Multiple Job Offers - What to do?

LegacyUser

I am looking for some advice. I've just been made an offer by a company with a decent salary. The problem is that I have progressed to a second round of interviews with a couple of jobs closer to home and I would be much more interested in one of them if they were offered to me. I wouldn't want to start one job only to leave it after a week or two but I can't really see any other way around it. I certainly don't want to say no thanks to any job offer that comes my way!

Has anyone been in this situation before and if so how did you handle it? Is there a potential legal issue if you start a job only to leave it within a few weeks or is there a default probation period or something?

Eoin

You've probably made your mind one way or the other at this stage, but just in case:

Probation can legally last up to a year, apart from certain industries where it can be longer. It depends what's in the contract. A lot of companies will specify 1/2 weeks notice during the probationary period (often 6 months).

You would technically be breaching your contract if you left without serving your notice period, but the reality is that if you handed in your notice within the first few weeks, they'd probably look to cut their losses ASAP. I'd imagine that you and the company could both agree to waive the notice period, and that would be that.

ttm

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush and all that. So take the one that's on offer, if you get another within the week I doubt that you'll have even got around to signing a contract and if you get asked to then you can always say you want to take it home and read it before you sign then sit on it for a bit.

Kila

When exactly was the first offer made? And how far in the future are the second round interviews, roughly when will they reach offer stage? If the distance isn't too far apart then you may not be in as tough a situation as you think.

It's acceptable to hold off for a short while on accepting a job offer while you consider terms. I did the same thing myself when I changed job some months ago. I was in the lucky position of receiving 4 offers. When the first place offered, I thanked them for their offer, and then asked if I could have some time to think it over, which they said was fine. In the mean time, I was interviewing for other positions, and answered recruiters and interviewers honestly when they asked if I was interviewing elsewhere. I also told the recruiters that I had had an offer from one company, and that I was eager to respond to them asap.

That allowed me to interview for (and be offered) the other positions, and then to be able to get back in touch with all concerned as to which job I'd be taking.

LegacyUser

eoin wrote:

You would technically be breaching your contract if you left without serving your notice period, but the reality is that if you handed in your notice within the first few weeks, they'd probably look to cut their losses ASAP. I'd imagine that you and the company could both agree to waive the notice period, and that would be that.

From reading my contract the notice period appears to be one week which I would try to give to minimize the disruption to the employer.

ttm wrote:

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush and all that. So take the one that's on offer, if you get another within the week I doubt that you'll have even got around to signing a contract and if you get asked to then you can always say you want to take it home and read it before you sign then sit on it for a bit.

I thought about doing that but the company wouldn't actually let me start without having the contract signed first. Your absolutely right about taking the job that is on offer. For anyone else reading this, I would say that it's a bad idea to reject an offer on the assumption that another offer will come along. People will often promise one thing and do another. If the second offer never materialises then you, as the prospective employee, will lose out. Also, if you delay too much in accepting an offer companies will presumably just offer the job to the next person on the list thereby also leaving you high and dry!

Kila wrote:

When exactly was the first offer made? And how far in the future are the second round interviews, roughly when will they reach offer stage? If the distance isn't too far apart then you may not be in as tough a situation as you think.

The first offer has already been made and accepted by me. The second round interviews have been done, I am awaiting feedback on them.

Kila wrote:

It's acceptable to hold off for a short while on accepting a job offer while you consider terms. I did the same thing myself when I changed job some months ago. I was in the lucky position of receiving 4 offers. When the first place offered, I thanked them for their offer, and then asked if I could have some time to think it over, which they said was fine. In the mean time, I was interviewing for other positions, and answered recruiters and interviewers honestly when they asked if I was interviewing elsewhere. I also told the recruiters that I had had an offer from one company, and that I was eager to respond to them asap.

That allowed me to interview for (and be offered) the other positions, and then to be able to get back in touch with all concerned as to which job I'd be taking.

What's a "short while" though? I would imagine that anything over a week would be a bit much for the employer. Sure they understand that people will be interviewing elsewhere but they want the position filled and if a prospective employee messes them about, they'll just move to the next person on the list.

Kila

I would consider a short while to be a few days, not longer than a week. After that, you are into a tricky situation where you could be annoying an employer by not responding.

Are you in touch with a recruiter, or directly with the company(ies)? If it's a recruiter, you can tell them that you have another offer and they can try to carefully and discreetly push the company towards an answer. If you're in direct contact with the company that could be a bit trickier.