If you want to keep your job search confidential, you can Google “job search confidentiality,” and you will find some really good guidelines for things to do and not to do.
The list goes on and on.
- Who knows you are looking confidentially?
- Have you removed anything on your social media that might be a problem?
- Have you “gotten your act together” with your resume and LinkedIn profile without revealing that you were actually getting ready to find a new job?
But why is a breach of confidentiality so significant? It can really change the relationships between people and how they interact with each other. These stories come from my work helping people get new jobs over the past 22 years.
- When I was a recruiter at Robert Half, a Controller came to the office because he was looking for another job. Then surprise! He recognized a work colleague sitting in the lobby as he was getting ready to leave. Yikes! His job search was confidential, so that could be a big problem. He tried to be invisible by essentially hiding behind a pillar until he could figure out what to do. It was funny, but actually not funny.
- Two of my clients were both bus drivers in a local school district. They each wanted to apply for the same dispatcher job. I had to make sure that the second person did not realize that I already knew about the job because of the first person.
- One time I had five clients in an office at the same time when everyone was confidentially looking for a new job. It would have caused big problems if I had let any of the people know that I was actually working with four of their colleagues.
- Some parents pay for my services to help an adult child find a new job. Everything I do is confidential. I am clear that the person looking for a job is the client, not the person who pays my fees.
If you think some job search or interview coaching might be helpful, there is no charge for a consultation. Go here to schedule a call on our calends.
