Jorge Jesus wants to come back; how the technician’s request would be seen in the corporate world

Portuguese coach Jorge Jesus, who commanded Flamengo until July 2020, publicly expressed his desire to return to the Rio club. If the “song” took poorly in the world of football, the initiative could be well seen in the world of work.

What would define, according to experts, whether such behavior would be considered a show of courage or a vain excess would be the tone of the approach. And for that, there is no ready-made recipe – it varies from sector to sector, from company to company.

“The most common [no mercado corporativo] is to send a message and that’s why so many people use networking, but I suggest they adopt direct communication: ‘I want to come back'”, says psychologist Adriana Gomes, national coordinator of the career and market area at ESPM (Escola Superior of Advertising and Marketing).

The working hours are not common, says the teacher. “But on the other hand, companies are amazed.” The approach, she says, needs to be polite, kind, intelligent and appropriate to the place.

Adriana says that companies traditionally have restrictions on the return of executives, an understanding that she classifies as myopic, since the desire to return is usually linked to the conviction of having done a good job.

“If she wants to come back, it is with the intention of doing a good job and because she understands that the best experience she had was in that company”, he says. “Opportunities don’t fall into people’s laps. Nothing in corporate life happens for free. I think it’s very nice of him to have the courage to expose himself.”

Also for Izabela Miotto, coordinator of the postgraduate course at Faap (Fundação Armando Alvares Penteado) in people management, the technician’s positioning was an act of courage.

“If we think about the corporate world, few executives would do it just out of pride,” he says. In Miotto’s assessment, the former Flamengo coach has in his favor the results achieved in the period in which he was in charge of the club, which gives him security for this type of exposure.

For her, however, the manifestation of the desire to return to or enter a corporation must be communicated at any point in her career. The psychologist argues that this could have a systemic effect on the corporate market, reducing resentment and illness.

“Any kind of public manifestation can be interpreted in a bad way, it’s a risk, and that’s why it’s admirable to expose yourself”, he says. “At work, we also choose, you can’t always be chosen.”

Exposure in an attempt to make a return to the former employer can also have the rebound effect, creating an anticipated unease. Therefore, public disclosures, such as that of Jorge Jesus, via the press, must be used strategically.

Anna Cherubina, an MBA professor at FGV (Fundação Getulio Vargas) in career and person development, says that the corporate world and HRs are not usually benevolent with attitudes that are refractory to their principles and values.

“His trajectory as Flamengo’s coach was unforgettable and he would certainly be remembered for it at some point. He did not understand that his current moment was not one of imposition, but much more of approximation and scenario analysis”, says the teacher.

In the corporate market, according to Cherubina, companies have emphasized the search for professionals with skills such as emotional self-control. An ostentatious presentation will not go down well. “It can make companies doubly rethink their rehiring, thus generating a natural rejection for fear of new behavioral surprises.”