Can Job-Hopping Harm Your Career?

By October 27, 2017For Talent

Job-Hopping or jumping ship when a better offer comes along is a phenomenon on the rise according to workplace statistics. Millenials and Generation Y are usually the prime suspects.

But is jumping from one job to the next really that terrible?

Career experts have been debating this for a while now, many citing that it’s a bad idea. It turns out, however, that there can be some benefits to quickly moving from job to job up the career ladder.

Like many things in life, the issue isn’t black or white. Here we weigh up some of the pros and cons.

Pros

 

You will get a wealth of experience

There’s no denying that working at various different companies will teach you a lot. You’ll get the chance to learn from different teams and work with different systems. Job-hopping at the start of your career can broaden your knowledge and expertise in a short space of time.

However, you should bear in mind that it takes at least 6 months to become fully immersed in a company so make sure that you give each place a chance before you move on.

Your network will grow

Another positive of job-hopping is that it provides you with opportunities to meet new people. As a result, it is a great way to grow your network and add to your contacts.

This will not only help you to stay on top of the latest trends within your sector, it could also help you to land your next gig.

You can improve your salary quickly.

Hopping from one job to the next will undoubtedly help you to increase your salary (if you’re a good negotiator that is) but if your job history is full of short-term jobs your agenda may become very transparent. Once you have found a job that is willing to pay you a salary that you are happy with you should stick it out for a while.

Cons

It can make you look disloyal 

When a hiring manager looks at your experience they may be put off by frequent job hopping. In the same way that staying at a job for five or more years is seen as demonstrating loyalty, job-hopping can be perceived as instability and unprofessionalism.

Companies spend a lot of money finding and training the right staff so it is only natural that they would be reluctant to take someone on who is a flight risk. That being said, it is becoming more and more common for employees to change roles after a year or two so recruiters are taking that into account.

You may miss a promotion

Companies usually prefer to promote employees from within. Afterall, it saves them money and time. If you are constantly changing jobs then you may miss out on these opportunities. Managers are much more likely to champion members of staff that they have known over a long period of time.

In a similar vein, frequent job-hopping can leave you open to the threat of redundancy. If you’re the last person to join the company you are likely to be the first person to leave if things do not work out.

Author Alice Murray

Alice Murray is a Content Creator at Jobbio with a passion for Employer Branding and Graduate Culture. She's a keen traveller and a self-proclaimed lazy runner.

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