Is it okay to speak openly about the current job when applying to another job?

The name of the pictureThe name of the pictureThe name of the pictureClash Royale CLAN TAG#URR8PPP





.everyoneloves__top-leaderboard:empty,.everyoneloves__mid-leaderboard:empty margin-bottom:0;







up vote
2
down vote

favorite












So let's say I work in a company but I am open for applying to other companies. And while updating my resume I wondered if it is okay to mention the name of product that I currently work on or responsible of, or/and what does the application do and how does it do it. And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.



If it is okay, do I mention that in the resume or in the interview once I get it? And how could I approach the new job?



Edit: I work as a Software Engineer and I spend most of my time writing and reviewing codes. The product is a hardware/software system and it is commercial and customers are using it already. I did not sign any contracts. I would like to say what does the application do exactly and how does it do it because I feel it will support my application to mention that I can maintain/develop such a system and solve such a problem (product's function is to solve a certain problem).







share|improve this question

















  • 1




    What you can talk about depends on what type of contracts you signed. Tech industries have something called "NDA" (Non-Disclosure Agreements), and if you signed one of those, you say NOTHING.
    – Nelson
    Jun 17 '16 at 5:11






  • 1




    "to mention the name of product ... what does the application do and how does it do it" - Are these things public knowledge already (e.g. the product is available for download or purchase to a wide audience)
    – Brandin
    Jun 17 '16 at 7:10










  • @Nelson please see edit
    – Sandra K
    Jun 17 '16 at 13:48










  • @Nope In your edit I still can't really tell if it's public knowledge or not. The fact that customers are using it does not really matter. If you share secret information, that is bad, regardless of contractual agreements.
    – Brandin
    Jun 17 '16 at 14:24
















up vote
2
down vote

favorite












So let's say I work in a company but I am open for applying to other companies. And while updating my resume I wondered if it is okay to mention the name of product that I currently work on or responsible of, or/and what does the application do and how does it do it. And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.



If it is okay, do I mention that in the resume or in the interview once I get it? And how could I approach the new job?



Edit: I work as a Software Engineer and I spend most of my time writing and reviewing codes. The product is a hardware/software system and it is commercial and customers are using it already. I did not sign any contracts. I would like to say what does the application do exactly and how does it do it because I feel it will support my application to mention that I can maintain/develop such a system and solve such a problem (product's function is to solve a certain problem).







share|improve this question

















  • 1




    What you can talk about depends on what type of contracts you signed. Tech industries have something called "NDA" (Non-Disclosure Agreements), and if you signed one of those, you say NOTHING.
    – Nelson
    Jun 17 '16 at 5:11






  • 1




    "to mention the name of product ... what does the application do and how does it do it" - Are these things public knowledge already (e.g. the product is available for download or purchase to a wide audience)
    – Brandin
    Jun 17 '16 at 7:10










  • @Nelson please see edit
    – Sandra K
    Jun 17 '16 at 13:48










  • @Nope In your edit I still can't really tell if it's public knowledge or not. The fact that customers are using it does not really matter. If you share secret information, that is bad, regardless of contractual agreements.
    – Brandin
    Jun 17 '16 at 14:24












up vote
2
down vote

favorite









up vote
2
down vote

favorite











So let's say I work in a company but I am open for applying to other companies. And while updating my resume I wondered if it is okay to mention the name of product that I currently work on or responsible of, or/and what does the application do and how does it do it. And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.



If it is okay, do I mention that in the resume or in the interview once I get it? And how could I approach the new job?



Edit: I work as a Software Engineer and I spend most of my time writing and reviewing codes. The product is a hardware/software system and it is commercial and customers are using it already. I did not sign any contracts. I would like to say what does the application do exactly and how does it do it because I feel it will support my application to mention that I can maintain/develop such a system and solve such a problem (product's function is to solve a certain problem).







share|improve this question













So let's say I work in a company but I am open for applying to other companies. And while updating my resume I wondered if it is okay to mention the name of product that I currently work on or responsible of, or/and what does the application do and how does it do it. And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.



If it is okay, do I mention that in the resume or in the interview once I get it? And how could I approach the new job?



Edit: I work as a Software Engineer and I spend most of my time writing and reviewing codes. The product is a hardware/software system and it is commercial and customers are using it already. I did not sign any contracts. I would like to say what does the application do exactly and how does it do it because I feel it will support my application to mention that I can maintain/develop such a system and solve such a problem (product's function is to solve a certain problem).









share|improve this question












share|improve this question




share|improve this question








edited Jun 17 '16 at 13:46
























asked Jun 17 '16 at 3:50









Sandra K

5,79662043




5,79662043







  • 1




    What you can talk about depends on what type of contracts you signed. Tech industries have something called "NDA" (Non-Disclosure Agreements), and if you signed one of those, you say NOTHING.
    – Nelson
    Jun 17 '16 at 5:11






  • 1




    "to mention the name of product ... what does the application do and how does it do it" - Are these things public knowledge already (e.g. the product is available for download or purchase to a wide audience)
    – Brandin
    Jun 17 '16 at 7:10










  • @Nelson please see edit
    – Sandra K
    Jun 17 '16 at 13:48










  • @Nope In your edit I still can't really tell if it's public knowledge or not. The fact that customers are using it does not really matter. If you share secret information, that is bad, regardless of contractual agreements.
    – Brandin
    Jun 17 '16 at 14:24












  • 1




    What you can talk about depends on what type of contracts you signed. Tech industries have something called "NDA" (Non-Disclosure Agreements), and if you signed one of those, you say NOTHING.
    – Nelson
    Jun 17 '16 at 5:11






  • 1




    "to mention the name of product ... what does the application do and how does it do it" - Are these things public knowledge already (e.g. the product is available for download or purchase to a wide audience)
    – Brandin
    Jun 17 '16 at 7:10










  • @Nelson please see edit
    – Sandra K
    Jun 17 '16 at 13:48










  • @Nope In your edit I still can't really tell if it's public knowledge or not. The fact that customers are using it does not really matter. If you share secret information, that is bad, regardless of contractual agreements.
    – Brandin
    Jun 17 '16 at 14:24







1




1




What you can talk about depends on what type of contracts you signed. Tech industries have something called "NDA" (Non-Disclosure Agreements), and if you signed one of those, you say NOTHING.
– Nelson
Jun 17 '16 at 5:11




What you can talk about depends on what type of contracts you signed. Tech industries have something called "NDA" (Non-Disclosure Agreements), and if you signed one of those, you say NOTHING.
– Nelson
Jun 17 '16 at 5:11




1




1




"to mention the name of product ... what does the application do and how does it do it" - Are these things public knowledge already (e.g. the product is available for download or purchase to a wide audience)
– Brandin
Jun 17 '16 at 7:10




"to mention the name of product ... what does the application do and how does it do it" - Are these things public knowledge already (e.g. the product is available for download or purchase to a wide audience)
– Brandin
Jun 17 '16 at 7:10












@Nelson please see edit
– Sandra K
Jun 17 '16 at 13:48




@Nelson please see edit
– Sandra K
Jun 17 '16 at 13:48












@Nope In your edit I still can't really tell if it's public knowledge or not. The fact that customers are using it does not really matter. If you share secret information, that is bad, regardless of contractual agreements.
– Brandin
Jun 17 '16 at 14:24




@Nope In your edit I still can't really tell if it's public knowledge or not. The fact that customers are using it does not really matter. If you share secret information, that is bad, regardless of contractual agreements.
– Brandin
Jun 17 '16 at 14:24










3 Answers
3






active

oldest

votes

















up vote
1
down vote



accepted










NDAs and Classified Work



Know what you signed when you joined the company. If you signed anything about not telling people what it is you are working on then you cannot. If you are unsure check with your manager or HR. The company might allow certain things to be said like name of products but none of the details about how the product works. So again talk with you manager or HR to determine this.



Outside of those two things if you did not sign something and you are comfortable with talking about it in an everyday conversation with people then it can go on the resume.




And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.




I would save this for the interview. Your resume should be focused and all the space on it is precious. Also keep it positive, if you go negative about aspects of things you did not like, it will hurt you.






share|improve this answer




























    up vote
    0
    down vote













    You have to be careful. You can mention some things if the product is known to the world at large.



    However, let's take it to an extreme: Suppose the product you are currently working on is Global Thermonuclear War. There are some things you do not talk about, and that's one of them. (You'll have the full power of the US government breathing down your back if you do.) Even if your product you work on is much, much more mundane than Global Thermonuclear War, it still might well be something that your current employer views as intellectual property. While they don't have people carrying guns, they do have lawyers.



    Even if what you worked on is not intellectual property, there is a better approach than talking about the boring details of the product you worked on. Talk instead about the tools, techniques, and tricks you learned while on the job. Those are the things your future employer will want to leverage rather than the specific product on which you worked.






    share|improve this answer





















    • -1 because this answer doesn't even mention non-disclosure agreements or other contractual requirements.
      – user45590
      Jun 17 '16 at 7:54

















    up vote
    0
    down vote













    As others have said, what you say in an interview should not go beyond what you could say to someone working at a competing company -- and you really should already know the rules for that!



    This isn't generally a problem. What the interviewer needs to know is how you have been applying your skills, not what you have been applying them to. You can generally find a way to tell them what you have been doing and it's impact on the project without having to disclose proprietary details about exactly how you made it work or the product/project it was used in.



    You may want to practice that in advance before going into interviews. Which is good advice generally -- it help a lot if you know what messages you want to give them, and how you want to phrase them for best impact, before the interview starts.






    share|improve this answer





















      Your Answer







      StackExchange.ready(function()
      var channelOptions =
      tags: "".split(" "),
      id: "423"
      ;
      initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);

      StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function()
      // Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
      if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled)
      StackExchange.using("snippets", function()
      createEditor();
      );

      else
      createEditor();

      );

      function createEditor()
      StackExchange.prepareEditor(
      heartbeatType: 'answer',
      convertImagesToLinks: false,
      noModals: false,
      showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
      reputationToPostImages: null,
      bindNavPrevention: true,
      postfix: "",
      noCode: true, onDemand: false,
      discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
      ,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
      );



      );








       

      draft saved


      draft discarded


















      StackExchange.ready(
      function ()
      StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fworkplace.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f69959%2fis-it-okay-to-speak-openly-about-the-current-job-when-applying-to-another-job%23new-answer', 'question_page');

      );

      Post as a guest

























      StackExchange.ready(function ()
      $("#show-editor-button input, #show-editor-button button").click(function ()
      var showEditor = function()
      $("#show-editor-button").hide();
      $("#post-form").removeClass("dno");
      StackExchange.editor.finallyInit();
      ;

      var useFancy = $(this).data('confirm-use-fancy');
      if(useFancy == 'True')
      var popupTitle = $(this).data('confirm-fancy-title');
      var popupBody = $(this).data('confirm-fancy-body');
      var popupAccept = $(this).data('confirm-fancy-accept-button');

      $(this).loadPopup(
      url: '/post/self-answer-popup',
      loaded: function(popup)
      var pTitle = $(popup).find('h2');
      var pBody = $(popup).find('.popup-body');
      var pSubmit = $(popup).find('.popup-submit');

      pTitle.text(popupTitle);
      pBody.html(popupBody);
      pSubmit.val(popupAccept).click(showEditor);

      )
      else
      var confirmText = $(this).data('confirm-text');
      if (confirmText ? confirm(confirmText) : true)
      showEditor();


      );
      );






      3 Answers
      3






      active

      oldest

      votes








      3 Answers
      3






      active

      oldest

      votes









      active

      oldest

      votes






      active

      oldest

      votes








      up vote
      1
      down vote



      accepted










      NDAs and Classified Work



      Know what you signed when you joined the company. If you signed anything about not telling people what it is you are working on then you cannot. If you are unsure check with your manager or HR. The company might allow certain things to be said like name of products but none of the details about how the product works. So again talk with you manager or HR to determine this.



      Outside of those two things if you did not sign something and you are comfortable with talking about it in an everyday conversation with people then it can go on the resume.




      And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.




      I would save this for the interview. Your resume should be focused and all the space on it is precious. Also keep it positive, if you go negative about aspects of things you did not like, it will hurt you.






      share|improve this answer

























        up vote
        1
        down vote



        accepted










        NDAs and Classified Work



        Know what you signed when you joined the company. If you signed anything about not telling people what it is you are working on then you cannot. If you are unsure check with your manager or HR. The company might allow certain things to be said like name of products but none of the details about how the product works. So again talk with you manager or HR to determine this.



        Outside of those two things if you did not sign something and you are comfortable with talking about it in an everyday conversation with people then it can go on the resume.




        And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.




        I would save this for the interview. Your resume should be focused and all the space on it is precious. Also keep it positive, if you go negative about aspects of things you did not like, it will hurt you.






        share|improve this answer























          up vote
          1
          down vote



          accepted







          up vote
          1
          down vote



          accepted






          NDAs and Classified Work



          Know what you signed when you joined the company. If you signed anything about not telling people what it is you are working on then you cannot. If you are unsure check with your manager or HR. The company might allow certain things to be said like name of products but none of the details about how the product works. So again talk with you manager or HR to determine this.



          Outside of those two things if you did not sign something and you are comfortable with talking about it in an everyday conversation with people then it can go on the resume.




          And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.




          I would save this for the interview. Your resume should be focused and all the space on it is precious. Also keep it positive, if you go negative about aspects of things you did not like, it will hurt you.






          share|improve this answer













          NDAs and Classified Work



          Know what you signed when you joined the company. If you signed anything about not telling people what it is you are working on then you cannot. If you are unsure check with your manager or HR. The company might allow certain things to be said like name of products but none of the details about how the product works. So again talk with you manager or HR to determine this.



          Outside of those two things if you did not sign something and you are comfortable with talking about it in an everyday conversation with people then it can go on the resume.




          And as Non-Technical, to mention why I like it but I am applying to another job.




          I would save this for the interview. Your resume should be focused and all the space on it is precious. Also keep it positive, if you go negative about aspects of things you did not like, it will hurt you.







          share|improve this answer













          share|improve this answer



          share|improve this answer











          answered Jun 17 '16 at 10:05









          Anketam

          3,75321134




          3,75321134






















              up vote
              0
              down vote













              You have to be careful. You can mention some things if the product is known to the world at large.



              However, let's take it to an extreme: Suppose the product you are currently working on is Global Thermonuclear War. There are some things you do not talk about, and that's one of them. (You'll have the full power of the US government breathing down your back if you do.) Even if your product you work on is much, much more mundane than Global Thermonuclear War, it still might well be something that your current employer views as intellectual property. While they don't have people carrying guns, they do have lawyers.



              Even if what you worked on is not intellectual property, there is a better approach than talking about the boring details of the product you worked on. Talk instead about the tools, techniques, and tricks you learned while on the job. Those are the things your future employer will want to leverage rather than the specific product on which you worked.






              share|improve this answer





















              • -1 because this answer doesn't even mention non-disclosure agreements or other contractual requirements.
                – user45590
                Jun 17 '16 at 7:54














              up vote
              0
              down vote













              You have to be careful. You can mention some things if the product is known to the world at large.



              However, let's take it to an extreme: Suppose the product you are currently working on is Global Thermonuclear War. There are some things you do not talk about, and that's one of them. (You'll have the full power of the US government breathing down your back if you do.) Even if your product you work on is much, much more mundane than Global Thermonuclear War, it still might well be something that your current employer views as intellectual property. While they don't have people carrying guns, they do have lawyers.



              Even if what you worked on is not intellectual property, there is a better approach than talking about the boring details of the product you worked on. Talk instead about the tools, techniques, and tricks you learned while on the job. Those are the things your future employer will want to leverage rather than the specific product on which you worked.






              share|improve this answer





















              • -1 because this answer doesn't even mention non-disclosure agreements or other contractual requirements.
                – user45590
                Jun 17 '16 at 7:54












              up vote
              0
              down vote










              up vote
              0
              down vote









              You have to be careful. You can mention some things if the product is known to the world at large.



              However, let's take it to an extreme: Suppose the product you are currently working on is Global Thermonuclear War. There are some things you do not talk about, and that's one of them. (You'll have the full power of the US government breathing down your back if you do.) Even if your product you work on is much, much more mundane than Global Thermonuclear War, it still might well be something that your current employer views as intellectual property. While they don't have people carrying guns, they do have lawyers.



              Even if what you worked on is not intellectual property, there is a better approach than talking about the boring details of the product you worked on. Talk instead about the tools, techniques, and tricks you learned while on the job. Those are the things your future employer will want to leverage rather than the specific product on which you worked.






              share|improve this answer













              You have to be careful. You can mention some things if the product is known to the world at large.



              However, let's take it to an extreme: Suppose the product you are currently working on is Global Thermonuclear War. There are some things you do not talk about, and that's one of them. (You'll have the full power of the US government breathing down your back if you do.) Even if your product you work on is much, much more mundane than Global Thermonuclear War, it still might well be something that your current employer views as intellectual property. While they don't have people carrying guns, they do have lawyers.



              Even if what you worked on is not intellectual property, there is a better approach than talking about the boring details of the product you worked on. Talk instead about the tools, techniques, and tricks you learned while on the job. Those are the things your future employer will want to leverage rather than the specific product on which you worked.







              share|improve this answer













              share|improve this answer



              share|improve this answer











              answered Jun 17 '16 at 5:12









              David Hammen

              1,041616




              1,041616











              • -1 because this answer doesn't even mention non-disclosure agreements or other contractual requirements.
                – user45590
                Jun 17 '16 at 7:54
















              • -1 because this answer doesn't even mention non-disclosure agreements or other contractual requirements.
                – user45590
                Jun 17 '16 at 7:54















              -1 because this answer doesn't even mention non-disclosure agreements or other contractual requirements.
              – user45590
              Jun 17 '16 at 7:54




              -1 because this answer doesn't even mention non-disclosure agreements or other contractual requirements.
              – user45590
              Jun 17 '16 at 7:54










              up vote
              0
              down vote













              As others have said, what you say in an interview should not go beyond what you could say to someone working at a competing company -- and you really should already know the rules for that!



              This isn't generally a problem. What the interviewer needs to know is how you have been applying your skills, not what you have been applying them to. You can generally find a way to tell them what you have been doing and it's impact on the project without having to disclose proprietary details about exactly how you made it work or the product/project it was used in.



              You may want to practice that in advance before going into interviews. Which is good advice generally -- it help a lot if you know what messages you want to give them, and how you want to phrase them for best impact, before the interview starts.






              share|improve this answer

























                up vote
                0
                down vote













                As others have said, what you say in an interview should not go beyond what you could say to someone working at a competing company -- and you really should already know the rules for that!



                This isn't generally a problem. What the interviewer needs to know is how you have been applying your skills, not what you have been applying them to. You can generally find a way to tell them what you have been doing and it's impact on the project without having to disclose proprietary details about exactly how you made it work or the product/project it was used in.



                You may want to practice that in advance before going into interviews. Which is good advice generally -- it help a lot if you know what messages you want to give them, and how you want to phrase them for best impact, before the interview starts.






                share|improve this answer























                  up vote
                  0
                  down vote










                  up vote
                  0
                  down vote









                  As others have said, what you say in an interview should not go beyond what you could say to someone working at a competing company -- and you really should already know the rules for that!



                  This isn't generally a problem. What the interviewer needs to know is how you have been applying your skills, not what you have been applying them to. You can generally find a way to tell them what you have been doing and it's impact on the project without having to disclose proprietary details about exactly how you made it work or the product/project it was used in.



                  You may want to practice that in advance before going into interviews. Which is good advice generally -- it help a lot if you know what messages you want to give them, and how you want to phrase them for best impact, before the interview starts.






                  share|improve this answer













                  As others have said, what you say in an interview should not go beyond what you could say to someone working at a competing company -- and you really should already know the rules for that!



                  This isn't generally a problem. What the interviewer needs to know is how you have been applying your skills, not what you have been applying them to. You can generally find a way to tell them what you have been doing and it's impact on the project without having to disclose proprietary details about exactly how you made it work or the product/project it was used in.



                  You may want to practice that in advance before going into interviews. Which is good advice generally -- it help a lot if you know what messages you want to give them, and how you want to phrase them for best impact, before the interview starts.







                  share|improve this answer













                  share|improve this answer



                  share|improve this answer











                  answered Jun 17 '16 at 10:45









                  keshlam

                  41.5k1267144




                  41.5k1267144






















                       

                      draft saved


                      draft discarded


























                       


                      draft saved


                      draft discarded














                      StackExchange.ready(
                      function ()
                      StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fworkplace.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f69959%2fis-it-okay-to-speak-openly-about-the-current-job-when-applying-to-another-job%23new-answer', 'question_page');

                      );

                      Post as a guest

















































































                      Comments

                      Popular posts from this blog

                      What does second last employer means? [closed]

                      List of Gilmore Girls characters

                      One-line joke