The rule of the day refers to how your current employer’s name and reputation in the market often has an impact on your ability to get a job elsewhere.
As a recruiter, I can tell you that the company you’re working for – and the companies you’ve worked for in the past – often has a big impact on hiring managers and other people who might have a say in hiring you.
I’ve seen hiring managers who specifically want to hire people who are currently employed by a certain company.
Conversely, I’ve seen hiring managers who say that they specifically don’t want people who come from certain employers or industries, too.
I’ve also seen hiring managers who ask me about a person’s current employer because they’ve never heard of them ie. Who are they? What do they do? How many people work there? That’s usually not a good sign.
Hiring managers often want to hire someone who is coming directly from their competitors. Mind you, some jobs might be better for someone who has no experience in the industry as the hiring manager would like someone with a clean slate who they can train from scratch.
The industry you work in can often have an impact on your options too. If you work in pharmaceuticals for example, working for a generic manufacturer might have an impact on your ability to get a job with a brand name manufacturer. Some people might consider going from a brand name to a generic manufacturer a big career decision.
In IT and other industries, consulting firms often only want to hire staff who come from other well-established and respected consulting firms.
I’ve seen hiring managers who specifically want people who have worked in large corporate environments and not small companies. Specific examples I’ve seen were for customer service and technical support roles where the hiring manager wanted someone with experience supporting hundreds or thousands of users and not several dozen.
You can’t predict what future employers will think of your current employer or your future career choices, but it’s best to at least think about the possible impact before jumping ship and taking a new job.
