Articles From the Team
When is a good time to change jobs?
As a specialist legal recruiter, this is a question that comes up pretty often when I speak to candidates. I suppose most people would expect me to say “right now” and “I actually have the perfect job for you!” Cringe cringe cringe!
At BCL Legal we pride ourselves on taking a more consultative approach. The answer to this question is therefore a bit more complex than this! Making the decision to switch jobs can be motivated by a whole variety of things:
• Moving location • Facing redundancy • Feeling frustrated by progression opportunities • Qualifying as a solicitor and no role on qualification • Lack of work/training/support • Pay rise • Disliking your team/boss/firm • Taking a step up
These are all pretty emotive and potential stressful things in themselves. Throw into the mix a busy day job, home life and general life admin and things can start to get a little overwhelming. This means that finding a new job can seem like a daunting task and why lots of lawyers end up staying longer in their current jobs then they otherwise would because they simply cannot face the prospect of looking for a new one. But is this really the answer? We are seeing more and more candidates doing this and then becoming so frustrated/ depressed/ stressed that they end up resigning and then become even more panicked because they have no job to go to – far from an ideal situation.
There are then the other candidates who are not actively looking but who are always keen to keep an eye on the market and hear about “good opportunities”. Again this is a very subjective thing. What a good opportunity looks like to one candidate could be completely different to another.
Whatever type of candidate you are, active or passive, we are here to help. By working with you and for you from the outset we talk through your situation in depth and ask some pretty personal questions! Not because we are really nosey people!! But because in order to provide you with the best service and advice, we need to know everything – warts and all – about your situation and why you are looking to move. Together we can then formulate a plan of action and decide whether it is indeed a good time to change jobs!
I met up with a candidate last week, who I placed into a new role last summer. At the time she was on interview she was six weeks away from getting married and extremely busy at work. On paper not the ideal time to move jobs. However this was her dream job – and ticked all the boxes that she wanted from a move. Yes there were times during the process when it might have felt like one thing too much for her. But we got through it together and she is now extremely happy. When we met up we were joking about her taking a call from the partner she now works for on the morning of her hen do (!) because it was the only time she could speak to them. Needless to say it was all worth it!
I specialise in placing candidates into the top firms in Birmingham so if you are considering a move and want a confidential, impartial and professional discussion then please call me on 0121 237 5611 or email me at chloejones@bcllegal.com.