How to turn down this job offer?

Pep

I got an interview, perhaps they will offer me a job. Here some facts:

Present job:
work: great (but stressful)
boss: great
colleagues: great
salary: good
location: bad

Future job (in case the offer comes):
work: good (but not as good as present one, and even more stressful)
boss: arrogant
colleagues: probably good
salary: extremely good, say 20 on a 1-10 scale
location: extremely good, say 20 on a 1-10 scale

If the offer comes, I will probably turn it down. Main reason I consider my future boss not a "nice" person with whom I will be happy to work. Maybe ok if he was my colleague, but not him being my boss.

But the company, the work, the pay, and the location ARE great. So, I don't want to kill bridges, who knows maybe in future I will apply for a different position in that company.
Taking the job and later maybe change department is a no-no.

How to reply? (if the offer comes)
Thanks,

pblakeney

Just reply that you can't take the job as the current boss is a knob.
That should do it. They either know it, or aren't worth working for.

surrey_commuter

Essentially you like your current job due to people and your concern about he new job is a person.
I am just cautioning you that things could look very different in 12 months time - but the locations and salaries will have stayed the same.

Money can buy happiness so stop being a big girls blouse and take the new job!!!

bianchimoon

Surrey Commuter wrote:

Essentially you like your current job due to people and your concern about he new job is a person.
I am just cautioning you that things could look very different in 12 months time - but the locations and salaries will have stayed the same.

Money can buy happiness so stop being a big girls blouse and take the new job!!!

exactly it's called work and not socialise for a reason, you go there to earn as much as you can, take the money before your current boss leaves and the guy from the new place becomes his replacement

rick_chasey

Direct, or via recruiter?

haydenm

Surrey Commuter wrote:

Essentially you like your current job due to people and your concern about he new job is a person.
I am just cautioning you that things could look very different in 12 months time - but the locations and salaries will have stayed the same.

Money can buy happiness so stop being a big girls blouse and take the new job!!!

This, things might change and you will regret it. When you say the location is extremely good do that change your commute a huge amount? I would take the money and 45 minutes less commuting a day for example

kingstongraham

Pep wrote:

...
Present job:...
salary: good
location: bad

Future job (in case the offer comes):...
salary: extremely good, say 20 on a 1-10 scale
location: extremely good, say 20 on a 1-10 scale
...

I'd think carefully before dismissing this - it's rare that these two come together like that.

Pep

Rick Chasey wrote:

Direct, or via recruiter?

Direct. There are no recruiter in the field I work.

Pep

HaydenM wrote:

Surrey Commuter wrote:

Essentially you like your current job due to people and your concern about he new job is a person.
I am just cautioning you that things could look very different in 12 months time - but the locations and salaries will have stayed the same.

Money can buy happiness so stop being a big girls blouse and take the new job!!!

This, things might change and you will regret it. When you say the location is extremely good do that change your commute a huge amount? I would take the money and 45 minutes less commuting a day for example

New job is 1000km from present one. We would move, not an issue.

slowbike

I don't know how you turn it down so you don't burn bridges - but if you've already decided that the new boss is a knob and you couldn't work for him then - along with the extra stress (because the new boss is a knob?) may not be worth the additional money and better location - which sounds like a conclusion you've come too.

I know a chap who quit his job because his boss was intollerable - the chap is a very level headed and pragmatic bloke, but couldn't cope with his boss - snide, backstabing and manipulative - and I don't blame him for quiting.
Money can buy a lot of happiness - but my old addage that I stick too - if you don't like being at work it's time to look somewhere else - we spend a lot of time at work - it has to be tollerable!

laurentian

Pep wrote:

But the company, the work, the pay, and the location ARE great. So, I don't want to kill bridges, who knows maybe in future I will apply for a different position in that company.

Thanks,

Whatever you do, the bridge not to burn is the one with your present empoyer

Pep

bianchimoon wrote:

Surrey Commuter wrote:

Essentially you like your current job due to people and your concern about he new job is a person.
I am just cautioning you that things could look very different in 12 months time - but the locations and salaries will have stayed the same.

Money can buy happiness so stop being a big girls blouse and take the new job!!!

exactly it's called work and not socialise for a reason, you go there to earn as much as you can, take the money before your current boss leaves and the guy from the new place becomes his replacement

In my work (any company in this field) people tend to have temporary contracts. Many people are on temporary contracts all their career. If/when your boss does not support you, you are dead, at least in the company you happen to be. I see this regularly.

I know my present boss does support me, and will continue to do so as long as he is satisfied.

I doubt next boss will support me.

Mikey23

Boss will probably not be for ever, particularly if he is a knob. If everything else fits then take the job.

fenix

Why even waste energy thinking about something that might not happen ?

rick_chasey

I'd be tempted to say you're too far down the line to not p!ss people off.

Firms only tend to give offers to people on the assumption that the person has shown enough interest that it won't be rejected out of hand.

I'd ask the question, why have you got to this point if nothing they could realistically offer would change your mind?

Pep

Rick Chasey wrote:

I'd be tempted to say you're too far down the line to not p!ss people off.

Firms only tend to give offers to people on the assumption that the person has shown enough interest that it won't be rejected out of hand.

I'd ask the question, why have you got to this point if nothing they could realistically offer would change your mind?

Do you work in recruitement?

First, I witnessed the opposite (a candidate turning down an offer) many times at places I worked, and the company did not get pissed, it's normal part of the game. What if a candidate get more than one offer?

Second, is there any value in doing an interview? I think there is, otherwise interviews would not be done. As much as there are things about me they could not have known before the interview, there are also things about them I could not have possibly know before the interview.

It's more than possible the offer will not come. If it does come, we will see...

Frank Wilson

I find it hard that you are looking at a salary 20 on a 1-10 scale but have to ask other people's advice. One presumes the job is in a limited field whereby job specific training trumps common sense.

rick_chasey

Pep wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

I'd be tempted to say you're too far down the line to not p!ss people off.

Firms only tend to give offers to people on the assumption that the person has shown enough interest that it won't be rejected out of hand.

I'd ask the question, why have you got to this point if nothing they could realistically offer would change your mind?

Do you work in recruitement?

First, I witnessed the opposite (a candidate turning down an offer) many times at places I worked, and the company did not get pissed, it's normal part of the game. What if a candidate get more than one offer?

Second, is there any value in doing an interview? I think there is, otherwise interviews would not be done. As much as there are things about me they could not have known before the interview, there are also things about them I could not have possibly know before the interview.

It's more than possible the offer will not come. If it does come, we will see...

I do.

So you jumped through all of the hoops for what - interview experience?

Pep

Rick Chasey wrote:

So you jumped through all of the hoops for what - interview experience?

Pep wrote:

there are also things about them I could not have possibly know before the interview.

Rick, what are interviews for? Are they not so that each side get the chance to learn about the other?

rick_chasey

Pep wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

So you jumped through all of the hoops for what - interview experience?

there are also things about them I could not have possibly know before the interview.

Rick, what are interviews for?

:roll:

No idea pep.

If you're not interested, put in the call, and say thanks but no thanks.

It's fairly simple. If you know you're not interested, end it.

I see it like this - you're not even going to hypothetically move for a hypothetical doubling of salary, so why go through the process?

Pep

Rick Chasey wrote:

I see it like this - you're not even going to hypothetically move for a hypothetical doubling of salary, so why go through the process?

The scope of the process is to learn stuff that without knowing one cannot really take a decision.
Do you think this is wrong?

rick_chasey

I don't think you need to be taking interview for jobs that realistically, you're not going to take.

The location you've said is ideal, and the pay you say is '20 out of 10' and you still won't take it? Unless there's an absolute clanger you've uncovered in the process (which you haven't suggested you have and if you have, why didn't you bin it then?), it sounds to me like you're just kicking tyres and wasting everyone's time.

Pep

Rick,
You work in recruitement and you claim you do not know what are interviews for.
I went to an interview and you claim I am wasting time.

Pep

Rick Chasey wrote:

I don't think you need to be taking interview for jobs that realistically, you're not going to take.

There are informations that you get at the interview, not before.

kingstongraham

If it is through a recruitment agency, they will Always Be Closing, trying to move things along even if the candidate isn't 100% enthusiastic - especially if so much seems to fit. Sometimes it is quite a long way down the line that you realise that you really don't actually want to take the job.

markhewitt1978

I spent 3 years working for a boss who was a bit of a knob, wouldn't want to go back to that!

markhewitt1978

Rick Chasey wrote:

I don't think you need to be taking interview for jobs that realistically, you're not going to take.

That's not what interviews are, or should be for. It *should* be a two way conversation on both sides to see if they are happy with each other and to find out about each other, *then* both sides decide if they want to proceed with it.

We have this attitude that interviews are all about the potential employer making the applicant jump through hoops to see if they are worthy - well it works both ways!

davesnothere

I've had really the opposite of this recently. I have always enjoyed my work (I'm a quantity surveyor/contracts manager in construction) but over the years I've worked for various degrees of w4nker. Split personality w4nker, dishonest/crooked w4nker, micro-managing w4nker etc etc

Finally about 3 years ago I found my current position. Medium sized company and I really like my boss, he blows a bit now and again but he is essentially honest, he really knows the trade and the nuts and bolts of site work, he is a good laugh and if you need to pop off an hour early to see the school play or are a bit late in as you need to drop a kid to school, not a problem. The main reason I love the position/company however is that he gives me and my colleagues a bit of autonomy, not over your shoulder all day long, not in your ear all day long. he has also allowed me and my colleagues to bring in some new systems/procedures to make things run more smoothly/consistently

Bonus is also that the company is very local and the salary/package is decent.

However, just less than a year ago, due to vastly increasing workload and other influences, he decided to take on a commercial manager, who sits above myself and my 3 counterparts and reports to my boss.

Now this manager is a total idiot. Very little knowledge of the industry, terrible management/personal skills, not liked by anyone in the organisation, either above or below. He somehow managed to blag the position. He micro-manages, nit picks and likes nothing better than finding a problem or something that has been missed and highlighting it to the directors.

This has totally changed the atmosphere in the company and has made me seriously consider moving elsewhere. I haven't pursued this in the hope that the w4nker will move on fairly soon. Having seen his CV he rarely stays anywhere much more than a year so we remain in hope. Thankfully my boss maintains a direct contact to us and sidesteps him often which makes the situation more bearable.

What I'm trying to say is (and i think you've already decided this) working for someone you really dislike is hard work and not to be entered into lightly, especially given that you currently have a choice. Unfortunately as things panned out here I didn't need to make that choice when i took the position, hoping that I don't have to anytime soon

davesnothere

Sorry went a bit PARKLIFE there

slowbike

markhewitt1978 wrote:

We have this attitude that interviews are all about the potential employer making the applicant jump through hoops to see if they are worthy - well it works both ways!

we've had our of our directors hold a staff meeting in which we were told that we were lucky to be working here ... that really makes you feel wanted.

Interview is as much for the candidate as it is for the employer to determine if the other will be a fit. It's not always easy to see that the outset - and seeing if you are compatible with your potential managers personality is a major part of it.
Of course, you can always take the job and hope the manager will move on - but you can't rely on that.

sungod

i've worked for a wide variety of people, including a few utter cunts, it's work, if you aren't confident you can handle it, don't take the job, horses for courses

don't know which country you're looking at, if it's appropriate do make sure you've good/suitable legal insurance and keep notes of any abusive/unacceptable/illegal behaviour, it's there if you need it and can be extremely satisfying/profitable