GUEST COMMENT: It may be summer, but that does not imply you should stop looking for a job
Summer holidays are usually the cause of a warm happy feeling inside for City workers - a bit like the one we get when we check our bank balances and discover that our annual bonus has cleared, or when we learn from our managers that we're favourites for an upcoming promotion.
It's hard enough to get annual leave approved in our line of work and when it is signed off, it's usually as brief as one of Pete Doherty's stays in The Priory. Paraphrasing Hobbes (describing the natural state of mankind, something not that different to the trading floor at times), banking holidays are "nasty, brutish and short".
However, there's an exception to this rule: do not take a holiday when you are trying to close a job offer.
The July to August break can be a real spanner in the works, especially if you're in advanced stage of an interview process. This period significantly slows the decision-making required to get the deal done and the details finalised.
Key people are often unavailable to meet you. Their nod of approval is usually necessary in order to provide sign-off on you joining the firm.
Politically, senior people need to feel like they have been consulted on major (and even relatively minor) decisions. I know this from my own experience. I faced considerable resentment in a previous role because I was rushed through a recruitment process and brought into a team without several key team members being informed. My new role was blighted by ill will as a result.
Equally, some recruiters will use the holiday as an excuse to prevaricate about job offers. They don't want to commit. The summer gives them the perfect excuse.
The reality is that a job hunt is 99% sitting and twiddling you fingers, waiting for others to get back to you. It's a buyer's job market right now: don't expect anybody to move mountains for you. But if someone does get back to you, it's absolutely in your interest to expedite the process so that you can get first-mover advantage while your rivals are lying on a beach.
Equally, the summer rut provides a valuable opportunity for recruitment-related small talk. Establish the timelines and calendars of all the interviewers you meet. Ask where they're going on holiday. It may sound clichéd but people love talking about their time off. Note what they say and follow-up accordingly.
The author works in the City and is one financial crisis away from being able to use the phrase "I've seen it all."
