"Why did you leave your last job?"

I interview a ton of candidates, and my first call with them always includes the question "Why did you leave your last job?"  Come to think of it, I have never seen a candidate get hired without having to answer this question.  Not even once.

So get good at explaining why you left.  Your interviewer doesn’t want all the gory details about why things didn’t work out in your last job.  But the hiring company's due diligence requirements compel the interviewer to ask – and you should have a brief, logical, professional answer that reflects well on you and your former employer.  When in doubt, be hard on the issues and soft on the people.

Ideally, you should get something in writing from your former employer.  This brief letter should focus on the positives, even if you left for performance reasons.  You might have to negotiate such a statement, but a written statement is a "must" – especially since your former bosses might themselves quit at some point in the future, leaving you with no record of your accomplishments during your employment there.

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Comments

[Wondering]

Would really like to hear your answer to the Comment/question from 9/11/07: what if the job you were hired for turned out to be completely different -- despite your having done due diligence beforehand?

[Gee]

What about if you're leaving because the job you were hired for is completely different from what actually happened?

[Eric]

Harry, Im confused by your post a little bit. Are you talking about situations where you left the company under negative circumstances, got fired, laid off etc? Or just any reason?

I myself have changed jobs a few times in 24 years in business. Almost always it was for a better opportunity. However, the TRUE reason was usually boredom. I let a recruiter "recruit me". Add that to better money or situation and I was gone.

Only once did I leave a job for negative reasons and that was because the young CEO and I didnt like each other and I lost the political game.

The answer to these questions varies by circumstance and by age I think. I value stability more than I used to but boredom still is a factor.

Eric