Can your employer’s bad reputation tarnish yours?

One of our candidates works for a company with questionable reputation. Recently she asked us if we thought that the bad reputation her employer holds in the market place could negatively affect her chances of finding future employment.

The answer is not a clear-cut “yes”. If you are a superstar in what you do, chances are you will easily find employment (given the economy cooperates, of course) regardless of the company that previously employed you. After all, we are in Montreal where people tend to be more open-minded and less quick to judge. That being said, if your current employer is in the midst of a highly publicized scandal or is in an industry that makes people uncomfortable, making a move will certainly be more challenging.

All things aside, you should keep in mind that companies have reputations they do for a reason. If your employer is known for having unprofessional staff, being a “revolving door” for employees, not meeting its contractual obligations or treating clients as a commodity, why should you be working for them?

Having myself worked for a company with a bad reputation in the industry, I am constantly justifying to prospective clients that I am actually professional and trustworthy despite having company X on my résumé. From this personal experience, I can tell you that the difference between being part of a company as described above VS a place where employees are consistently praised by clients for their top notch client skills and professionalism is priceless. Not cringing every time you make a call to a prospective client and they ask: “Which company are you calling from?” is priceless. Feeling proud to walk into your office (as opposed to embarrassed and hoping nobody from the outside will notice where you are headed) is priceless.

Are you ready to stop cringing and to finally feel proud to represent your employer? Time to make a move then – give us a shout and let’s see if we can be of help!