| Back to Home > Bulletin Board > Media Issues > Topic: Addressing last job in interview |
Topic: Addressing last job in interview
| Author | Message |
| incendiaryredhead | Posted – 9/3/2008 11:06:51 AM | show profile I was recently fired from an EIC job I held for 9 years. It wasn't for incompetence; we hired a new publisher and we didn't see eye to eye. He wanted to be 100% involved in the editorial; I fought him 1000% when advertisers started getting free editorial and I was told what stories to run and write. I've never been fired before. I want to spin this right in interviews. How do I convey to someone that the firing was a simple change in the mission of the pub without making it sound like I didn't have any authority? I also don't want to be overly vague, lest they think I was not a team player or I am bitter. TIA. |
| mkelly | Posted – 9/3/2008 12:54:50 PM | show profile "A new publisher came on board. He wanted to take the magazine in a fundamentally different direction, giving advertisers free, flattering coverage on the editorial side. When I told him I disagreed with that, he fired me." Nothing more, and nothing less. Then just answer whatever questions the interviewer has as succinctly as possible. You're not the first editor to get fired, after all. It's not a big deal. |
| foodlit | Posted – 9/3/2008 1:38:03 PM | show profile Matt said it perfectly. Just be direct and matter-of-fact. This happens often when new management comes in. Keep it short and sweet, worst thing you can do is to over-explain. Good luck, sounds like you're well rid of the place! |
| WordyBird | Posted – 9/3/2008 1:42:30 PM | show profile "A new publisher came on board. He wanted to take the magazine in a fundamentally different direction, giving advertisers free, flattering coverage on the editorial side. When I told him I disagreed with that, he fired me." I might leave out "giving advertisers free, flattering coverage on the editorial side." It just strikes me as bitter and like you're bad-mouthing a former employer. You may have good reason, but still. If the person interviewing you is astute and is also interested enough in what happened next, he or she will ask for an elaboration. I might also say, "when I disagreed with the new direction, we decided that it would be better for me to seek new opportunities." I mean, you were planning on leaving, anyway, right? Take back some of that authority. |
| gdobush | Posted – 9/4/2008 5:50:01 PM | show profile <<< "A new publisher came on board. He wanted to take the magazine in a fundamentally different direction, giving advertisers free, flattering coverage on the editorial side. When I told him I disagreed with that, he fired me." I might leave out "giving advertisers free, flattering coverage on the editorial side." It just strikes me as bitter and like you're bad-mouthing a former employer. >>> I disagree. Then it would sound like redhead was fired just because he or she didn't like the change that was happening. Saying the exact point of disagreement in this case shows you've got standards and ethics and stand up for them. |
| candylilacs | Posted – 9/4/2008 6:57:58 PM | show profile You want one sentence for this only then move on. "A new publisher reorganized the company and there wasn't a place for me. But my skills of X, Y, Z make me a great candidate for this position." No bitterness, no recriminations. They don't want to hear it. c. ------ Dealing with being laid off, so you don't have to! www.laidoffjournal.com |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 9/4/2008 8:04:56 PM | show profile --"A new publisher came on board. He wanted to take the magazine in a fundamentally different direction, giving advertisers free, flattering coverage on the editorial side. When I told him I disagreed with that, he fired me." I might leave out "giving advertisers free, flattering coverage on the editorial side." It just strikes me as bitter and like you're bad-mouthing a former employer.-- I think it's important to say what the different direction is; otherwise it's so vague as to be meaningless. |
| foodlit | Posted – 9/4/2008 8:27:17 PM | show profile "A new publisher reorganized the company and there wasn't a place for me. But my skills of X, Y, Z make me a great candidate for this position." No offense, candy, but I wouldn't advise presenting it this way. The perception it gives is that you were dead weight that was cut. I think it it important to be clear as to why you were fired, but it's all in how it's presented. Short and sweet without going into too many negative specifics. |
| questoo1 | Posted – 9/4/2008 8:57:38 PM | show profile well if its an integrity issue , not an authority issue than present it as just that. If a company has an issue with that its likely because they'd want you to do the same (give edit to adverisers etc..) in which case, based on this experience you likely wouldn't want to work there |
| consider | Posted – 9/5/2008 11:27:40 AM | show profile Here's how I spun the job I left: "I worked at Butthead Marketing for A months under the editorial director who hired and mentored me. However, he left to start his own business, and when the current editorial director took over, the ethos of the company changed. He and I weren't a good business match." "We agreed that Butthead Marketing would be better suited for a writer who agreed with Butthead Director's business vision. I am attracted to this position because it fits with mine." |
| WordyBird | Posted – 9/5/2008 12:33:55 PM | show profile "I think it's important to say what the different direction is; otherwise it's so vague as to be meaningless. " I think a smart interviewer can and will read between the lines. |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 9/5/2008 1:22:55 PM | show profile --"I think it's important to say what the different direction is; otherwise it's so vague as to be meaningless. " I think a smart interviewer can and will read between the lines-- It's a free world, so an interviewee is free to take that chance, be cryptic, and hope the interviewer will ask the right follow-up question or draw the assumption you hope for. The risk, of course, is that he'll draw another assumption from your vagueness. I'd rather spell it out. But that's me. |
| mkelly | Posted – 9/5/2008 3:07:02 PM | show profile Look, being factual can indeed make someone else look bad-- there's no need to apologize for it, or try to spare that person. If he said he wanted flattering copy, and you said no, and he fired you, then those are the facts; just say them. Precision and accuracy matter. Besides, if you're applying for EIC jobs, then you're talking to publishers. Rest assured, this will not be the first time they have heard that one of their own wanted flattering copy for advertisers. This will not be news to them, and they will not consider it smear attempt by a bitter ex-employee. |
| jkdscribe | Posted – 9/6/2008 12:17:40 AM | show profile I had a similar experience to this recently. When getting hired for my most recent job, I left my last, very short-term job, off my resume. However, I addressed it in my interview. I explained that while the job itself was okay the editor and I simply disagreed on a few things, and I explained those in detail which gave me an opportunity to show how I felt things should be done. Later, after I was hired, one editor told me she was actually impressed that I was so matter-of-fact and confident to admit that I had quit a job so quickly because of how confident I was in that decision, especially how it applied to my views of ethics and how things should work in a newsroom. This would be different in a cover letter than in an interview. I'd say you have two options: one sentence or several. If you choose the latter route, be sure to stick to facts and keep it professional, and just mention the reasons why you didn't see eye to eye. In the end this might actually help you land a job with a company you would rather work for rather than one that wors the same way. |
| jkdscribe | Posted – 9/6/2008 12:22:59 AM | show profile also... I agree with a succinct approach, but you do need to have a longer explanation at the ready. If you have one sentence prepared and practiced, that's exactly how it will sound. And thus, it will sound like a lie, or at best a distorted version of the truth. In my case, they actually brought me back for a second interview because they wanted to know more about my situation, and I was completely honest, citing where perhaps I was wrong, but also why I felt I should have acted as I did. If anything, I think they now trust me more because it showed them how I felt about the practices of the other publication, ethically. |
