If it's not in writing, it didn't happen.

Your job offer isn’t “official” until it’s in writing.

Not just that, anything you’ve negotiated during the interview stage isn’t official until it’s in writing.

Why it matters: Earlier this week I posted on X about a candidate who got screwed out of an offer.

During the application and interview process, they were told their job offer was fully remote by the recruiter verbally.

This candidate made it to the offer stage, only to find out when they received their official offer letter, the company actually mandated 1 day per week in the office.

That might not sound like a big deal, but considering this candidate lived halfway across the country, it actually was.

Zoom In:

Now, while this isn’t “common”, there’s a decent amount of instances of recruiters/companies trying to pull a “fast one” on candidates, especially in an employer’s market.

These motives are unclear.

Maybe it’s due to miscommunication from the recruiter’s side. Maybe it’s miscommunication from the manager’s side. Or maybe it’s from HR. It could also be them trying to pull a fast one and praying the candidate is desperate enough in this market to just suck it up and accept it.

That being said, whatever you and your recruiter (and the interviewing team) verbally agree to, make sure to document everything in writing via email.

Call To Action:

Moving forward, make sure to confirm all aspects of your application via email after your call with the recruiter.

If you’re currently in the interview process right now, think about anything you’ve negotiated verbally on the phone with your recruiter and the interviewing team.

• Salary

• WFH/Onsite requirements

• PTO

• Benefits

• Any additional perks, etc

Go back to them and have them confirm this via email. This way, it leaves a paper trail and indisputable evidence when the offer comes in.

If they refuse to put it in writing - that should tell you everything you need to know and should be treated as an immediate red flag. There is no reason for them not to confirm whatever you discussed over the phone, in an email.

They probably are going to take back or knock down whatever you negotiated by time you get to the offer stage, or want to wait until the last second to try to get whatever parameters you negotiated to get approved by their boss.

Now if they don’t want to confirm in writing, but still verbally agree, that’s your call to make whether or not you want to continue to interview with them. If so, at least you know potential red flags at the offer stage and are prepared to know what you’re potentially getting yourself into.

Not a perfect process:

Will this prevent every bad actor? Of course not.

As we know, it’s an employer’s market, and there’s a low barrier entry into the recruiting world. Just like any other gig with a low barrier to entry, there will always be bad actors.

The last two years, we’ve seen offers rescinded and negotiated terms walked back months after people have started. This is likely due to “silent layoffs”, which is another topic for another day.

That being said, by having them put things in writing, it makes them commit (at that point of time at least) to whatever terms you’ve negotiated, and at the very least, gives you a higher % chance to get those negotiated terms confirmed up on offer.

If they confirm in writing, you have a higher chance of it working out. If they refuse to confirm in writing (at that point of time), then there’s obviously a lower chance.

Bottom Line:

If it’s not in writing, it didn’t happen.

Make sure you get everything - and anything - you’ve discussed & negotiated with your recruiter confirmed via email.

…..

I put together an easy-to-follow guide on how to tackle your job search, which you can check out below:

If you’re looking to book a call directly with me, you can fill out the form below. Note, I’m only doing 30 min calls at the moment with being busy at work & with the baby and all! That being said, we can book multiple 30 min calls if needed.