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I want to leave my current job because of management changes.

I'm working in Germany for an international company. My team was restructured last year and since my new boss and my new team are in the United States. The rest of my old team has a new boss too, but he is based in Germany so the change is minimal for them.

Although my job is almost the same, I feel that working together is almost impossible because of time differences and legal incompatibilities. My team works when it's late/night for me so I can't attend meetings and I can't speak to my boss. After more than 6 months, nothing has improved and I feel totally left aside.

I've started to look for another job. I'm not sure how to answer when being asked why I'm leaving. Can I say I feel I can't work in this organization? I'm afraid recruiters think that I can't handle changes or that I can't work in an international context.

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Can I say I feel I can't work in this organization?

Yes, you can.

In your situation, when looking for new employment, simply tell the truth. Be honest in your interviewing. State that you like being part of a team, and although you technically are currently part of a team, it does not feel like it due to the reasons you outlined in your question. ( Time zone difference is a very common reason for team members to feel left out )

On a side note, and not directly something you asked about, have you actually talked to your current manager about this? Maybe there is some sort of accommodation that could be made to make you feel more included?

So to answer your question, as a hiring manager during my career, I would take your reasoning to look for other opportunities to be perfectly sound.

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    +1 Just to add, that it's a very reasonable reason to move on and I also know of no managers who would hold it against someone.
    – Old_Lamplighter
    Commented Mar 6, 2018 at 13:44
  • Yes, unless you're applying for a position working from home with an overseas team, mentioning that this setup just isn't your thing is perfectly fine.
    – Sumyrda - remember Monica
    Commented Mar 8, 2018 at 7:53
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I like Mister Positive answer but I want to say... maybe. Depending on how you explain it and where the US team is located. If they are on the east coast, then the time difference isn't that significant in my opinion. We're talking about a 6 hours time difference so your 6pm, is east coast lunch time. You can definitely put a meeting in at 5pm your time and be done with you going home, and them going to lunch.

However if you're saying you have to work side by side, then that is major thing especially if you have to work all day plus work more just to keep the time while the US team only puts in the standard work time.

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    With work days being 8 hours, 6 hours time difference means only 2 hours, 25%, overlap in the working day. I can see how that is difficult. Then count in that maybe OP works till 16.30 in Germany and the US people maybe don't start till 9.30 and you only have 1 hour overlap. It doesn't just depend on the time-zone, but company culture too.
    – Belle
    Commented Mar 7, 2018 at 8:21

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