假如你要跳槽到竞争对手公司

假如你要跳槽到竞争对手公司

这篇文章告诉你，该如何和昔日的老板开口并且优雅离开？在新东家那里的大忌又是什么？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

headhunter猎头['hed,hʌntə]

non-compete clauses竞业禁止条款

gardening leave花园假期

moan抱怨；呻吟[məʊn]

carp吹毛求疵[kɑːp]

integrity完整；正直[ɪn'tegrɪtɪ]

non-solicitation clauses禁止招揽条款

Plan an exit strategy when quitting for a rival（551 words）

By Emma De Vita

Switching sides to work for a rival can be awkward yet there are ways of ensuring things go as smoothly as they can.“Telling your boss you are leaving [for a competitor] is never going to be an easy conversation,”says Sarah Lim,who left a rival headhunter to join Korn Ferry last year.

When handing in your resignation,explain that you want new experiences with a different company and that you have taken your job as far as you can,advises Michael Jenkins,chief executive of HR training organisation Roffey Park. If the response is cold,you can put up with it or try negotiating an earlier exit,says Steve Wigzell,partner of coaching firm Praesta.

If you have non-compete clauses in your employment contract,you will be asked to leave immediately.

“It can be quite a shock but don’t take it personally,”says Ms Lim. If you are put on“gardening leave”,when you are asked not to do any work during your paid notice because of a conflict of interest,you must sever ties with your employer,says Jonathan Trevor,a professor at Saïd Business School.

If you are working out your notice in the office,it is important to be active to the end,not to moan or carp,and to thank colleagues for their support.

“Act with good grace because you don’t know when you might end up back there,”says Mr Jenkins. Ms Lim adds that“the most important thing is for you to be able to hold a mirror up to yourself and be able to say you acted with integrity.”

While it is acceptable to spend time familiarising yourself with your new company,it is not advisable to do any work of value,even if you are not party to any legal restrictions. While non-compete clauses can be difficult to enforce it will not stop a company trying to do so if managers suspect business is actively being taken away from them,says Mr Jenkins.

Once you start your new job,Prof Trevor’s advice is to reveal nothing when it comes to talking about past clients,projects or colleagues. In fact,it will cause alarm if you reveal sensitive information.“It implies you can’t be trusted with anything sensitive,”he says.

You must stick to any legal restrictions that apply,which can include non-solicitation clauses that prevent you approaching clients or former colleagues for a certain period of time. However,after that,it is reasonable to mention job opportunities at your new company to old colleagues.“That’s not a compromising situation,”Prof Trevor says.

Be careful not to tell stories from your old place of work too many times or to trade on past glories as they will lose freshness and relevance.“No one likes you going on and on about how great life was in the old company,”says Mr Jenkins.“You have to be self-aware about what to share and what to discard.”

Finally,if you are being headhunted,then be sure that it is you that they want and not just your clients,says Mr Jenkins.

Also,says Prof Trevor,it is inadvisable to use a headhunter’s approachsolely as a bargaining tool to get a pay rise from your employer,without any intention of leaving:“It can easily backfire.”