Updated: How to handle a particular internal job interview situation

[patchyfacialhair]

Good morning, Mustachians:

Please bear with me as I try to keep this coherent. My fiancee may have a situation where through various circumstances, 2 different offices within her company wish to have her come aboard.

Job 1: Out of state move: same job she's doing now, slightly better pay based on higher COL. Her 'dream' location.

Job 2: No move necessary: considered a promotion, much better pay than job 1. It's a full time travelling gig (home on most weekends), which would be her 'dream' job (she loves to travel, even for business when she's done it in the past).

She initially interviewed for Job 2 soon after 2015 began, but the posting was delayed due to various mergers and corporate nonsense that postponed it. She wrote it off as a lost cause, but this week, an executive in Job 2's office reached out to her and said that they hired the person who would supervise my fiancee, and that person would like to do a Skype interview early next week. Sounds like the fire has been re-kindled.

Job 1 came about 2 weeks ago; a director out of Job 1's office reached out to my fiancee randomly as a vacancy opened up out there and asked if she'd like to move. Obviously it intrigued my fiancee as it's her dream location, and we both have friends there. She went through a couple of interviews with various higher ups because it seemed like Job 2 was never going to follow through.

The issue: Through the grapevine, she found out that she's very very likely to get an offer from Job 1 late this week/early next. They'll probably expect her to be out there within 30 days. But, she would rather take Job 2 if she got it since it would lead to more professional growth and quicker promotions down the line.

The questions:
Should she proactively reach out to the Job 1 people and tell them that the Job 2 people had reached out to her again?
Should she wait until an actual offer comes in from the Job 1 people before telling them that Job 2 is talking to her?
Should she approach this in a different way?

Notes: I'm flexible in my career, and about to go back to school anyway for graduate work. I have the ability to work from home, so I'm not really a factor in all this. Plus I'm pretty easygoing so whatever makes her happy won't impede my progress/goals. Also, this mega-corp nonsense makes me frustrated. You'd think that different offices would talk to each other in a way, but alas, here we are.

[AlwaysLearningToSave]

I would proceed with interview in Job 2 next week.  I would not go out of my way to tell Job 1 that she is considering Job 2, but would truthfully answer if they asked if she was considering other options.  I would be as nonspecific about it as possible, though, as there is no offer at this point.  Remember that talk is cheap and a grapevine rumor that an offer will come is worth nothing until she actually receives an offer. 

I would then wait for an offer from either job.  If an offer from Job 1 comes along first, ask for time to consider the offer.  Then turn to Job 2 and say "I have an offer for Job 1 but I'd rather do Job 2 if the terms are right."  With an offer in hand, she will have strong position from which to negotiate salary, benefits, and other terms and conditions of the job.  If an offer from Job 2 comes along first, tell them that you are also considering Job 1 and need time to consider the offer.  Tell Job 1 than she has an offer from Job 2 and intends to take Job 2 unless they make an offer she can't refuse for Job 1.  If an offer from Job 1 subsequently comes along, use it as leverage to negotiate for better pay/benefits/terms in Job 2. 

She is potentially in a strong position, but needs to let it play out a little bit.  Take it one step at a time, but have your goal in mind with each step.   

EDIT to add disclaimer:  These are my opinions and they are worth every penny you paid for them.  She knows her relationships with her employer better than anyone on these forums and she must make the calls on strategy.  There is no "right" way to do it.  She just needs to make the best judgments she can with the information available at the time. 

[Axecleaver]

From your description, it sounds like she would prefer job 2 over job 1. Both jobs are preferable to current job. A word of caution, a full time travelling job is exhausting in the post-9/11 world of 100% capacity flights.  Business travel one week a month is fun. Full time, it's a drag. So, make sure this is really what she wants.

The problem you have right now is that you don't have an offer from either one. Once you do, you can use that to discuss terms with the other job. Be careful if they ask her to wait for something. In that case, it's better to take the deal on the table than to defer and potentially get nothing.

I'd love to hear how this plays out - please come back to let us know how it ends!

[AlwaysLearningToSave]

From your description, it sounds like she would prefer job 2 over job 1. Both jobs are preferable to current job. A word of caution, a full time travelling job is exhausting in the post-9/11 world of 100% capacity flights.  Business travel one week a month is fun. Full time, it's a drag. So, make sure this is really what she wants.

+1 on this.  If she ends up traveling significantly, TSA's new precheck program is probably worth it for her.  See this site: https://www.tsa.gov/tsa-precheck  It doesn't change the fact that she will be traveling a lot, but it may cut down some of the hassle and allow her to spend less time at the airport. 

Be careful if they ask her to wait for something. In that case, it's better to take the deal on the table than to defer and potentially get nothing.

I generally agree, but the caveat I have is that this is a decision she would need to make after weighing the pros and cons.  If she has a job offer from Job 1 in hand, is the possibility of Job 2 enticing enough for her to wait and see and risk staying in her current job indefinitely?  Is there a reasonable possibility other opportunities would present themselves in the future or are these opportunities few and far between?   

[Mother Fussbudget]

I would proceed with interview in Job 2 next week.  I would not go out of my way to tell Job 1 that she is considering Job 2, but would truthfully answer if they asked if she was considering other options.  I would be as nonspecific about it as possible, though, as there is no offer at this point.  Remember that talk is cheap and a grapevine rumor that an offer will come is worth nothing until she actually receives an offer. 

I would then wait for an offer from either job.  If an offer from Job 1 comes along first, ask for time to consider the offer.  Then turn to Job 2 and say "I have an offer for Job 1 but I'd rather do Job 2 if the terms are right."  With an offer in hand, she will have strong position from which to negotiate salary, benefits, and other terms and conditions of the job.  If an offer from Job 2 comes along first, tell them that you are also considering Job 1 and need time to consider the offer.  Tell Job 1 than she has an offer from Job 2 and intends to take Job 2 unless they make an offer she can't refuse for Job 1.  If an offer from Job 1 subsequently comes along, use it as leverage to negotiate for better pay/benefits/terms in Job 2. 

She is potentially in a strong position, but needs to let it play out a little bit.  Take it one step at a time, but have your goal in mind with each step.   

EDIT to add disclaimer:  These are my opinions and they are worth every penny you paid for them.  She knows her relationships with her employer better than anyone on these forums and she must make the calls on strategy.  There is no "right" way to do it.  She just needs to make the best judgments she can with the information available at the time.

+1.  She's negotiating between 2 employing managers for 2 very different job opportunities.  Once an offer is in-hand, it gives her a stronger negotiating position.  She should approach it from the mindset that she already has BOTH positions, and decide which of them would be a better LONG TERM FIT.  It sounds like #2 would be better for professional growth, and if that's the case, I'm sure job #1 (or a better job in that location) will open up at a later date.

[MDM]

If she gets both offers, it's likely she is viewed very favorably within the company.  She should talk with her current boss about the pros/cons, and ask the current boss to facilitate a meeting with the boss's boss (or even higher if practical) to discuss the same.

Whatever she chooses, this gives her a good opportunity for some 1-on-1 discussions with upper (or at least upper middle) management.  That can be helpful in the long run if she continues with this company.

This is also the type of conversation good bosses like to have: a chance to impart their wisdom to junior employees.  Actually, that's just human nature: most of us like it when our opinion is sought.

[patchyfacialhair]

Thank you all for your valuable opinions.

Her main cause of stress at this point is our location. She's lived here her whole life, so she sees these opportunities as a way out of the routine. It sounds like she's going to hold tight until offers are actually in hand, and I don't see her cancelling next week's interview for Job 2.

To rephrase, she'd be more than fine with Job 1, but she's worried that she'd burn the bridge with the Job 1 office if she flaked on them and went with Job 2, especially if Job 1 sends an offer her way this week. I didn't mention this before, but she already turned down an opportunity earlier in 2015 with the Job 1 office because she was talking to people about Job 2. She's worried that if Job 2 is delayed again, that the Job 1 people will stop calling her.

I'll gladly provide an update once some progress has been made. Needless to say, it has been a stressful few weeks for her (OK and me as well).

[patchyfacialhair]

An update:

She brought up the jobs issues with her supervisor, and with a few friends who have taken her path in her industry. They all provided advice sounding like "Don't take Job 1...that'll be an opportunity to fall back on, and something like it will always be available to you. If you get Job 2, it'll be huge exposure and an awesome challenge."

Lo and behold, she was offered Job 1 shortly after her interview. She turned it down. She had a great interview with the Job 2 people, but that job is still going through the bureaucratic nonsense (it's a new position in the company).

Lessons learned so far: she's clearly valued in her company and things are looking up. Even if she doesn't end up getting Job 2, she's got great exposure and will be able to take a step in the right direction no matter what. I'll update when things change again :)

[mozar]

Well it's too late now, but one way to do it is take the offer from job 1 and use that to negotiate with job 2, unless she had no intentions whatsoever if taking job 1.

[patchyfacialhair]

Resurrecting my one and only thread for a final update:

She got Job 2 a while ago. It came with a healthy pay increase as expected. So far she seems very happy; she has been able to see some cool locations and do some fun work. I was even able to visit her one weekend on the cheap.

Also, we got married, I got a promotion, and we moved to a closer location to my employer (40 minutes down to 10 minutes commute). All these life events have allowed us to make some serious financial progress in 2016. Maybe one of these days I'll do a journal.

Thanks for all your help, Mustachians!

[AlwaysLearningToSave]

Congrats! Good to see an update and know that things are going well. Here's hoping you have a great 2016.

[Axecleaver]

I appreciate you coming back to update us on your progress. That's great news!

[ditheca]

Awesome update!  Glad to know your risks paid off.

[DebtFreeBy25]

Congrats! Score one for not settling for good enough.