On paper, Maddie Machado had what a lot of people would consider a dream job. In September 2021, she started working as a recruiter for Meta, the social media company formerly known as Facebook.
But a few weeks into it, her excitement turned to dread. She'd heard of Big Tech's problem with workplace diversity and, as a Black and Hispanic woman, felt Meta's promises to improve weren't actually happening around her. She felt micromanaged in her day-to-day and that her creativity was being stifled. (Meta declined to comment.)
Machado, 32, felt her new job wasn't what she was told it would be.
It's an incredibly common feeling. Some 72% of jobseekers say they've started a new job and felt a sense of surprise or regret that the role or company was very different from what they were led to believe, according to a January survey of more than 2,500 millennial and Gen Z jobseekers conducted by The Muse.
New-job regrets are disruptive for workers and employers alike. Roughly 20% of jobseekers say they would quit within a month if their new job isn't what they expected, and another 41% would give a new job just two to six months before quitting.
Why it's harder to figure out if you'll like a new job
The Muse CEO and founder Kathryn Minshew refers to this feeling as a "shift shock," which isn't new but could be even more widespread during the Great Resignation.
For>Workers are standing up for what they want, and quitting if they don't get it
Machado quit her job in February, without a new>Hiring managers need to be held accountable, too
It's easy to point fingers at people who take a new job and regret it for acting too brashly. But really, hiring managers are responsible for making sure they advertise a job and company authentically.
With companies desperate to hire and HR pros stretched thin, recruiters could be going rogue and saying things they know aren't true in order to fill roles, Minshew says. Or, they could say things they think are true, but they don't have the full picture of the workplace experience.
Instead, companies should be honest about what it's like to work there, including successes as well as areas for improvement. And interviews should be a two-way street: Are you giving candidates enough time to ask questions about company culture?
"When people feel like they have opted into a situation with eyes wide open," Minshew says, "they're much more likely to accept the good and the bad, and to show up as engaged, productive, satisfied employees."
Machado puts her quick exit this way: "I thought it was better for the company to have somebody who actually wanted to be there, versus someone who just was not happy doing their job."
