How to cancel your dev job after accepting another job offer

Career AdviceApplication

If you're lucky enough to have at least one, if not more, job offers - congratulations! Reaching the offer stage is rarely easy. So first, take a moment to reward yourself for all the effort you've put in.

When you're done celebrating, however, it's important to close the circle with the other companies you've spoken to - also to avoid burning bridges unnecessarily. This article shares some tips on how to keep those messages short and effective.

Do it on time

First, email or call the other companies you've applied to as soon as possible after accepting your offer. The longer your application stays active, the longer the other companies will be negatively impacted if you end up rejecting their offer (and the more time they will waste). So it's polite to take yourself out of the race in time.

Be direct, but express gratitude

Beating around the bush doesn't help anyone in this situation. So honestly explain the decision you made.

Also, don't forget to be grateful to everyone who was involved in your application process. The recruiter, the HR manager, and everyone else you met spent hours together on your application. So thank your contact persons for the time spent. You can also highlight specific things you liked about the role, company, or DevTeam so you don't just send a generic email to every company you've interviewed.

Explain your reasons (briefly)

It can be helpful for the team to know why you accepted another offer. So help them with a short explanation summarizing your thoughts.

This could be something like:

• You've received a reward package you can't refuse.
• You have found a role that is more in line with your career goals as it includes more X (fill in the blank) than the role in question.
• You have chosen a company that is smaller/bigger/in a different industry because you feel it fits better with your background/career goals.
• You have taken on a role in a company that has more flexible working from home (or a shorter commute to work, etc.) - especially if you have a family.

While a brief explanation is often sufficient, if you've spent more time with the development team or received a personal recommendation, it may be appropriate to provide more details about your decision.

Maintain the relationship

The job market is a small world, regardless of your location or industry. End your email or phone calls with a mention of staying in touch in the future. Keep it open and positive, which might look something like this:

• A final thank you for your time
• That you hope to keep in touch as you really enjoyed meeting her
• You look forward to seeing the company grow

Again, it's okay to keep this short and sweet, but don't overlook the importance of a nice farewell: you never know who you might end up working with in the future. While they'll likely be disappointed that you dropped out, you should make a good impression.