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Why are you looking for a new job? Interview Question Answered · Enhance.training

• 0:03
  SPEAKER_00: Why are you looking for a new job is asked during every interview process, and it may even be asked in each interview you attend.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: Say the wrong thing, and you can quickly be out of the running for the job, so it is important to plan your answer to this question.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: In this podcast, we're going to take you through what the interviewer is looking for and how to structure your answer.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: And we have lots of tips and examples throughout the podcast.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_00: So welcome to this Enhanced Dot Training Podcast.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: My name is Jess Coles and I have had the pleasure of sitting in over a thousand interviews as a hiring manager in my 25 years of managing and leading teams.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: I've heard a lot of good and bad answers to why are you looking for a new job?
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_00: over the years.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: So please use this podcast to make sure your answer is a good one.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: So, firstly, this is definitely a question you want to answer confidently and clearly so the interviewer knows and believes your reasons for looking for a new job.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_00: Another very similar question often asked is why are you leaving your current job?
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_00: You can answer both questions in a very similar way.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: And by the way, don't expect to be only asked about your current job.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_00: I've had interviewers ask me about all my roles before, going back well over ten years when I've sat in interviews.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: Make sure you have a sensible answer for each job move that you've had and do keep your answer fairly brief.
• 1:28
  SPEAKER_00: A few sentences are usually fine.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_00: So why is this question asked?
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: When I started interviewing candidates quite a few years back now, I remember the first thing my boss told me at the time was to make sure I found out why they're wanting to leave and why they're looking for a new job.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: It was literally the first piece of advice that I was given as a new manager hiring for the first time.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: So why is it asked at least once to every candidate in a company interview?
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: Simply, the interviewer is checking that you are not a problem employee.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: It's a big deal, nobody wants to work with a difficult person.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: Moving job takes effort.
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_00: It is extra work on top of a busy day job and it's an ordeal, so there has to be strong reasons why a person looks for a new job.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: In a 2018 study of 25,000 job believers, the top reasons for leaving were 1.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: a lack of career development in the current role, 2 poor relationships with their manager or poor management performance, 3 not receiving enough recognition for their work, 4 being overworked, and 5 having to work in a poor company culture.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_00: None of these reasons is a surprise to any of us that have been in work for a couple of years.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: Unfortunately, if you make negative statements about the current or previous manager or the companies that you've worked at, you could easily be viewed by the interviewer as a problem employee or potential problem employee.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: You absolutely don't want to give the interviewer any reason to think that you might be a problem employee.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: If you do, then your application is unlikely to go further.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: So let's go through reasons that are acceptable for leaving a job or looking for a new job.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: Use one of these five acceptable reasons for why you're moving jobs, and all of these reasons avoid making negative statements about your manager or the company, yet provide compelling reasons why you're looking for a new job.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: So let's go through them.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: The first one is that you're looking for a new challenge.
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_00: Most of us expect to progress our careers and undertake new challenges.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_00: So explain that you've been in your current role for X number of years and you're doing all aspects of the role well and provide examples as needed.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: And you're now looking for new challenges, and this is a great reason to give.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: Everybody understands this reason and generally accepts it.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: You might also say that you've been asking for more challenges, but these have not been forthcoming in your current role, which is why you are looking for a new job.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: This preempts the follow-up question, what have you done to get more challenges in your current role?
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: Another possible follow-up question from the interviewer is what challenges are you looking for in your new role?
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: If asked this question, play back the key requirements of the role to the interviewer, highlighting the progression in the challenge.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_00: The second acceptable reason is that you're looking to advance your career.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: Again, looking for career advancement is a universally accepted reason for looking for a new role.
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_00: You might explain that you are doing a great job as demonstrated by and provide a list of examples, and then go on to say, I'm ready for the next move or promotion, but there is no opportunity within the current company, so that is why I'm here applying for this role.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_00: The third acceptable reason is about location.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: Using location as a reason that you are looking for a new job is great, particularly if you currently have a long commute and you want to shorten it.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_00: Or two, the company has changed location of their office, making it much harder for you to get to work.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: Or three, you might have had a change in your family circumstances like the arrival of the first child, and therefore your time travelling is much more important.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: All of these are very acceptable answers, providing the company you're applying to has a better location relative to where you live than your previous or the current job.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: The fourth acceptable reason is job security.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_00: Using the reason of job security is another very acceptable answer.
• 5:38
  SPEAKER_00: This is a good reason to use if your current company is struggling with trading or struggling financially.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: If you are in a junior position, this reason is absolutely fine to use.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_00: If you're in a more senior position though, be careful using this reason unless the whole sector is suffering.
• 5:54
  SPEAKER_00: As a senior member of the team, you have a much greater influence on the performance of the business.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_00: The fifth acceptable reason is moving because of pay.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_00: Pay can be used as a reason to look for new jobs, particularly if you're currently underpaid versus the market rate.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_00: I would recommend being cautious when using pay as a reason, as you don't want to give the impression that you're only motivated by money.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: And be ready for the follow-up question of why is your company not willing to give you a pay rise?
• 6:24
  SPEAKER_00: Your answer would need to be delivered confidently and convincingly.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_00: Stick to the five reasons we have outlined and you will be on safe ground.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_00: If you use other reasons, there is a good chance it will reflect negatively on your job application, so stick to these reasons.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_00: And we're often asked how long should I take to answer this question?
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_00: Well your answer to this question should be short and sweet.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_00: As you will see from the following examples, keep your answer to a few sentences and definitely don't waffle.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: Allow yourself a maximum of say 30 seconds or so to answer this question, and be ready to answer any follow-up questions based on your initial answer to this question.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_00: As long as you deliver your answer confidently, your answer makes sense and it doesn't raise any red flags, you are unlikely to get many or any follow-up questions.
• 7:19
  SPEAKER_00: Make sure your body language is relaxed and confident when answering this question.
• 7:23
  SPEAKER_00: This is really important.
• 7:25
  SPEAKER_00: Keep practicing your answer until you sound and look confident giving it.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_00: So let's go through a couple of example answers.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_00: The first one would be great for a junior manager role.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: And the example could be, I've been doing my current role for two years and I've learnt a lot within that time.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: I've got to the point where I really need a fresh challenge to keep my career moving forward.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: I've been in discussions with my line manager for a while, but a suitable opportunity has not yet come up.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_00: So that's why I'm here.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_00: And for a senior level role, an example answer could be I was bought into my current role to turn around the marketing department and get the revenue growing above 10% per annum.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_00: I love a challenge and I'm very good at fixing problems.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_00: It took me my first year to get the business revenue from a decline of 5% to a growth of 12%.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_00: In the three years since, we have been consistently above 10% growth, and this last year we have got the growth of the business revenue to 21%.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: I've fixed all the key areas in the department.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_00: We have a clear marketing strategy and it's producing great results, and I have my successor in place.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_00: I now feel that I need a new challenge, which is why I'm here applying for this role.
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for listening to this Enhanced.training podcast.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: Finally, we have answers to over a hundred tough interview questions on our website at enhanced.training, so do go to resources and take a look.
• 8:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I really look forward to speaking to you soon.