Have you been thinking about the beach all summer?  That vacation you have coming up next week? Simply just excited about putting your feet up for the summer, relaxing, recharging and leaving your job search until September?  Maybe that’s not the best idea!

The past couple of weeks when speaking to those considering changing jobs, we often hear them say ‘Oh, I know now is not the best time to look…”. 

There is a sense among most people that the job market slows down during the summer months.  That firms stop hiring and leave any and all vacancies to be filled until September.  Well, the reality is law firms and companies are still hiring and they’re are hiring a lot.  What makes things seem like they slow down is that during the summer months hiring processes do tend to take longer as hiring managers and Partners take vacation. But the jobs are still there!

Given this misconception, today I wanted to talk to you about some of the reasons why job searching during the summer months has its benefits:

1. There is less competition – Obviously, a lot of people do take their vacations during the summer months.  They head to the cottage, take a flight somewhere, if they have children, their children will be out of school, so they are most likely to plan a trip during this time.  With this, people who may otherwise be job searching and interviewing, are now focusing on their travel plans, ultimately reducing the amount of competition you would be facing had these people not had any trips or vacations planned.  This ultimately will make things much easier for you.   

• You will have an easier time asking for time off for interviews – During the summer months, your office may be slower, managers and supervisors may take time off, there are more social events and possibly, your office has summer hours.  With all of this, if you need to slip out of the office in the middle of the day for an interview, you will be more likely to do so, without it causing much concern or raising any flags.

• Summer is an easier time to transition into a new job - Summertime is typically a less hectic time to transition to a new job. As a new employee, you can get better acquainted with your new firm when there are less people in the office and things are a bit slower.  For example, if your role is to support 2 lawyers, but one is on vacation, you can ease into your new role, supporting the one at first.  This gives you time to learn your new firm’s process and software.  We see this happen quite often during the summer. 

Further, your new firm may have more social functions during the summer which will allow you to get better acquainted with your new team!

Thanks for reading!  If you have any questions around this or any other topic, be sure to call or email us.

Happy Job Searching and Good Luck!