Need to Know Basis: How to Keep Your Job Search Confidential

confidential job searchIf you are in the position to be looking for a job while currently employed, consider yourself lucky.  You are ready to move on and continue to grow as a professional, or perhaps aren’t satisfied with your current pay or company culture.  But since you aren’t unemployed, you don’t have the sense of panic and urgency that many jobseekers deal with that don’t currently have a job.

Of course, if your current employer finds out you are looking to leave the company and decides to end your employment before you do, that sense of security goes out the window.  Even if you keep your current job, you may not want to deal with the discomfort of having others at the company knowing you want to leave.  While you have every right to see what other employment options are out there, it is best to keep your job search as confidential as possible when you are currently employed.  Below are some tips for keeping your job search confidential:

1)  Don’t Use Company Tools for Your Job Search

Avoid using your company e-mail, phone or computer to search for new jobs.  Many companies track their employees’ use of these tools, and could easily get wind of your job hunt.  Besides risking your confidentiality, it’s unfair to your employer to be looking for a new job on their time.

2)  Be Careful When Applying to Online Job Postings

When applying to online job postings, be careful that you don’t end up applying to an open position at your own company by accident.  This is more possible than you think especially if you are looking for a similar position to the one you currently hold.  If you are applying to a position through a recruiter however, you should be able to remain confidential in your job search. It would be a waste of a recruiter’s time to use you as a candidate for a company you already work at.

3)  Network Carefully

When you start gearing up for your job search, it is likely you will want to make sure your profile is up to date on professional networks such as LinkedIn.  To avoid sending a red flag to anyone in your network that works for your current employer, it is best to update your LinkedIn profile gradually, and turn off profile update notifications (it will ask you if you want to notify your network after you do any updates, so just select “No”).  Beyond that, be careful who you reach out to.  To ensure that your job search remains confidential, it is safest to stick with former business colleagues you truly trust, and personal connections such as family members and close friends that you didn’t meet through work.

4)  Make Companies You Interview With Aware

Be sure to make any companies you are interviewing with aware that your current employer doesn’t know you are looking for another job, so that they will not contact them.  And make sure you are giving references that aren’t close to your current employer, so word of your interview doesn’t get out and your job search remains confidential.

5)  Schedule Interviews Strategically

Again, while you have the right to search for another job, it is unfair to sacrifice the quality of your work at your current job because of it.  Do your best to schedule interviews on your own time, or at least at the beginning or end of the day.

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Jessica Cody

Jessica Cody, a native of Fairfield County, Connecticut, has a background in online marketing and public relations. She is a graduate of the University of Connecticut, where she studied Journalism and Political Science. She is also an avid runner with a passion for the outdoors.
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About Jessica Cody

Jessica Cody, a native of Fairfield County, Connecticut, has a background in online marketing and public relations. She is a graduate of the University of Connecticut, where she studied Journalism and Political Science. She is also an avid runner with a passion for the outdoors.

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