April “Leadership Matters” Provides Advice on How to Say “No” to Candidates, Job Offers

(PRLEAP.COM) When it comes to job searches, organizations and job candidates want to get to "yes," a good fit between organization and candidate, personality, experience, salary and demands. But even successful job searches entail saying no – to other candidates or other job offers.

The current issue of “Leadership Matters” offers advice for organizations and job candidates on how to say no. The reason: whether you’re an employer, search professional or job seeker, learning how to say “no” well can make the difference between burning a bridge and maintaining a relationship. Taking the time and attention to getting “no” right can be important for the next search.

Each month “Leadership Matters” picks a different theme designed as a conversation about how to build and sustain effective nonprofit organizations. Published by Bridgestar, a nonprofit initiative of the Bridgespan Group dedicated to attracting, connecting and supporting senior leaders for the sector, “Leadership Matters” is available to Bridgestar members or, for a complimentary subscription, please email subscribe@bridgestar.org.

The newsletter is part of a robust portfolio of offerings that includes a job board that has listed more than 400 senior positions from around the United States and across a range of service areas including the environment, human services, elder services, human rights, and youth services. The organization has assisted more than 50 organizations in finding new leaders through its talent-matching services, which include executive recruiting and related advisory activities.

The issue features tips for organizations, such as to be timely, have the person leading the process make the call, and to be clear and succinct about the situation. For those turning down a position, Bridgestar recommends calling the hiring manager as soon as the candidate has decided not to take the offer, and to be gracious about the offer and time spent by the hiring organization in the recruiting process.

For job seekers, hearing “no” can be a big disappointment, especially if they have invested time through multiple interviews with the organization. But Bridgestar says it’s important to ask for feedback to learn from the experience – as long as it’s from a “I want to learn from this experience,” not “how could you turn me down?” In one example, a short-listed candidate so impressed the company that it offered him a job several months later.

The current issue of “Leadership Matters” is available at:
http://www.bridgestar.org/Learning/Newsletters/2006/April2006.aspx.

“No one likes to say ‘no’ or to hear ‘no,’ but it’s a fact of recruiting and job searching that you’re going to say or hear it more often than ‘yes,’” says David Simms, Managing Director, Bridgestar. “That’s why it’s important to learn how to deal with ‘no’: so you can build, not burn, bridges. Organizations and job-seekers may be looking again. Getting this right is so critical that we are including in the topic in the next version of Bridgestar’s Hiring Toolkit, our comprehensive and popular guide designed to help nonprofits recruit the senior executives who are most qualified for positions as well as most likely to fit the organizations’ missions and cultures.”

About Bridgestar
Bridgestar, an initiative of the Bridgespan Group, is a nonprofit organization providing talent-matching services, content, and tools designed to help organizations build strong leadership teams and individuals pursue career paths as nonprofit leaders. Bridgestar’s goal is to attract, connect, and support senior talent, leading to greater organizational effectiveness and social impact.