💗 You have an offer deadline, but another interview process is still running. What do you say?
Use the real deadline.
You don’t need to invent another offer, exaggerate urgency or try to pressure the second company.
You can simply say:
“I’ve received another offer with a decision deadline on Friday. I’m still very interested in this role, so I wanted to ask whether you expect the process to progress before then.”
That gives the hiring team information they can actually act on.
They might be able to move the process forward.
They might tell you honestly that their timeline won’t fit.
Either answer is useful.
A real deadline is context, not a negotiation trick.
Use the real deadline.
You don’t need to invent another offer, exaggerate urgency or try to pressure the second company.
You can simply say:
“I’ve received another offer with a decision deadline on Friday. I’m still very interested in this role, so I wanted to ask whether you expect the process to progress before then.”
That gives the hiring team information they can actually act on.
They might be able to move the process forward.
They might tell you honestly that their timeline won’t fit.
Either answer is useful.
A real deadline is context, not a negotiation trick.