• TS (unregistered)

    Yeah, I don't get it. If no-one ever disagrees with you at work, you have a brainless job and deserve to be replaced by a robot. If you can't handle disagreements professionally, or can't acknowledge your errors, you deserve to be sacked.

    But I don't get Subby either. There are plenty of reasons to change job that don't involve bad-mouthing your previous workplace (easier commute, avoid getting stale, ...).

  • Tim Ward (unregistered)

    The true answer to most "why did you leave that job" question is "because I got pissed off with management", and the interviewers know this. Nonetheless one still occasionally asks this question just to see if the interviewee has come up with any innovative lies in response that you haven't heard before.

  • (nodebb)

    I don't get Subby, either. I like to ask candidates what they didn't like about their previous positions. Firstly, it shows me if they are able to express constructive criticism without resorting to bad-mouthing. Secondly, it tells me what I can do to make the candidate happy in their new position (or give them a fair warning if I'm not going to). That said, I wouldn't push it if the candidate didn't answer.

  • (nodebb)

    Being able to spin bad situations into polite descriptions is one of the hallmarks of good communication and relationship-building, especially if you're in any position of leadership. Pretending nothing bad ever happened and/or refusing to even comment on reasons you left would both be yellow flags for me.

  • My name goes here (unregistered) in reply to dorner

    In one small dev shop where I was one of the only two developers I was let go because of some flimsy excuse that boiled down to "We're not earning enough to keep both of you, and he knows one technology you haven't yet worked with". Cut to a few days later when I pass to collect my paycheck and see the owner's son, whom I knew and was aware he barely knew half of what little I did know, sitting at my former desk. (Thankfully leaving that VB6 madhouse was a blessing in the end. Should have done it earlier myself, but I was lazy)

    Anyway, in the subsequent jobhunting I realized answering "why did you leave your previous job?" with "because nepotism" wouldn't be the smartest move, so I had to get creative with a small lie for a little while.

  • Richard Brantley (unregistered)

    The one time with having a confidentiality agreement with a former employee is actually useful. "I'm sorry, I'm not at liberty to discuss that."

  • (nodebb)

    My response would be "I worked for a contractor for five years on a .NET application, and when that was over, the only openings my boss had were all SharePoint, so I left. I told him when he first hired me that I would never work on SharePoint."

  • (author)

    My answer is always, "I'm just looking for a growth opportunity." Though sometimes I will be honest and say something like, "I'm skeptical about the future of the company."

  • Click (unregistered)

    I had to leave because the CEO found out I was sleeping with his wife...and the wife found out I was sleeping with the CEO.

  • (nodebb) in reply to Click

    Click wrote:

    I had to leave because the CEO found out I was sleeping with his wife...and the wife found out I was sleeping with the CEO.

    I hate it when that happens.

  • (nodebb) in reply to Click

    I think this qualifies as the infamous "too much information"...

  • (nodebb) in reply to d-coder

    ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

  • (nodebb)

    "They repainted the bathroom in an ugly shade of off-white, and I just couldn't stand it anymore. I liked the previous shade of off-white."

  • Daniel (unregistered)

    finished all the work.

  • fintech guy (unregistered)

    At the last job I left they had exit interviews. The lady from P&O told me I could "say whatever you want, don't be afraid of yor manager. Our conversation is confidential". So I replied "Thank you, but in this case my problem is the P&O department, is this still a confidential talk?". Obviously I didn't care since my department all hated P&O :)

  • Subby (unregistered)

    Subby here. They did initially phrase the question as “Why did you leave (1st company)?” I told them the story of how I came across the opportunity at company #2, what was appealing about it, and why I ultimately decided to make the leap to company #2. They were not satisfied and kept pressing me to say some negatives about company #1. Not even asking about a time when I had to handle a conflict, just “What were the negatives of (company #1)?”

    And yes, it was very much a techbro startup. I later came across a Reddit post from someone who interviewed there after I did, and it sounded even more toxic than I thought. One guy who worked there replied trying to defend the place with a smug techbro attitude. I not only dodged a bullet, I dodged an entire armory.

    Thankfully I’m at a much better company now.

  • Dan'l Boone (unregistered) in reply to dorner

    "My boss was stupid, shortsighted, lazy, and a habitual liar" --> "My boss excelled at emotional processing, was goal-focussed, had mastered the low-energy lifestyle, and religiously conserved factual statements."

    I can spout that shit, but not in real-time, and not while keeping a straight face.

    I guess those shortcomings of mine make me useless and unfit to be hired in many companies.

  • Fizzlecist (unregistered) in reply to Click

    You didn't happen to be the CEO did you?

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