The "Safety Net" Lie: Why Integrity is the Only Currency That Doesn't Devalue

The email arrived on a Friday afternoon, exactly four weeks after "Chris" had started his new role as Head of Engineering.

“I’ve decided to move on. A better offer came through from a process I was already in.”

When I called him, Chris was calm. He told me he’d kept interviewing "just in case" the new role didn't work out or a better package appeared. He called it "protecting his interests."

I call it a breach of professional integrity that poisons the well for everyone.

1. The Real Story: The 4-Week Exit

Chris didn't leave because the job was bad. He left because he never actually arrived.

While his new team spent 40+ hours a week onboarding him, sharing their roadmap, and trusting him with their technical debt, Chris was secretly sitting in Zoom lobbies with three other companies. He treated a signed contract like a "placeholder" while he waited for something better.

2. The Clear Stance: It’s Not "Savvy," It’s Sabotage

There is a growing trend in tech recruitment where candidates view an offer acceptance as an "option" rather than a commitment. They call it being "savvy" or "hedging their bets" in a volatile market.

It isn’t. It is unprofessional. It wastes months of strategic time. It burns bridges that can never be rebuilt. And most importantly, it forces companies to become more cynical, more bureaucratic, and less trusting of the next great candidate who walks through the door.

3. The Perspective Flip

Let’s flip the script.

Imagine you, the candidate, resign from your stable job. You move your family. You start at a new firm. You’ve been there for four weeks.

Then, your CEO calls you in and says, “Hey, we’ve decided to let you go. We kept interviewing for your role, just in case we found someone with a better tech stack, and we just found them. They start Monday.”

There would be absolute outrage. You’d be on LinkedIn calling them out. The company would be blacklisted on Glassdoor.

Why is it "strategic" when a candidate does it, but "toxic" when an employer does it?

The standard has to work both ways.

4. The Principle: Integrity is Infrastructure

If we want a better, more human hiring market, we have to stop treating people like interchangeable commodities.

Integrity isn't just a "nice-to-have "; it is the infrastructure that enables a strategic company to move fast and hire with confidence. When that integrity breaks, the whole system slows down. We end up with 7-stage interview processes and defensive bureaucracy because everyone is afraid of being the one left holding the bag.

We hold our clients to high standards. We expect them to move fast, give feedback, and honour their word. We have to expect the same from the talent we represent.

If you want to be treated like a strategic leader, you have to act like one before the first paycheck clears.

Tired of the "Safety Net" games?  We specialise in Strategic Interception, connecting high-integrity leaders with companies that value outcome over volume.

Get in touch if you're ready to build a team based on commitment, not options.