Career

[CBlack]

Was hoping for some input on the following from folks who have been in similar situations.

I've been with the same company for 6.5 years now, 3 of which are in my current role (business development). Recently had a good appraisal and a lot to look forward to going forward. The company has treated me really well. I'm paid well and have a lot of perks that go along with my position. I also get along with my boss, my boss' boss and my co-workers quite well.

I've had numerous recruiters and companies contact me directly over the course of the year.

The most recent has been the only one that even tempted me. The VP contacted me directly and after meeting briefly he gave me a job offer. Pay is about 20% more, decent signing bonus, option to purchase stock at 15% discount, up to 20% bonus each year along with all the regular stuff (401k, insurance, etc.). And from I've been told, no pressure due to KPIs. And they are a competitor to my current company. This company has a lot of long-timers. The parent company went through some transition but is in a good position now and is a market leader in their segment.


So... How do you know if it's time to move on? Do you stay if you're happy? Do you take the offer with more money? At first I kind of thought, "Thanks but no thanks" but it is really tempting.

 

[SnoKing]

Does your current company have a defined benefits retirement plan that you are vested in or will be vested in the next couple years. If so that should be considered. If not they have on real hooks set. Current company might counter or walk you right out when you give notice, so make sure new company will start you right away if they walk/lock you out. Be prepared to have you computer access turned off right away at any rate, and having to sit at a desk away from other workers for two weeks with no assignments if they are really ******. Snoking

 

[Killgore]

Ouch! Chad, that's always the $64 question. Would this change involve a relocation? What does your wife think? Sometimes the long-timers can be jealous, turf-oriented and back-stabbers under the right conditions. And of course, this could be the best move of your life. What is our Boss upstairs trying to tell you?

Good Luck, Ed

 

[CBlack]

Ouch! Chad, that's always the $64 question. Would this change involve a relocation? What does your wife think? Sometimes the long-timers can be jealous, turf-oriented and back-stabbers under the right conditions. And of course, this could be the best move of your life. What is our Boss upstairs trying to tell you?

Good Luck, Ed

At first there was relocation required to Houston (where I spend a lot of time as it is). My bride and I are not willing to move. I told them that and then they came back and said, "Well we may be able to let you have the same arrangement you have now." My wife overall isn't that much in favor of me leaving as my company has been good. However, loyalty is a one way street as a friend of mine recently said.

By "long-timers" I should have clarified...meaning they seem to be a good company since people stay put not necessarily turf-oriented.

The big Boss... I think this is put out there as a test! Haha. Perhaps it's a way of showing that others value my efforts as well.

 

[GHarman]

Loyalty is a valued and rare commodity, these days. IMHO, "read the signs"!
Are You solid in Your present location? Are Your benefits competitive? Are You challenged by the current work environment or can You perform with Your eyes closed? How does the future of that Company look? The plus side of being able to perform with Your eyes closed is that You have more time and mental/emotional resources to share with Your Bride! Can You increase Your value to Your present company? Are Your company mouthpieces spreading "there will be no layoffs" mantra! (If they are doing that? RUN! :-laf )
Lots of things to consider besides just the "bottom line".
Non-contractural promises are "hot air"! "We'll keep You in Your present situation" YEP! Until they need You on the NORTH SLOPE!
Yes, You can take a chance if You are unhappy, unfulfilled and unchallenged or facing "reorganization"!
The flip side is, once You have burnt a Bridge, Ya gotta keep moving!
Just some rambling thoughts from an old fart!
I wish You WELL!
GregH

 

[Killgore]

Yes, indeed! Everyone loves to be wined and dined.

Loyalty? I still consider two of my old bosses my best friends, and that reaches back forty or fifty years.

Having pulled up stakes without my wife's enthusiastic support and moved to Houston some forty-five years ago put me in a position to hear about it every day until I moved back.

 

[fest3er]

...Having pulled up stakes without my wife's enthusiastic support and moved to Houston some forty-five years ago put me in a position to hear about it every day until I moved back.

"If Mama's not happy, nobody's happy." Or, all decisions must have the boss' explicit approval and full support.

Ask yourself the hard questions. Are you currently esteemed? Or might you have 'superiors' who seems to leave you to infer that you'd be better off elsewhere in the company or in the world? Is money your ultimate driver? Or do the daily challenges of the job get you out of bed every day? Are you still young and learning? Or are you approaching the age when you should be passing your knowledge on to the next generation?

Are you *really* prepared to move wherever the new bosses tell you to move? Greg's right. If the ego stroke isn't etched on tungsten-carbide in a solid contract, 'tis but hot air and empty promises that the new bosses will forget the instant you sign on. You may be more comfortable, but human nature still hasn't changed.

The truly hard question: does your present position allow you to discern good from bad, right from wrong, moral from immoral, divine from evil and freely allow you to choose the former every time? If so, what else is there?

 

[RustyJC]

Sometimes the grass is greener on the other side of the fence because it's growing over a leaky septic tank.

I guess I'm a product of an older generation since my parents lived through the Great Depression. Therefore, I've stayed with my present employer for 40+ years. I've had opportunities to go to work elsewhere, and who knows, I might be richer if I had, but the way things change in the oil & gas industry, I might also have been out of work (one of the companies that tried to recruit me was Enron!!) So, you never know.

I know that I haven't missed a day of work or a paycheck since college, so I've been very fortunate in being able to provide for my family. In that regard, I really have no complaints over how things have worked out.

Good luck in your decision!

Rusty

 

[jhenderson]

All I know is taking a job strictly for the money is always the wrong decision.

 

[Bill Stockard]

Sometimes the grass is greener on the other side of the fence because it's growing over a leaky septic tank.

I guess I'm a product of an older generation since my parents lived through the Great Depression. Therefore, I've stayed with my present employer for 40+ years. I've had opportunities to go to work elsewhere, and who knows, I might be richer if I had, but the way things change in the oil & gas industry, I might also have been out of work (one of the companies that tried to recruit me was Enron!!) So, you never know.

I know that I haven't missed a day of work or a paycheck since college, so I've been very fortunate in being able to provide for my family. In that regard, I really have no complaints over how things have worked out.

Good luck in your decision!

Rusty

I am similar... older generation of depression era parents and a father who worked for the same employer for 40 years. I worked for over 30 years in the same industry. I changed jobs one time in the same industry by moving from the wholesale business to the retail side where I worked for the last 23 years. I loved my job and was always at work early, stayed late when necessary, and was very successful. I too had offers from competitors, but never "jumped ship", and when the dust cleared, I was glad I stayed where I was since the offers eventually didn't work out as they were promoted. I could have made more money, but ultimately wouldn't have been happy and under much more stress.

Bill

 

[TJJEEPER]

The warning sign I see is the relocation. Sure, they'll make accommodations to get you to sign on and in a year or two your performance reviews will reflect "not willing to relocate". The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. IMHO, if you're treated well where you are, going after the gold isn't worth the risk.

 

[Jim W]

I agree with Rusty and have retired after 40 years of employment with the same company. I too had several different job offers from similar companies or in the Hydraulic design area for other companies. In the years after these offers were made and over time only a few of those companies are still in business today.

So I would have been looking for a new design engineering job to support myself and wife now and not enjoying retirement as I am today; if I had left my original employer.

Jim W.

 

[CBlack]

To be clear this isn't about the "gold" or "greener pastures." It's an intriguing opportunity and pretty much a lateral move.

However, had lunch with the VP and EVP this week and they really want someone in Houston full time. So it's a non-starter.

Makes my decision much easier at least!

Thanks for the input.

And for the record, my current company is one I can see spending 40 years with.

 

[Deleted member 995608]

And for the record, my current company is one I can see spending 40 years with.

There's your answer

 

[CBlack]

So much for loyalty.

Last Wednesday evening I was on my way home from Houston. Bossman sends me a message asking me if I can get into the office as early as possible on Thursday (had a doctor appointment home Thursday afternoon).

As soon as he sits down I can tell what's coming. I was told it wasn't because I'm a bad employee, or non-performance, or similar, but due to market conditions. He continued to say that he could tell I loved working there (I did) and I always had the clients interest in mind (I did). That a lot of people in that office could learn from my example.

Thinking back I could see tell tales, but was either too naive or optimistic to see the truth. I was pigeonholed into a deadend position.

I received numerous job offers and was approached numerous times over the past 18 months, always saying I could never leave and I loved working there and for my boss and the President.

Then this happens. I was given the option of going back into the field with the company to have an income for a brief time (industry is sucking right now) or taking a severance and moving on with a glowing recommendation.

Takes the belief out of you that a company can be loyal if you work hard, perform and are loyal.

Yesterday I burned the clothes and tie I had from the company. But I am still pizzed off beyond belief.

I can tell you one thing, I'll never be loyal to another company again.

 

[RVTRKN]

CBlack, you never know what's around the bend, I was in a situation where I was offered a good position, that I took and every one of those managers were fired in one day, and all promises went them, and I became the "what will we do now". As my loyalty with my last company was still intact, due to a simi retirement at 48 years old taking care of in laws that were in poor health. I went back to work for them with better pay and beni's after said "X" company screwed me. I'm sure you'll find that there is a good reason for your delima in the end.

As an after thought, is it possible the competitor you were thinking of working for, spilled the beans to give them a better position in your acquisition and negotiations? I've had that happen to me once, when I talked to a CEO about a position that would have a better working environment and pay, but turned them down because I thought the company was unstable. Two weeks later was told by my immediate supervisor to pack my things and go, turns out the CEO's knew each other. And now the rest of the story, the competitor went out of business two years latter and the company that I was fired from went out of business 4 years later. The company that hired me was a government position that had great beni's and adaquit pay, which lead to bigger and better things.

I'm no white collar guy and the jobs weren't high paying positions, but that doesn't change the facts, and that I never would be in the position I'm in now if that crummy little CEO back in the 80's hadn't fired me.

Good luck, I'm sure you'll land on two feet and in a better position.

Steve.

 

[GCroyle]

Don't know the rest of the story, but I bet that fire was bright and felt pretty good.

Couple jobs back after I was recruited to the position, got a call from a competitor for an interview and such. I politely turned it down on the spot. Later my new boss comes in, we chat as usual and this was just after I relocated tell him that I got a call for an interview and that I rejected it, loyalty sorta. He looked at me with the knowledge of been there heard that and the deep caring of a father figure and told me in no uncertain terms to basically never do that again.

Best boss I've ever had.

Good luck.

Gary

 

[BIGNASTY]

Driving a Truck may seem kind of little in the big picture of life. But there are those that shouldn't be allowed to start a Push Lawnmower and use it.

This being said I had been pulling gas in the LA So Calif area for a long time and had been contacted by other Major oil companies about passing gas for them and being part of their training program, more money, weekends off, Days. It was tempting but I have been one that, " I will go home with the one that brought me to the party" Chevron gave me a chance!! paid me well, and thought enough of my work that they gave me more money for my opinions on how we BOTH could do better for the other.

I stayed for 27 years made some good money and have both the Regional Personal Director and my Boss that have moved here next to us, when they retired. I guess that we cant have everything. Boss & Caroline have always been more than work relations they are Brother & Sister and are a major part of this family.

BIG

 

[CBlack]

CBlack, you never know what's around the bend, I was in a situation where I was offered a good position, that I took and every one of those managers were fired in one day, and all promises went them, and I became the "what will we do now". As my loyalty with my last company was still intact, due to a simi retirement at 48 years old taking care of in laws that were in poor health. I went back to work for them with better pay and beni's after said "X" company screwed me. I'm sure you'll find that there is a good reason for your delima in the end.

As an after thought, is it possible the competitor you were thinking of working for, spilled the beans to give them a better position in your acquisition and negotiations? I've had that happen to me once, when I talked to a CEO about a position that would have a better working environment and pay, but turned them down because I thought the company was unstable. Two weeks later was told by my immediate supervisor to pack my things and go, turns out the CEO's knew each other. And now the rest of the story, the competitor went out of business two years latter and the company that I was fired from went out of business 4 years later. The company that hired me was a government position that had great beni's and adaquit pay, which lead to bigger and better things.

I'm no white collar guy and the jobs weren't high paying positions, but that doesn't change the facts, and that I never would be in the position I'm in now if that crummy little CEO back in the 80's hadn't fired me.

Good luck, I'm sure you'll land on two feet and in a better position.

Steve.

Don't know the rest of the story, but I bet that fire was bright and felt pretty good.

Couple jobs back after I was recruited to the position, got a call from a competitor for an interview and such. I politely turned it down on the spot. Later my new boss comes in, we chat as usual and this was just after I relocated tell him that I got a call for an interview and that I rejected it, loyalty sorta. He looked at me with the knowledge of been there heard that and the deep caring of a father figure and told me in no uncertain terms to basically never do that again.

Best boss I've ever had.

Good luck.

Gary

Thanks.

I had never mentioned any recruitment efforts to anyone. I had thought about it but I didn't know how it would. I know that my former boss and the others involved don't know each other. In my segment of the industry they don't usually talk about it anyway...competitive edge and all.

 

[CBlack]

So my now former boss came to me asking my opinion/thoughts on how to convey it to my colleagues.

Told him his comments to me last week were fine and I'm done thinking about it.

Instead his email to everyone said that I chose that route for personal commitments. Making it sound like like I wanted this new path. Why, so no one else would start looking elsewhere?

Pretty $hitty if you ask me. My opinion of him and the president are now 180 from it was.