Job Hopping

Fifty year old with a steady employment history is easier to place than a thirty year old job hopper. A large number of recruiters believe that the single biggest barrier for an unemployed candidate in regaining employment is to have a history of job. These days, young generation is as unsteady as today's Facebook relationship status. A fresh graduate quits a job without even the slightest hesitation, thinking that jobs are easy to find. This very idea, the sense of over-confidence sometimes ruins their career .How long does a typical employee stay at a job? I believe there isn't any specific study on it. In my experience, I've seen many fresh graduates leave a job only because they didn't like working for that particular company very much. Perhaps, a justified reason. However, there isn't any real intensity in their decision, well at least in most cases. There are some issue one should consider before quitting and applying for a new job.

Perfect match
As unfortunate as it is, fresh graduates do not spend enough time analyzing published advertisement keenly and they fail to spot some significant tips. First question you should ask yourself is, does it match with your qualification & experience? Applicants are very much impatient these days and they don't like to give enough thought to their choices. With the opportunity of applying online, they keep brush-firing their CV for every job on sight. Because it's just click away, they keep posting their CV, even when the requirements don't meet with the company. It's certainly not wise. On top of that, it creates unwillingness within the HR and they become reluctant with checking CV's later. In the process, they unknowingly overlook a perfect match. The mindless applying is to blame rather than the HR here.
Is it you?
We all need a good deal of honest-talk with ourselves to be able to take any sort of decision. It's easy to lie to the world, but easier to lie to ourselves. Sadly, the valuable art of shading reality won't help us make a decision. Consider this a test. Look at the job criteria closely and ask yourself if you are the person they are looking for. Take a while to decide instead of treating it like a rapid-fire round. Is the job really for you? If you receive positive feedback from yourself, then go for the next one.

Look for advice and analyze
This is the third phase of the process. By this time, job criteria already matched with your education & experience and you got green signal from yourself. What's next? At this stage, you should consult with your friends, family, or mentor. If possible, also with those who have more knowledge about the field you are looking forward to work in. At the same time, go through website of the organization for detailed understanding. Big question is, whether new company is capable of holding you for at least next five years, will the career growth be smooth. Work environment is more important than you might think it is. While everyone is chasing the dream job, they forget to take into consideration the organizational culture of that particular company which they may or may not fit into. It doesn't matter even if you take a pass on a “great” job and settle for something that you are more comfortable with. People will remember you for what you do, not what you didn't do before.

Calculate Salary based on hours
This is probably that never crosses our minds. Most companies want to negotiate salary with their applicants nowadays. It can get real tough to get information about the company's policies and their payment structure. Unless you are Sherlock Holmes, you need to calculate in detail first instead of waiting till last moment for your intuition. Let's consider a hypothetical situation here. Suppose, you are enjoying monthly salary of 20k and enjoying two holidays in a week. That means you have to work at least 176 hours in a month. (that means 114 tk/hr). You, without even considering the calculation, applied for a job that offered 30k (Which is 50% more than your present salary). You fail to evaluate the catch and start jumping around thinking of the raise. You know what you missed? They have only one holiday and due to distance you need to start one hour early every day. You'll be working 58 hours more, so your applied salary per hour comes into 128 tk .Would you like to shift only for 14tk/hr? Is it sensible to leave for this little enhancement? Probably not! Do your math before you decide to fight the battle.

Don't Apply Frequently
Because job applications are just one click away, you keep posting your CV. But is it wise to apply very frequently? Sometimes companies mention that those who applied earlier need not to apply. If you didn't get a call the first time, you probably will. Wait for them to respond. Don't underestimate any organization's capacity to detect you.
Sometimes you have no other option but to keep applying as you need the job desperately. It becomes a number game eventually. Some applicants, without even looking at the criteria, apply for all the positions- from managers to junior officers. It only reflects applicant's lack of confidence. Are you in the same boat? Then don't apply more than twice in a month & prepare yourself for the next. If you are applying “just for fun”, “to see what happens”, “or to feel good about yourself”; do yourself, the company and other applicant's a favor- Stop. It's not a healthy practice and you are only wasting valuable time.

The writer is the Head of HR & Admin at Grameen Telecom Trust.
Words: Manjur Ahmed
Image: Ehsanur Raza Ronny