

Business advice: Am I being paranoid or should I be cautious? - throwaway169

There are very few people I can turn to for advice on the following issue:<p>I'm currently a technical manager at a software company and have a position open for a developer. I interviewed a very strong candidate who currently works for company X that I would like to hire. Company X is not a competitor at all, so there are no non-compete issues.<p>A couple days after I interviewed the above candidate I receive a call from a high level executive at company X. Instead of bitching me out for poaching their talent, the exec says that I was highly recommended by a former employer and they would like to discuss a potential opportunity to join their company.<p>Obviously this leaves me in quite a quandary for a variety of reasons.<p>1. I would like to pursue this new opportunity, but the timing seems to perfect to be coincidental<p>2. I feel that my obligation is to pursue the interests of my current employer unless a concrete deal is made between me and company X. Obviously it could be quite bad for myself if I hire away a top talent one day, and then join company X the next.<p>3. What is the potential for this to be some kind of retaliatory attack for hiring away their talent? Could they be trying to put me in a pinch where I end up unemployed? This seems pretty paranoid to me, but much shadier things have occurred in business.<p>Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
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AmberShah
Move forward with doing the right thing for your current employer. Once the
developer is in, you could continue a conversation with company X and disclose
what happened and see how they react. If they are a normal company, it really
won't affect it whatsoever.

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throwaway169
Thankyou.

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cjg
I would not pursue your opportunity with Company X. Perhaps they will let you
start and then give you notice a week later with some excuse like "poor fit".
Perhaps not.

If you aren't happy in your current role then see what other companies can
offer. If Company X can see your talent, then so can others.

Don't be lazy.

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throwaway169
Thanks for the advice. I like my job that I have now. I think I will call off
my meeting with company X due to conflict of interest.

