have found the right company that suited them and once they do so, they may stay for the long term and be star performers.
On the other hand, they may hae been moved on or jumped ship easily when the goign got tough. Personally I will try to figure ot the persons motivations, what they are really intersted in and sometime use plain old gut instinct!