Career Strategy

Waiting To Hear

The Art of Polite Persistence

" The waiting is the hardest part."
 
          — Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers

Waiting for an employer to tell you where you stand can be nerve-wracking. We offer two types of wisdom to help make sense of it all.

The Inside View from the Employer's Perspective

The absolute top priority for any employer -big, small, private, or public--is getting the legal work done. Hiring, while important, is not usually an employer's top priority.

This doesn't mean that employers don't value their new people or don't welcome your interest. And it doesn't mean you should stop targeting employers who don't advertise-they may in fact hire you! It simply means that in any law office, the delivery of legal services will almost always trump hiring.

The vast majority of law offices have no full time "hiring coordinators" or "recruitment managers." Hiring is usually driven by the lawyers-who must squeeze hiring in between practicing law and other commitments. If a busy lawyer is forced to choose between meeting a client deadline and responding to a law student's email, the client deadline will get handled first.

So where does hiring fit in to an employer's priorities? To be sure, hiring is very important because law is a service profession and people provide the service. But hiring is not as urgent as client needs. Moreover, clients have much greater leverage than law students. For example, a client can (and will) dump a law firm if their calls aren't being returned promptly. A law student can "dump" an employer, but dozens (if not hundreds) more students will happily take that student's place in line.

Further, in today's difficult economy, many employers simply need more time to make smart hiring decisions. The decision of whether to hire-much less who to hire-must be airtight. Hiring decisions must be finely tuned to the available legal work, the available funding for salaries, and the quality of the candidate. Similarly, someone could be advocating within the organization to secure you an offer. Employers cannot afford to rush into bad hiring decisions. Thus, you may find yourself playing "the waiting game" with employers of all shapes and sizes.

How to Handle the Waiting Game

• Accept that two things are certain in the job search process: (1) the process will often be unpredictable and (2) you will often face uncertainty.
   
• Take action on other fronts by pursuing other employers. Keep moving forward while you're waiting for a response. Don't wait passively for something to happen. Be pro-active by targeting other employers.
   
• Follow up with employers by phone, e-mail and/or letter after 2-3 weeks. Calendar next follow-up dates.
   
• When following up, convey your continued enthusiasm, not your frustration. Remember: the person on the other end of that call can be your best advocate or your worst enemy. How you treat them will dictate which role they play in your candidacy.
   
• Continue networking with the organization-you may develop helpful relationships.
   
• Be ready to move quickly if and when you finally do get a response. Use the "waiting period" to research the employer in greater depth and determine what questions you'd need answered before accepting an offer.
   
• Know your audience when following up. Overwhelmed? Afraid to make hasty decision? Waiting for economic justification to hire? Trying to convince others to hire you? Empathize with your audience and don't vent your frustration.
   
• Expand your plan. Develop new targets. Don't put all your eggs in one basket.
   
• Be honest. Don't use ruses to get faster answers. Don't say "I've got an offer from another employer" if you don't. Honesty is always the best policy.
   
• If you're told "sorry, can't take you now," consider contacting the employer again later in the year (or even the following year).
   
• For many small firms, non-profits, and government agencies, a lot can change in 6 months. So, if the employer really matters to you, stay in touch!
   
• Make peace with the fact that closure may not occur in every situation. Persistence in the face of uncertainty will eventually produce results!

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