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I am applying for a job at a recruitment consultant company, and my brother works for their direct competitor. The company is worried that this might bring conflict. I don't intend to speak with my brother about my job at all. We are both honest people.

How should I respond?

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  • So what's the question?
    – Kyle W
    Oct 20, 2015 at 18:46
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    Why do they even know where your brother works?
    – zfrisch
    Oct 20, 2015 at 18:49
  • Think the question is whether or not OP should apply due to a conflict of interest.
    – Bluebird
    Oct 20, 2015 at 19:55
  • @zfrisch It's pretty common to have to declare potential conflicts of interest if you have family working for a competitor or a supplier. In such cases, there may be times when you need to excuse yourself from decisions around the competitor or supplier.
    – Eric
    Oct 21, 2015 at 0:12
  • @Eric Really? What the rest of my family do is not something I'd share - it's of no relevance and none of their business. The world is small - I know lots of people in lots of companies, they just need to deal with it.
    – Dan
    Oct 21, 2015 at 7:25

2 Answers 2

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I would respond, "We are all professionals. I can't imagine what you might think would cause a conflict."

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The company is worried that this might bring conflict.

Companies generally don't worry about such conflicts, as they believe that professional life should be left back in the office.

But, you can respond like this:

Both of us are professionals, and we don't talk about our professional lives at home. So, I don't think that any conflict is going to arise due to this issue.

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