Career options

[Fat Tone]

Two options:

1. Stay in v. safe job with v. few prospects,
2. Move to small company trading 3-4 years for 20% pay rise, prospects potentially huge but who knows.

What would you do with wife & kids to support and a few years left on the mortgage?

[Dr Mordrid]

In this environment, play it safe as you can. Risk is largely for those with few responsibilities. Once things improve economically the risk reduces to where you can make a move at minimal risk to the house or the family.

[Fat Tone]

I hear you, and security is of huge importance. But if the company has even managed to do well during the recession, that must help. What also if this is a narrow window of opportunity. kind of all or nothing, as the post needs filling now? What if an offer this good isn't likely to come again?

Whatever happened to "it's better to regret the things you did than the things you wish you had done" ?

[Sasq]

I'd say talk it over with the missus, I know how long you've been where you are, and how bored, frustrating it can get.

The challenge will probably do you good, instead of slowly fossilizing like the rest of the co-workers where you are.

[Fat Tone]

The only person so far not to say go for it is Doc. He has a point, but so do the others.
Had a decent chat today and I think there's huge potential. Plans for thr 2-5 year timeframe are ambitious but I think realistic.

[degrub]

a couple questions to consider-

any pension of significance where you are ?

what is the track record of the new company ? Are they in "cash burn" mode or do they have a product that is generating revenue and real income ? If cash burn - what is their total capitalization and what is the burn rate ? Are they in 1st round, 2nd round 3rd, etc of investment capitalization ?

To me, money matters - but personal satisfaction matters more. The grass sometimes looks greener on the other side, but i keep finding that it is my own happiness that matters - not the company i work for. i've been in 3 companies over the years. The last one (28 yrs) has been in a large company that let me shift focus 3 times into related fields.

What are your prospects if the new company doesn't work out ? Can you get a reasonable position (maybe even your old position) if you have to walk again ? Do you have enough savings buffer to carry you for 6- 9 months or whatever time it takes to get a new position ?

[Fat Tone]

Good pension in both. The company has never capitalised, it has always grown based on its income. It may need to do so to achieve future aims. I think the rest is all reasonable, but who can tell? I doubt there'll be anything else quite this generous, but I'm hoping a couple of years of this on the CV would work well.

[Fat Tone]

@Guchi, I'm definitely not planning on burning any bridges!

[VJ]

Funny, I may be facing a similar dilemma:
1. docent (= sort of professor) at a technical university in Belgium
2. researcher at a research institute in Warsaw

I'm still waiting for the result of my job application at the technical university, and for more details from the offer in Warsaw...

[Fat Tone]

It's not a bad problem to have for once

I think I've made my mind up.

[VJ]

Great to hear you've made a choice!

Yes, a nice problem to have, but I stil don't know... Both offer possibilities for a long term career.Option 1 will pay more, but option 2 may be more exciting work.
The choice I make now will have a huge impact on my life, esp. regarding my private life. I've made lists with good points and bad points, but it just makes it more difficult!

[Fat Tone]

I've done the deed, accepted the offer.

Some people at the old place are pretty pissed off, which is nice

Best of luck with your decision VJ.

[VJ]

The decision was made a whole lot easier: the technical university rejected my application, on the grounds that my knowledge is "too academic" for their activities and "lacking links with industry".

So, Warsaw, here I come.

(now to start learning Polish... it is a tough language!)


Jörg

[Fat Tone]

Best of luck there VJ

I never heard 'too academic' and 'university' in the same sentence before!

[VJ]

I never heard 'too academic' and 'university' in the same sentence before!

Well, it is what we in Dutch call a "Hogeschool", which is the sort of institute where higher education outside university is taught: teachers, nurses, industrial engineers, ...
This particular institute does offer an academic master for industrial engineers, so following the bachelor-master reforms they will have to perform more research which makes it kind of weird. Probably, as is often the case in these things, some else will have had a longer arm , or maybe less cynical they may have had a candidate that better matched their current activities .

But hey, I wasn't sure I'd accept it, it really was a very though call (I wasn't sure I'd like that more practically aimed research). So I do feel that I now will have something that suits me better, but that I may have been too hesitant to choose before.

Jörg