Could we be together?
July 31, 2013 12:12 PM Subscribe
Contacted by a company in the process of buying another company. There is a position at the newly acquired company that is a perfect fit . Does this mean they actually want you, or are they just feeling you out?
We know that no job is yours until you sign on the dotted line, but this is a new experience, being sought out without even applying, so we don't know how situations like this generally go.
Met with the bigwig/ decision makers (formerly co-workers from years ago) and went over details of what the position entailed. They have a few more interviews with people that they know don't have what they need, but have to interview them anyway as a courtesy.
They can't give a timeline on when they can hire because they have to wait for the sale to be finalized, but they want to keep the lines of communication open until then.
What does this actually mean?
The answer to this question is purely speculation, I'm aware, but would like to hear about similar experiences/ outcomes. Good or bad.
Met with the bigwig/ decision makers (formerly co-workers from years ago) and went over details of what the position entailed. They have a few more interviews with people that they know don't have what they need, but have to interview them anyway as a courtesy.
They can't give a timeline on when they can hire because they have to wait for the sale to be finalized, but they want to keep the lines of communication open until then.
What does this actually mean?
The answer to this question is purely speculation, I'm aware, but would like to hear about similar experiences/ outcomes. Good or bad.
When it's recruiters contacting you out of the blue, it's almost certainly meaningless.
But when it's former coworkers who know you and who are decision makers and who have a specific position that they know you're a fit for and they're the acquirers of the other company rather than the acquirees and therefore will have control over what positions will exist post-buyout... well, sounds like the real deal to me.
They have a few more interviews with people that they know don't have what they need, but have to interview them anyway as a courtesy.
This part's weird, though; I don't know how to interpret that.
posted by ook at 12:23 PM on July 31, 2013
But when it's former coworkers who know you and who are decision makers and who have a specific position that they know you're a fit for and they're the acquirers of the other company rather than the acquirees and therefore will have control over what positions will exist post-buyout... well, sounds like the real deal to me.
They have a few more interviews with people that they know don't have what they need, but have to interview them anyway as a courtesy.
This part's weird, though; I don't know how to interpret that.
posted by ook at 12:23 PM on July 31, 2013
It means keep doing what you're doing (i.e., stay at your current job or keep looking for another one) until you get an offer. I've been on both sides of an acquisition, and a lot of the preparation is sort of pie-in-the-sky -- the bigwigs don't really know what they're going to need for the new company until they have their hands on it, and even then, the shaking-out period can take a lot longer than people think.
posted by Etrigan at 12:24 PM on July 31, 2013 [2 favorites]
posted by Etrigan at 12:24 PM on July 31, 2013 [2 favorites]
(It does depend a bit on the size of the companies involved of course. Major corporate mergers, as Ruthless Bunny points out, are pretty much always an unpredictable clusterfuck.)
posted by ook at 12:25 PM on July 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
posted by ook at 12:25 PM on July 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: I promise not to thread sit...
Ruthless- That was the funniest analogy ever! I WILL steal that and use it somewhere.
The other interviews are internal in the current company.
This company has done this type of acquisition many, many times, so we are assuming they know what they need or will need to make new company work.
This is not a major corporate merger.
posted by MayNicholas at 12:36 PM on July 31, 2013
Ruthless- That was the funniest analogy ever! I WILL steal that and use it somewhere.
The other interviews are internal in the current company.
This company has done this type of acquisition many, many times, so we are assuming they know what they need or will need to make new company work.
This is not a major corporate merger.
posted by MayNicholas at 12:36 PM on July 31, 2013
This company has done this type of acquisition many, many times, so we are assuming they know what they need or will need to make new company work.
They have an idea. Probably a better idea than people who have never been through an acquisition. But they don't know what the new company will need, any more than you know that the next movie by a director you love will be good.
posted by Etrigan at 12:42 PM on July 31, 2013
They have an idea. Probably a better idea than people who have never been through an acquisition. But they don't know what the new company will need, any more than you know that the next movie by a director you love will be good.
posted by Etrigan at 12:42 PM on July 31, 2013
This part's weird, though; I don't know how to interpret that.
It's not that weird. A lot of companies require positions to be advertised, often as an equal opportunities thing or just as an HR policy. Obviously, a lot of times that's just for show, as there is an internal candidate or other specific candidate in line for the gig.
posted by DarlingBri at 12:52 PM on July 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
It's not that weird. A lot of companies require positions to be advertised, often as an equal opportunities thing or just as an HR policy. Obviously, a lot of times that's just for show, as there is an internal candidate or other specific candidate in line for the gig.
posted by DarlingBri at 12:52 PM on July 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
This part's weird, though; I don't know how to interpret that.
It's not that weird. A lot of companies require positions to be advertised, often as an equal opportunities thing or just as an HR policy.
Rule of thumb: 75 percent of positions are essentially filled before they're advertised. Hiring managers go through the interview hoops for two reasons: A) company policy, and 2) to find someone to fill the job that they're promoting an internal hire out of to fill the advertised vacancy.
OP, it looks like you're on the good side of that 75 percent, but don't be surprised if they come back to you with an offer to take Stu's job after Stu got the one you interviewed for.
posted by Etrigan at 1:25 PM on July 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
It's not that weird. A lot of companies require positions to be advertised, often as an equal opportunities thing or just as an HR policy.
Rule of thumb: 75 percent of positions are essentially filled before they're advertised. Hiring managers go through the interview hoops for two reasons: A) company policy, and 2) to find someone to fill the job that they're promoting an internal hire out of to fill the advertised vacancy.
OP, it looks like you're on the good side of that 75 percent, but don't be surprised if they come back to you with an offer to take Stu's job after Stu got the one you interviewed for.
posted by Etrigan at 1:25 PM on July 31, 2013 [1 favorite]
Sure, keep the door open, but maintain a position for them to let you know when the dust settles.
posted by rhizome at 1:44 PM on July 31, 2013
posted by rhizome at 1:44 PM on July 31, 2013
This thread is closed to new comments.
I'd say that there's a 5% chance that this will turn into a legitimate thing. And a 2% chance that the job they described will actually be the job they're hiring for once the dust settles.
Basically they think they know what's going to happen, but acquisitions are so dicey and so many promises are made during the honeymoon phase. Sometimes the people who think they'll be running the deal are laid off and folks from the other company end up calling the shots.
I went through the MCI-WorldCom Merger (and what a fun time that was) and the BellSouth-AT&T merger. NOTHING was as it appeared to be.
Keep your options open, but this is not your hope of heaven.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 12:17 PM on July 31, 2013