Accepting a Job Offer

Before accepting a job offer you need to work through an evaluation process. This protects you from making the wrong career choice. Take these steps to
make the right decision when you have been offered the position.
Use the job offer acceptance letter to formally and professionally confirm your acceptance of the offer.
First thing is to ask for the job offer in writing. It is always advisable to convert a verbal job offer into a formal written job offer.
Ask for the decision date
After you have requested a written job offer, ask the company for thedecision date when they need your final answer.
Most employers are prepared to give you time to consider the employment offer - they also don't want you to make the wrong job choice! About 3 to 4
days is generally considered an acceptable amount of time.
If the employer asks why you require this time you can explain that you want be sure that you are making the best possible decision for both yourself
and the company.

You can follow this up with a polite written acknowledgment of the job offer. Go to this excellent job offer advice to find a sample letter of
acknowledgment of a job offer. An email is also acceptable.
Evaluate the job offer
Evaluate the offer and judge whether this is the right job for you before sending a letter accepting the job. Use the sample job offer acceptance letter to
accept the job in the right way.
There are many things to consider when deciding on accepting a job offer. Start with a basic list of your requirements. These are the absolute minimum
you can accept - your own "bottom line".
Basic requirements
Compensation - work out the minimum level of income you need to meet your financial obligations. This bottom line is the lowest compensation
amount you can accept. Use the salary requirements calculator to help you with this.
Benefits - what are the essential benefits your require? For example is health insurance a necessity and do your dependents need coverage?
Working Conditions- what hours are you able to work? Are you able to travel to where the employer is located?
If the offer meets this "bottom line" you can move to the next step of the job offer acceptance process.
Compensation - now look at factors such as the increase amount over your last salary, bonus, profit sharing, stock options, overtime pay, salary
review policy.
Health insurance - you have determined that it meets your minimum benefit requirements. Take it further to include the type of health/dental
insurance, your financial contribution and the benefits you get.
Vacation time - how many days vacation are given, what is the policy in terms of use of these vacation days? Can you convert un-used days into
cash? What rules cover when you can take your vacation? Look at personal days and sick days.
Maternity and family leave - what is the company policy regarding these benefits?
Retirement - what sort of retirement plan does the company have? What is the contribution structure and what are the conditions attached to
receiving benefits?


Hours of work - do you want a 9-5 job? What about overtime, meeting deadlines etc? Will you have to work weekends? Is there any provision for
flextime? Is there travel involved and how will this be reimbursed?
Job description - no matter how good the package is you will become frustrated if you dislike the day-to-day work. Consider exactly what the job
involves, what your responsibilities will be and what the expectations of you are. Will the job utilize your skills and knowledge, is the job sufficiently
challenging? What do you like about the job, what do you dislike? Is this the sort of job you set out to get when you first began your job search?
Career development - what professional development opportunities does the job offer? Is there provision for training, tuition reimbursement? What
is the frequency of performance reviews, promotional opportunities? Will this job take you down the road to your career goals?
Management - are you going to be able to work under this person? Can you relate to the manager?
The workplace - Before accepting a job offer consider the workplace. Will you be happy in such an environment? Ask yourself if it is too noisy, do
you have a satisfactory work or office space, is it friendly, too formal or too informal etc? Are your co-workers people you will be happy working with?
The company - you need to feel comfortable about working at the company before accepting a job offer from them. What are the company values?
Are they compatible with your values and beliefs? Do you respect the type of work the company does?
Job security - this is something that should be considered before accepting a job offer - you need to know that the position is a long-term one. Look
at the number of years the company has been in business. Look at its profitability, is it growing, what is happening with its competitors?
Check news articles for company updates. Get a list of online resources to find out more about the company. Consider the job itself- is it a new position?
How successful is the department?
Do you have all the information you need to evaluate the job offer? Before accepting a job offer be prepared to ask all the questions that are necessary
for you to make an informed decision. Call Human Resources to get information that you may be missing or the interviewer themselves.
Going through standard employment contracts and agreements will give you good insight into the sort of criteria you should use to evaluate your offer
before accepting a job offer. An excellent range of free employment contracts can be found at www.free-legal-document.com. You can also use these to
evaluate the employment contract your new employer provides.
The Job Offer
Acknowledge the Job Offer Letter
Location
- this is an important factor to consider
when deciding on accepting a job offer.
How long is the commute? What are the
public transportation options between
your home and the company? Look at
costs of transport - both your own gas
expenses or pubic transport expenses.
Look at time spent doing the commute.
Accepting a Job Offer Letter
Decline Job Offer Letter
The Employment Offer Letter



Negotiating the job offer
Research on negotiating job offers shows that as many as four out of five companies are prepared to negotiate compensation. Find out how to
successfully negotiate your job offer with these resources:
Job Offer Negotiation Letter
Guide to Negotiating Salary
Know your Market Value
Job Offer Negotiations
Salary Negotiation Tips
Once you have made your final decision let the employer know as soon as possible.


by JRGEN SUNDBERGunder CAREER MANAGEMENT
7 THINGS TO CONSIDER BEFORE
ACCEPTING A JOB OFFER



inShare294

By: Idaliz Escalante
You will have done really well to have received a job offerin this day and age, pat yourself on the back and enjoy the fact that the
ball is now in your court. As great as you feel right now, dont rush in to any emotional decision. My advice is to stay level headed
and allow for careful deliberation, especially if youre sitting pretty at the moment. Give yourself a few nights of good sleep for the old
noodle to mull over the pros and cons:
1) Does the offer add up?
Ensure everything in the documents adds up to what you were offered verbally already. Details to look out for are title, department,
location, reporting line, work hours, vacation entitlement, salary, benefits, start date and more. Clarify any discrepancies with the HR
representative sooner rather than later. I have seen candidates rejecting job offers solely due to the written offer containing wrong
information; this is obviously not a great first impression for any candidate.
2) Is the remuneration fair?
How does it benchmark against your peers and your industry? Make sure you are happy with the pay now and find out when the
next pay review will be for you, and how realistic it will be to get an increase at that point. The package you start with has to keep
you happy until the next pay hike.
3) Is the location going to work for you?
By this I mean both the office layout as well as the physical location of the office. Some people cant stand an open office landscape,
others thrive. Some of us love an hours commute in the morning as it gives them some quality alone time. Others think a minute
commuting is a minute wasted. You need to visualize what it will be like to travel there and back, day out and day in.
RELATED: Is Your Office Good for Your Health?
4) Will you like the people?
Does your new team and boss seem like a happy bunch that will welcome you or will they leave you to your own devices? Is the
corporate culture in line with your own values and ideas? If you connect with people, they are likely to have the same feeling for you
and they will naturally support you.
5) Do you understand exactly what you will be doing in your new job?
Your work load must be realistic and worth the compensation you get for it. Make sure you understand exactly what the company
thinks they will get from you. If you dont fully know, request a document outlining your tasks and their expectations on you. This will
serve as a yardstick against which you can measure your progress in the role (you know your boss will be doing the same).
Furthermore, a detailed job specification will help you with future salary reviews as well as prevent your new employer from giving
you random tasks that have nothing to do with the job you accepted.
6) What are the career prospects?
Will you be performing this role for the next five years or are you expected to move up a rung on the ladder every year? You may or
may not want to move up beyond this position, whatever your plan is you will want to make sure the company has the same plan
and that they know of your intentions. If your desire is to be promoted, ask for examples (call it case studies to impress) of other
employees that started out in your role and got bumped up.
7) How does it all compare to your current job?
Assuming you do have a job at the moment, what are the odds of you being promoted if you stay? Could you get more money or a
home office if you asked your boss?
Conclusion:
Review your offer against the points provided in this text and write down the pros and cons. Always think on paper when making a
big decision like this. Take your time to picture yourself doing this job every day for the next years. What gut feeling does that leave
you with? Whatever it may be this is your answer to that job offer.
Please tell me now Did you take the job or not?


5 Crucial Aspects To
Consider Before Accepting
The Job Offer
By Michael Poh. Filed in Web 2.0
Ads by Google
1 Yr Online MBA Rs.7500/-www.nibmglobal.com/Online-MBAGlobally Accredited Online MBA. Limited Offer. Join Now
This article is part of the "Ace Your Interview" series - where we share tips and tricks you can use offline and online to snag that dream job. Click here to see more articles in the
same series
So youve got your resume noticed, confidently answered the top ten interview questions and your dream company is offering you a job offer. Your heart leaps with joy
and you cant wait to sign the contract in a weeks time. At the back of your mind though, theres this persistent question lingering. You cant help but ask yourself,
wait, is this the right job for me?

(Image Source: Fotolia)
Its normal to have such doubts, especially when you know that half or even more than half of your life will change once you accept a new job. Your decision
will affect the way you spend eight hours or more at work for at least five days a week. Its no kidding matter. For one thing, you must question some of the most
fundamental aspects of work and see if they will eventually meet your needs and wants.
1. Company Culture Values, Attitudes And Goals
What kind of culture does your new organization embraces? Do they value competitiveness, or do they inculcate creativity? Are they people-oriented or result-
oriented? What are their vision and mission statement? These are the things you should find out.

(Image Source: Fotolia)
Most importantly, the company culture must be aligned with your personality, values and beliefs. Imagine having to do the work which you disagree with day-
in and day-out. Even if you dont get burnout, youll become indifferent to what your work stands for. At the end of the day, you might even end up simply working
for a paycheck, without having any sense of belonging to the organization and the people in there.
They say that if you cant win them, join them. I think its not applicable in this context. More likely than not, if youre at odds with the rest of the organization about
the way they handle the business or treat people, chances are that you will never agree with them. Your personality, values and beliefs are more or less part
of who you are, so its best to find places that are in-line with yourself.
2. People Boss & Colleagues
When the going gets tough, you need all the social support there is out there. Especially when it comes to work, a supportive network of colleagues and an
understanding boss would definitely make things easier.

(Image Source: Fotolia)
Of course, its hard to tell the personality and character from the interview alone, so this is where you have to go with your guts. Just as your first impression
matters during the job interview, theimpression which your boss left on you matters as well. He or she will prepare sufficiently enough to convince you to join
the organization, so that is where you can tell what kind of person your future boss appears to be.
Colleagues-wise, it would help to find out from the interviewer whether they are of the same age as you. There will be more common topics of interest during
your daily conversations with them if the age differences are not that drastic. This is something you should take into account as you ponder about whether you
could click with them ultimately.
3. Workload & Expectations
During the interview, you will most likely be briefed about your job scope and what you are expected to perform. Thats the explicit portion, where everything is
spelt out clearly to you perhaps in the form of a job tasks list. Go through it, raise questions to the interviewer, before you ask yourself if youre comfortable with the
workload.

(Image Source: Fotolia)
What job interviewees neglect is the implicit expectations of your new job. We all know that sometimes were not simply employed to fulfill the basic job functions;
we get additional tasks (or get arrowed, as how Singaporeans would put it) from time to time. What you need to find out is, how much of these sidelines will you
be dealing with?
Somehow or rather, I think this has a lot to do with companys culture, in that it correlates with how much they expect employees to perform beyond the call
of duty. It might even have something to do with office politics and such, because theres a possibility that people push their work around.
Furthermore, it might even hamper your career advancement. If everyones expected to do more than is required, then what do you have to do to get noticed?
On the other hand, if youre not counted on to assume additional work, you will be able to stand out if you do make that extra effort.
4. Career Progression Vs. Stability
As with the preceding point, if your priority lies in climbing the ladder, you need to find out what it takes to get promoted. Generally speaking, the more
competitive the culture, the more you need to do to progress. This would have an impact on your work-life balance and even your physical and mental health.
Youve got to see if such stringent conditions for advancement are really worthwhile.

(Image Source: Fotolia)
Depending on needs and wants, some people might prefer stability over prospects. For that, it might be helpful to find out whats the attrition or turnover rate of
your future department. Of course, the interviewer may not be entirely honest in an attempt to recruit you to the team, so its advisable for you to do some research
yourself. Ask around and gather intel from word-of-mouth.
Progression or stability, it really depends on you. What matters most is that you make an informed choice based on what the organization has to offer to
you. How frequent do employees of a similar position as yours get promoted, and how often do they leave the job? You might even consider the big picture and
ask if the industry is stable or prospective by itself.
5. Remuneration & Benefits
Why do we work? How many of us can say that we love what we do? Its apparent that most of us work first to sustain ourselves before we can even think of
passion. The fundamental need for survival prevails over anything else. And thus, the issue of salary and benefits.

(Image Source: Fotolia)
Sure, you can always survive with a lower pay. But the question is, are your fairly compensated?Comparing your position across the market would help you
answer that question. Remember also to take into consideration the company perks as well, such as insurance, sick leave, training programmes, etc. Other
things to consider include how quick your next increment will be. It wouldnt benefit you much in the long-run if your starting pay is pretty high but will remain
stagnant for a while.

17 Things To Consider Before Accepting Your Next Job

ANDREW YANG, VENTURE FOR AMERICA




JAN. 19, 2013, 9:19 AM

7,536
FACEBOOK
LINKEDIN
TWITTER
GOOGLE+
PRINT
EMAIL
When I graduated from Brown, I had a very limited conception of jobs, careers, and what I wanted to do. Basically, I figured
I should do some kind of thought work that paid well, but I wasnt sure what.
Here were my original criteria:
1. Intellectual vs. Manual. Does the job require a lot of conceptual work where I used my brain?
2. Higher pay vs. Lower Pay. Do you get paid a lot? I didnt have any real numbers in mind, but more money seemed
better than less.
This was my original thinking in a nutshell: seek higher-paid thought work. So I went to law school and joined a big law firm.
I found that my framework was totally unhelpful when I didnt enjoy being a corporate lawyer at all.
After that, I started a company (that flopped), and worked at three other start-ups in tech and education. Over time I got a
much better sense of the sort of thing that made a job enjoyable for me. I started categorizing the variables and came up with
these:
3. Changing over Time vs. Repetitive. In some environments, roles shift and change each period depending on what the
companys needs are. On the other hand, many functional roles can become very repetitive if you perform similar tasks over
and over again.
4. Broad Development vs. Specialization/Efficiency. Many jobs want you to become excellent at something and
continue to do it. On the other end of the spectrum is a role where you're required to develop new skills because of evolving
responsibilities (e.g., a manager at a growing company). Think a swiss army knife (generalist) versus a scalpel (specialist).
5. Managing/teaching others vs. Operating Individually. Some positions involve developing others and taking
responsibility for larger groups of people (e.g., becoming the head of a sales department). On the other hand, many of those
with specialized skills or creative roles operate independently much of the time (e.g., a lawyer, writer, doctor, artist).
6. Autonomy/Agency vs. Low Discretion. In some jobs, you are able to make choices how best to address a particular
problem, and can exert some control over your own environment and schedule. In other roles, your discretion can be quite
limited due to detailed hierarchies, policies, and procedures. (e.g., I found that I had relatively limited discretion as a lawyer
because my schedule and environment were out of my control and the client makes most big decisions).
7. People/service-oriented vs. Institutions. In some organizations (e.g., a tutoring business), you directly serve people
that you may even see face-to-face. In others, as is common in the professional service context, your clients are large
organizations that are hard to personalize (e.g., consulting to a large pharmaceutical company).
8. Compensation for Value vs. Compensation for Time. In most established organizations, there are firm
compensation and advancement guidelines, generally related to how long youve been there. If you create significant value
for a company, it may not be reflected in compensation. In other more flexible contexts, its possible for an individual to be
compensated according to the value he or she adds.
9. Creative vs. Established Process. If a company has done something before, it probably has a set of documentation,
rules, and policies to apply, and as an employee you will be expected to follow the process. In other settings, either because of
the nature of the activity or because it hasnt been done before, you may innovate or implement something new (though if
youre smart youll often refer to other companies best practices).
10. Building/Making Progress vs. Maintaining Position. If a company is growing, then peoples roles often grow and
change and opportunities abound. You are much more likely to feel that you are building toward something and making
progress with each passing month. If a company is fighting a defensive battle, contracting, or even staying level,
opportunities are harder to come by and roles tend to be more stagnant. In a professional service environment, you often
work on one engagement or deal after another, with one ending before the next begins.
11. Executing vs. Analyzing. In many analytical roles, you synthesize a great deal of data to produce a report, build
projections, or make a recommendation. The output is the report, projection, or recommendation (e.g., as a consultant you
build a report indicating how a company could lower costs). In an executive capacity, your output is the action or activity of
the organization (e.g., opening stores, choosing what goods to sell, allocating resources to different marketing campaigns,
etc.).
12. Team-Orientation vs. Individual Metrics. In many professional service environments, the unit of performance is
based on the individual (e.g., how many hours an accountant or lawyer worked and billed, how many patients a doctor has
seen, etc.). In other companies, the organizations performance is measured more collectively because people from different
departments are required to work together in order to achieve shared goals.
13. Uncertain Path vs. Predictable Track. In some situations, you can say with some certainty what the path forward is
going to look like over the next number of years in terms of career progression. In others, your path forward will vary widely
depending on how the company does and your role within it.
14. Sense of Ownership vs. Employee. In some companies, staff feel a sense of ownership over their work and the
performance of the company due to the nature of the activity, company size, culture, or compensation mechanisms (e.g.,
stock ownership). In other environments, employees feel detached from their employer and see individual performance and
company performance as largely unrelated.
15. Well-regarded vs. Obscure/Negative. Certain roles and organizations are admired by employees families, peers,
friends, and the community at large. Others are not as well-regarded or well-known.
16. Long-term vs. Transactional. In some industries and roles it is customary for employees to come and go every
couple of years, particularly junior hires. In other environments employees may stay for extended periods of time to build
long-term relationships.
17. Positive Impact vs. Neutral/Indeterminate. Some organizations have missions or conduct activities that produce a
discernible, positive impact (e.g., developing a new technology that reduces pollution or improves a health care treatment,
etc.). Other companies conduct activities that are neutral or unclear in impact.
This is an exceptionally long list of considerations. To make it a little bit handier, heres a list of Job Traits:
1. Intellectual vs. Manual Thinking
2. Higher pay vs. Lower pay Compensated
3. Changing over Time vs. Repetitive Changing
4. Broad Development vs. Specialization/Efficiency Breadth
5. Managing/teaching others vs. Operating Individually Managing
6. Autonomy/Responsibility vs. Low Discretion Deciding
7. People/service-oriented vs. Institutions People
8. Fee for Value vs. Fee for Time Rewarded
9. Creative vs. Established Process Creating
10. Building/Making Progress vs. Maintaining Progressing
11. Executing vs. Analyzing Doing
12. Team Orientation vs. Individual Metrics Collaborating
13. Uncertain Path vs. Predictable Track Risk-taking
14. Sense of Ownership vs. Transactional Owning
15. Well-regarded in Community vs. Obscure/Negative Admired
16. Long-term vs. Transactional Committed
17. Positive Impact vs. Neutral/Indeterminate Contributing
Ive found this more detailed framework much more useful, and I hope others find it helpful as well. Its unrealistic to expect
a job to hit every single note, particularly starting out. And every job has its fair share of trade-offs and need to manage
relationships (e.g., even a CEO is beholden to directors, staff, investors/ownership, customers, etc.). But this set of job traits
may help identify why particular roles are more or less appealing to you, and its useful to have a vision of what kind of role
youd like to move toward.


Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/not-all-white-collar-jobs-are-created-equal-2013-1#ixzz3BrujbDaJ

20 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Accepting a
New Job
Chrissy Scivicque , Contributor
Comment Now
Follow Comments
Woo-hoo! You got a job offer. Way to go.
But before you jump at the opportunity, I recommend taking a few minutes to really evaluate
the position and how well it meets your needs.
You see, when searching for a job, many people get anxious. The process is so slow
and stressful; they end up accepting the first decent offer that comes along without ever really
considering if theyre making the right move at the right time.
This is one of the reasons that so many people end up being job hoppers, bouncing from one
position to the next. If you dont take the time on the front end to truly explore what you want
from a new job and to figure out if this position satisfies those desires, youll end up paying for
it on the back end.
So take a few minutes to ask yourself the following 20 questions before you say yes to that
job offer. And if you dont like the answers you come up with, give yourself permission to
continue the search. There are plenty of opportunities out there. Dont let fear and anxiety
force you to settle.
1. Is this a long-term career move? If not, what does this position offer in the way of experience and/or connections
that will put me in a better position for achieving my long-term career goals in the future? How long do I need to
stay in order to gain these advantages?
2. If this is a short-term career move, what is the purpose of it? Am I running away from something I DONT want or
running towards something I DO want?
3. Does this position challenge my mental abilities?
4. Am I capable of, and comfortable with, doing the tasks for which I would be responsible?
5. Do I fully understand the expectations of the role?
6. Will the company provide me with the necessary resources to be successful?
7. Does this position utilize my talents and skills?
8. Will I be able to offer a valuable contribution?
9. Will I be proud to be associated with the companys brand, product and/or services?
10. Does the company culture appear to be in line with my values?
11. Is the office location a comfortable distance from home? Will the commute potentially be a problem and if so, how
will I overcome it?
12. Have my interactions with other employees been comfortable and friendly?
13. Can I envision feeling at home with the other employees socially?
14. Does my direct supervisor appear to be a supportive individual from whom I can learn?
15. Is the work environment conducive to my own work style?
16. Will the work feel professionally satisfying?
17. Financially, will this job provide me with a desirable lifestyle? If not, does it have the potential to in the future?
18. Will the benefits package meet my needs?
19. Is there opportunity for future professional growth?
20. Are there any potential problems I can foresee in accepting this job? If so, how will I avoid them and/or overcome
them?








April 6, 2001
Questions To Ask Yourself Before Accepting a Job
By Jean Dowdall
After the excitement of the search process, the lucky candidates reach the point of the exercise -- the offer. Now it's time to decide,
sometimes rather quickly, whether to accept. What should you be thinking about as you make this decision?
First, ask yourself in a deep and intuitive way if you really want the job. Trust your instincts. If you have serious reservations, maybe you
shouldn't take it. If you don't feel a sense of anticipation, perhaps you should decline. (We'll put aside for now the question of why you
didn't figure this out sooner and withdraw earlier from the search process!)
But assuming you're eager for this job, I want to turn to a more objective indicator of your fit for the position: a list of questions that you
should be able to answer to your own satisfaction. Negative answers on some of these questions will probably be balanced by positive
answers on others, but the exercise of reflection may help to clarify your decision. Note that I'm not saying you should necessarily ask
these questions of others; these are questions you will want to answer for yourself, based on what you've learned during the search.
What are the institution's expectations for the job? Are they achievable? Are they reasonably consistent among the
supervisor and the various constituencies that have a stake in the position? Unclear, mixed and unachievable expectations
can mean trouble.
Are the resources there to get the job done? Critical resources could include space, staff, discretionary funds to provide
incentives and support to others, equipment, etc. If they seem inadequate, you are in a better position than you may ever
be again to negotiate for those resources.
Do the key financial indicators look reasonably healthy? These vary, depending on the position you're looking at, but
they could include budget deficits, tuition discounting, endowment, deferred maintenance, debt service, and much more.
An extremely constrained financial situation doesn't necessarily mean you should decline the position, but you should be
aware that the problem exists and feel confident that you can work effectively in these circumstances.
Do you have confidence in those who would be your peers and colleagues, your superiors and your subordinates in the
new position? Consider issues like trust, credibility, flexibility, territoriality. These people will be your partners and/or
your adversaries. Especially in difficult situations, the caliber and integrity of these people will be key to your success
and your happiness.
Is the total compensation package adequate? While the package may not give you every perk you dreamed of, it should,
on balance, be enough to support you and any dependents appropriately. Again, once you have been offered the job, you
are in the best position to negotiate. Compensation will be the subject of its own column in the near future.
Is this an institutional culture and a campus climate in which you will work comfortably and effectively? Some campus
cultures are contentious, and others are very civil -- and there are people who thrive in each type. Some campus cultures
are entrepreneurial, others are traditional; some embrace change, others are more restrained. Are most people whom you
have met on the campus disgruntled about issues like salaries, maintenance, and governance, or are they generally in
good spirits? At this point in the search process, you should be able to describe the culture and climate pretty well, and
you should be confident that you can work effectively within it.
Do you expect your prospective boss to be in place for a while? This person is critical to your success, and a change in
this position could mean a change in the expectations for your own position.
Why did your predecessor leave? Perhaps it was a retirement or a move to an obviously better job, but if it was under
unhappy circumstances, there could be problems embedded in the situation that will plague you as well.
What are your best friends and family members advising you to do? Sometimes we get so caught up in the excitement of
a job offer, especially if it's a major step up, that we're blinded to situations that are likely to keep us from succeeding. If
others urge you to reconsider, listen carefully.
Clearly this list could go on and on, and your list will be different from mine. I'd be interested in hearing from readers who have come up
with their own critical questions to consider before accepting a new job -- perhaps questions that they didn't ask but wish they had.
I mentioned earlier that you may be asked to make your decision quickly. Sometimes candidates are extended an offer and asked to
decide virtually on the spot -- although in most of these situations they have been alerted in advance that they will need to make an
instant decision. (In fact, candidates may sometimes be asked, "Would you accept this position if it were offered to you?" so that in effect
they are asked to accept the offer even before it is made.)
Sometimes candidates are asked to respond quickly, but no formal deadline is set. In this situation, one week is a reasonable amount of
time in most cases for a decision. Remember that if you don't accept the offer it will probably be extended to someone else, and have
some sympathy for that person; the longer the offer is delayed, the more these candidates will have the sense that they were second
choice, and the campus may think so as well while they wait for an announcement, getting everyone started on the wrong foot.
What if you've been offered one job but you are waiting to hear about another offer? Personally, I don't like to see candidates keep one
institution waiting while they see if they have another (presumably better) offer. If you want this job, take it. If you wouldn't accept this
job under any circumstance, turn it down. If you would prefer the other job, but would happily accept the job already offered to you if it
was your only offer, see whether you can nudge the more desirable offer along. Do this with great care; you risk alienating a search
committee that may feel it is moving as fast as it can and that may find you presumptuous for thinking you can rush them into an offer.
And see whether you can persuade the institution that already made you an offer to wait a little longer. Do this with care too; you risk
having them rescind the offer and move on to the next candidate in line if you don't respond within what they consider to be a reasonable
time. Realize too that, in letting your potential employer know that it is your second choice, you risk starting off a new job on the wrong
foot.
In sum -- congratulations on getting the offer -- it's what you've been waiting for. Now think carefully and clearly about whether you
really want it.
Jean Dowdall is vice-president at A.T. Kearney Executive Search, which handles searches for senior academic administrators. In the last
year, she has assisted with searches at Northern Arizona University, Rowan University, and the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee.
She has also been a faculty member, dean, vice-president, and president at both public and private institutions.
Ms. Dowdall welcomes comments and suggestions for future columns at movingup@chronicle.com
- See more at: http://chronicle.com/article/Questions-To-Ask-Yourself-B/45377/#sthash.Gnu9BBmE.dpuf