Get Active in Our Amazing Community of Over 451,000 Peers!

Schedule mock interviews on the Meeting Board, join the latest community discussions in our Consulting Q&A and find like-minded Case Partners to connect and practice with!

Job Switching

Career Advising
New answer on Nov 10, 2022
5 Answers
535 Views
Anonymous A asked on Oct 25, 2022

Question about someone looking to switch jobs after less than a year: will leaving after 8-10 months create the perception of a “job hopper”? The change is motivated by 1. Unhappy with current role/lack of future growth; 2. Geographic location with family considerations. 

For my background, I graduated in 2020, played 1 year of pro sports in Europe, followed by a 10 month fellowship at a private equity company in Hong Kong and I now work for a large Asian bank in Hong Kong. I only started my current role 3 months ago but am not enjoying it and feel like I am strongly inhibited by my lack of local language skills. MBB/Tier 2 has been my career goal for since graduating but I was convinced by others to stay in financial services in Asia due to ‘better career opportunities’ (feel very differently now). Long story short, how long should I wait before applying for other roles back in North America? 

 

 

Overview of answers

Upvotes
  • Upvotes
  • Date ascending
  • Date descending
Best answer
Pedro
Expert
replied on Oct 25, 2022
30% off in April 2024 | Bain | EY-Parthenon | Roland Berger | Market Sizing | DARDEN MBA

You shouldn't wait. If you want to move… move right away. Wasting your life to have a pretty resume only result is… wasting your life. 

Furthermore, moving after 3 months means you don't like the job. Moving after 9 months is job-hopping. So taking into account your concern, 3 months is better than 9 months.

By the way, spending one year play pro-sports is seens as valuable experience, but not as part of your professional work history. Having a fellowship also does not qualify into “job hopping”. You did you fellowship, and found something else when it ended. 

So it looks like you feel you are a job hopper when in reality it just seems that you don't like your first job. 

 

Was this answer helpful?
Dennis
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Oct 25, 2022
Ex-Roland Berger|Project Manager and Recruiter|7+ years of consulting experience in USA and Europe

Whoever offers you a contract next obviously does not care about your tenure at your current job. So there is no need to worry in terms of immediate next step. There is merit in cutting ties with a job that does not hold up to expectations and you have good reasons for doing so. 

Of course what you don't want is to create a resume for yourself where you have many roles/employers of less than 1-2 years. That would make you look like a job-hopper who seems rather unreliable from an employer's point of view

Was this answer helpful?
Ian
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Oct 25, 2022
#1 BCG coach | MBB | Tier 2 | Digital, Tech, Platinion | 100% personal success rate (8/8) | 95% candidate success rate

Hi there,

It's ok to make one switch like this. Two in a row looks very bad, but one short-term role (with an immediate transition to a longer length role or 2+ years) is perfectly fine!

Was this answer helpful?
Emily
Expert
Content Creator
replied on Oct 25, 2022
Ex McKinsey EM & interviewer (5 yrs) USA & UK| Coached / interviewed 300 +|Free 15 min intro| Stanford MBA|Non-trad

Apply now! Life is too short to be somewhere that you're not enjoying. We all take jobs from time to time that are not suited - we move on quickly and learn from them. If you move every year or two multiple times over then you may start to create the impression that you can't commit to a role, but leaving one role after three months is totally fine. 

Good luck!

Was this answer helpful?
will replied on Nov 10, 2022

hey good one keep sharing new stuff

Was this answer helpful?
2
Dainel on Dec 10, 2022

Job switching (also known as job hopping) is the pattern of changing companies over a period of time for better employment or compensation prospects. Career changes are usually the result of personal preference rather than the result of layoffs or company liquidations.websites, Extra resources, get more, like it.

Pedro gave the best answer

Pedro

CoachingPlus Expert
Premium + Coaching Expert
30% off in April 2024 | Bain | EY-Parthenon | Roland Berger | Market Sizing | DARDEN MBA
131
Meetings
16,049
Q&A Upvotes
54
Awards
5.0
21 Reviews