How do people get into jobs that they travel with?
Discussion
Hello all
Currently I work in IT, and have done for the past 4 years. I enjoy it very much and have done a fair few qualifications (CCNA, OSX certified to name a few).
The part I love about my job is being called out onsite to resolve a fault. Currently I work 2nd/3rd line and I would like to progress into a 3rd support job, but one with a lot more travelling whether that be in the UK, or outside.
Here is my question, where do people find these jobs that take them abroad, or just around the UK?
Thanks
P.B
Currently I work in IT, and have done for the past 4 years. I enjoy it very much and have done a fair few qualifications (CCNA, OSX certified to name a few).
The part I love about my job is being called out onsite to resolve a fault. Currently I work 2nd/3rd line and I would like to progress into a 3rd support job, but one with a lot more travelling whether that be in the UK, or outside.
Here is my question, where do people find these jobs that take them abroad, or just around the UK?
Thanks
P.B
I'm also interested in knowing this. One of my friends didn't really get anywhere after Uni, now he's working for a design company and often flies out to various lovely EU cities. He claims its all business but then you see the Instagram posts of chugging pints in Munich, it's hard not to be jealous 
Be careful what you wish for, travelling for work is not the same as travelling for a jolly!
I'm fortunate that I do get to travel with work, been to the USA, UAE, lots of Europe this year alone, not forgetting the delights of the West Midlands
Most of the time its a ballache, you rush after work to an airport, stay overnight in a hotel, deal with the client for a few days and then straight back on a flight home, typically over your weekends. So granted you do go to see places but its normally an industrial estate, glass office building, a hotel, taxi and an airport. There are some exceptions, I've stayed longer to see the sights and get the hotel chucked in for free, so its not all bad but not all fun either : )
ETA: I'm in IT/Systems training so occasionally need to be onsite. If you're in a job where 95% can be done remotely you will be unlikely to travel all that much - Unless the client specially pays for it.
I'm fortunate that I do get to travel with work, been to the USA, UAE, lots of Europe this year alone, not forgetting the delights of the West Midlands
Most of the time its a ballache, you rush after work to an airport, stay overnight in a hotel, deal with the client for a few days and then straight back on a flight home, typically over your weekends. So granted you do go to see places but its normally an industrial estate, glass office building, a hotel, taxi and an airport. There are some exceptions, I've stayed longer to see the sights and get the hotel chucked in for free, so its not all bad but not all fun either : )
ETA: I'm in IT/Systems training so occasionally need to be onsite. If you're in a job where 95% can be done remotely you will be unlikely to travel all that much - Unless the client specially pays for it.
Edited by -crookedtail- on Friday 25th September 12:00
Depends on the job. In my first job I travelled around the UK fairly regularly, carrying out product trials.
In my current job I've travelled less, but it included some overseas. Now it involves travel to other company sites, conferences and visits to suppliers.
How did I get in? I got a degree in Chemistry, my first job was through an employment agency (which became permanent after 6 months). My current job - a combination of relevant experience, knowing people already at the company and also having a knack for it.
In my current job I've travelled less, but it included some overseas. Now it involves travel to other company sites, conferences and visits to suppliers.
How did I get in? I got a degree in Chemistry, my first job was through an employment agency (which became permanent after 6 months). My current job - a combination of relevant experience, knowing people already at the company and also having a knack for it.
Definitely agree with those saying be careful what you wish for.
I've had a quiet year so far in terms of travel and it's been bliss.
Even when I was working with a client who put me up in a fantastic beach hotel near a lovely little town just down the coast from Rome, it soon became tedious.
What might appear from the outside to be a great adventure soon becomes very much a grind.
I've had a quiet year so far in terms of travel and it's been bliss.
Even when I was working with a client who put me up in a fantastic beach hotel near a lovely little town just down the coast from Rome, it soon became tedious.
What might appear from the outside to be a great adventure soon becomes very much a grind.
I've had about 10 trips abroad this year. It can be a ballache for reasons stated above but in general I love it. I get to do it because my department has a fairly niche skillset (also in IT). Quite often we need to go out to get the project initiated. After that, the majority of the work can be done remotely. It's a nice balance because I'm not spending weeks on end on site.
brickwall said:
z4RRSchris said:
I've done 55 flights this year. it's a ball ache
Agree. I'm on ~30 since June, mostly long-haul. It's very grinding.Be careful what you wish for!
brickwall said:
z4RRSchris said:
I've done 55 flights this year. it's a ball ache
Agree. I'm on ~30 since June, mostly long-haul. It's very grinding.Be careful what you wish for!
I used to travel loads, currently 'between contracts' and am looking for something close to home with minimal travel outside of commuting - spent the last 10 years staring at the inside of various hotel rooms while my loved ones, friends and family were living their lives 150+ miles away.
The majority of companies expect you to be on site at the start of the working Monday, this often means you have to travel on a Sunday afternoon/evening and usually leave the client site COP on Friday, which in turn means Saturday morning is given over to washing shirts, opening post etc, Saturday afternoon is catching up with normal life (walking the dog, shopping etc). If you are not traveling on a Sunday then you have a few hours in the morning to be 'normal' before re-packing etc - seriously business travel is a world apart from 'travel'. Don't get me wrong, I have a few friends who do it all of the time and love it, but they are married to their job and don't seem to be upset by not seeing their wife and kids for weeks on end.....
However, if you are still dead set on a job with lots of travel then join a consultancy/professional services department, or go self employed. I have done all three, with consultancy or professional services you don't really get much of a say of where you are working, you go where you are sent. Being self employed you have a bit of a say in where you work, however you have to go where the work is - sometimes you can be lucky and find something close to home, other times you will be 150 miles from home!
The majority of companies expect you to be on site at the start of the working Monday, this often means you have to travel on a Sunday afternoon/evening and usually leave the client site COP on Friday, which in turn means Saturday morning is given over to washing shirts, opening post etc, Saturday afternoon is catching up with normal life (walking the dog, shopping etc). If you are not traveling on a Sunday then you have a few hours in the morning to be 'normal' before re-packing etc - seriously business travel is a world apart from 'travel'. Don't get me wrong, I have a few friends who do it all of the time and love it, but they are married to their job and don't seem to be upset by not seeing their wife and kids for weeks on end.....
However, if you are still dead set on a job with lots of travel then join a consultancy/professional services department, or go self employed. I have done all three, with consultancy or professional services you don't really get much of a say of where you are working, you go where you are sent. Being self employed you have a bit of a say in where you work, however you have to go where the work is - sometimes you can be lucky and find something close to home, other times you will be 150 miles from home!
Agree with those who say to be careful what you wish for. It sounds amazing in theory. One day New York, the next Singapore. Until you find that you take a standard pay (ie no overtime for getting up at 5am to catch an early flight and staying in a hotel far away most nights) and have to kiss goodbye to your social life or seeing your family for most of the week. Sure, the evenings might be your own but you're either basically stuck in a hotel or trying to fill time seeing a city you no longer give a s
t about because you've been there before a dozen times. Trying to stay fit, for example, will be a hassle. You'll eat out in restaurants more than you care about but you won't be able to truly relax if you're with clients.
t about because you've been there before a dozen times. Trying to stay fit, for example, will be a hassle. You'll eat out in restaurants more than you care about but you won't be able to truly relax if you're with clients.You need to work for a global company or go consulting for big companies. There's little to no travel ever likely to happen working for Grimsby Computer Shop who only services the 15 miles around them not including the water bit.
I fell into it working for an IT vendor, the travel was to internal offices in the US and Netherlands. The job after that was setting up a German company in California. The one after that was setting up a international sales operation across Europe.
Europe's not too bad, depending on what carrier you use and your local airport. But mostly the travel goes like
Home->airport->office->hotel->office->airport-Home
I sometimes book a day out for exploration, but mostly it's in and out and back to whatever I was doing. Spend too long away from everything and you come back to a mountain of stuff that you need to romp through before it takes over your weekend.
Heavy work travel is boring, it's lonely and it's bad on the belly.
I fell into it working for an IT vendor, the travel was to internal offices in the US and Netherlands. The job after that was setting up a German company in California. The one after that was setting up a international sales operation across Europe.
Europe's not too bad, depending on what carrier you use and your local airport. But mostly the travel goes like
Home->airport->office->hotel->office->airport-Home
I sometimes book a day out for exploration, but mostly it's in and out and back to whatever I was doing. Spend too long away from everything and you come back to a mountain of stuff that you need to romp through before it takes over your weekend.
Heavy work travel is boring, it's lonely and it's bad on the belly.
Agree with the careful what you wish for, I've been lucky to go all over the world in the past 20 years, yet all I seem to remember (and even that's hazy at times) are airports, planes, taxis, car rental offices, shuttles, train stations, offices, hotels... oh and jetlag !
The best (and worst) was round the world in ten days: London->California->Melbourne->Sydney->Hong Kong->London. By the time I arrived in Sydney I didn't know where I was and what time it was. Or a return trip to Macau for a half day meeting+dinner.
Dinner+drinks at nights with the same people you work with (colleagues or customers) can be a chore too. It can be hard to get some time to yourself. Equally lonely (with Kindle for company) dinners at a restaurant or hotel room soon have a groundhog day feeling to them (no menu is ever extensive enough !)
However, I believe you can make it work if your circumstances our outlook allow. If for example the company will allow you to stay over for saturday and catch a flight back on sunday (or leave fri/saturday) or your travel straddles a weekend then there are options for a bit of sight-seeing.
I have always been in a relationship while I travelled and I always wanted to get back home asap, usually working extra long hours to reduce the number of weeks I'd have to be away for, but if you're single and have a mindset to go out there and discover or meet people in the precious few hours of spare time you have... you can/could make it work.
I know some who have made it work for them.
As for your original question, look for a job that requires international travel, it's often specified in the job description, polish your CV, sharpen up your interview skills then go for it.
HTH
The best (and worst) was round the world in ten days: London->California->Melbourne->Sydney->Hong Kong->London. By the time I arrived in Sydney I didn't know where I was and what time it was. Or a return trip to Macau for a half day meeting+dinner.
Dinner+drinks at nights with the same people you work with (colleagues or customers) can be a chore too. It can be hard to get some time to yourself. Equally lonely (with Kindle for company) dinners at a restaurant or hotel room soon have a groundhog day feeling to them (no menu is ever extensive enough !)
However, I believe you can make it work if your circumstances our outlook allow. If for example the company will allow you to stay over for saturday and catch a flight back on sunday (or leave fri/saturday) or your travel straddles a weekend then there are options for a bit of sight-seeing.
I have always been in a relationship while I travelled and I always wanted to get back home asap, usually working extra long hours to reduce the number of weeks I'd have to be away for, but if you're single and have a mindset to go out there and discover or meet people in the precious few hours of spare time you have... you can/could make it work.
I know some who have made it work for them.
As for your original question, look for a job that requires international travel, it's often specified in the job description, polish your CV, sharpen up your interview skills then go for it.
HTH
Edited by thefrog on Sunday 27th September 18:31
Agree with all the "careful what you wish for" comments. I had a job for several years which involved regular air travel to Europe, and ultimately it's just a very long commute and nights in a hotel on your own. All sounds very glamorous at first "Where are you going? Ooh, it's lovely there. Ooh, a 5-star hotel? Lucky you!" but in reality it's:
Day 1:
- drive to airport
- sit around awaiting flight
- disembark, get a taxi through the lovely city you have flown to and realise the office is on a plain drab industrial estate miles from all the sights
- get a taxi to your hotel, which may or may not be anywhere near any of the aforementioned sights
Day 2,3,4 - repeat steps 3 & 4 above
Day 5 - repeat all of the above
It gets properly boring after not very long.
I also in the past had a job where I drove around the UK a lot, as in, 50k+ miles p.a. That was back in the early 90s and in those days you could look at your destination, work out that it's 3 hours away, and be there in 3 hours. Doing that sort of mileage was no big deal really. Nowadays, you pick that 3 hour journey and it only needs one numpty to screw up somewhere en route, and the fact that the roads are already at 101% capacity turns your 3 hours into 5 or more.
All in IT-related jobs btw.
Have a good hard think about what you want and why before jumping in. My commute now is 35-40 mins on a normal day, can be 50 mins on a bad day. By bike. It's great!
Day 1:
- drive to airport
- sit around awaiting flight
- disembark, get a taxi through the lovely city you have flown to and realise the office is on a plain drab industrial estate miles from all the sights
- get a taxi to your hotel, which may or may not be anywhere near any of the aforementioned sights
Day 2,3,4 - repeat steps 3 & 4 above
Day 5 - repeat all of the above
It gets properly boring after not very long.
I also in the past had a job where I drove around the UK a lot, as in, 50k+ miles p.a. That was back in the early 90s and in those days you could look at your destination, work out that it's 3 hours away, and be there in 3 hours. Doing that sort of mileage was no big deal really. Nowadays, you pick that 3 hour journey and it only needs one numpty to screw up somewhere en route, and the fact that the roads are already at 101% capacity turns your 3 hours into 5 or more.
All in IT-related jobs btw.
Have a good hard think about what you want and why before jumping in. My commute now is 35-40 mins on a normal day, can be 50 mins on a bad day. By bike. It's great!
An office on a business park in Singapore is pretty much the same as one in South Africa or Belgium or Milton Keynes.
Everyone else has focused on the travel side. I just wanted to add that I'm not sure you will even see more travel in a 3rd line role unless you are a hardware vendor/supplier certainly all the jobs I've done the more senior support role you have the less likely you are to travel. The only people going to site were when the device wasn't contactable or hardware fault for which you can send a man in a van.
The technical jobs with travel are the consultancy/deployment and training jobs which need facetime or mean you can't remote in.
Everyone else has focused on the travel side. I just wanted to add that I'm not sure you will even see more travel in a 3rd line role unless you are a hardware vendor/supplier certainly all the jobs I've done the more senior support role you have the less likely you are to travel. The only people going to site were when the device wasn't contactable or hardware fault for which you can send a man in a van.
The technical jobs with travel are the consultancy/deployment and training jobs which need facetime or mean you can't remote in.
Completely echo the above "be careful what you wish for" comments.
Having to travel frequently to Australia, Malaysia, India, China, North America... a short red eye business trip to Europe seems like a dream let alone a drive down the M6 to Birmingham.
The other point I would like to make is it completely reuins any further holiday you have which involves flying (well the start and end of it anyway). The whole thing is a complete ball ache from start to finish and you really resent the whole process after a while, even when going on holiday.
It is completely sad when you know the routine of a flight, where the best seats are, when you are comming in on finals etc because it is the 20th flight you have taken that quarter. Then there is the tedium of not having a gate when you land after a 24hr flight and waiting another hour... then there is the emergency landing due to sickness... then the delayed takeoff because of a panic attack... then there is having your bag emptied and left by customs... and that is just the UK end of things. x 50 in 40 dgree heat, feeling like you are going to die with fever and the worst gut rot known to man, relying on third parties for your every need... and so on.
It gets old very quickly.
Having to travel frequently to Australia, Malaysia, India, China, North America... a short red eye business trip to Europe seems like a dream let alone a drive down the M6 to Birmingham.
The other point I would like to make is it completely reuins any further holiday you have which involves flying (well the start and end of it anyway). The whole thing is a complete ball ache from start to finish and you really resent the whole process after a while, even when going on holiday.
It is completely sad when you know the routine of a flight, where the best seats are, when you are comming in on finals etc because it is the 20th flight you have taken that quarter. Then there is the tedium of not having a gate when you land after a 24hr flight and waiting another hour... then there is the emergency landing due to sickness... then the delayed takeoff because of a panic attack... then there is having your bag emptied and left by customs... and that is just the UK end of things. x 50 in 40 dgree heat, feeling like you are going to die with fever and the worst gut rot known to man, relying on third parties for your every need... and so on.
It gets old very quickly.
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