Have I made the right decision?

Have I made the right decision?

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Discussion

ObSene

Original Poster:

102 posts

150 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
quotequote all
I work for a large global company as a technology SME. Recently I was approached by a smaller and less know company to apply my trade there. They offered me a considerable package with what I think is above the market rate...great you might think?

I love the technology I work with but at the grand old age of 38, I still need to focus on where my career is heading. The problem I have with the position offered at the new company is, that if they don’t offer any form of career progression, I’ll be stuck there priced out of the market.

My current employer counter offered and while they can’t match the salary package (but not far off once travel cost are incorporated), they offered me a promotion in to IT management (exact role is still undetermined) which could in the future open many doors. Even if the new company offered career progression, it might take a few more years to get the promotion I’ve be offered by my currently employer, so am I mad making the decision to stay put and turn down the generous package offered by the the new employer?

It's a bit of a leap a faith but after 9 years employment with them, there's a level of trust.

Edited by ObSene on Tuesday 25th April 21:37


Edited by ObSene on Wednesday 26th April 12:41

Sterillium

22,226 posts

224 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
quotequote all

The fact that they counter-offered appears to show that they value you and are prepared to continue to invest in you. I'd be tempted to make the exact same decision you have made, because you're losing nothing by staying where you are wanted and you're also very obviously employable as shown by the offer.

Best of both worlds would be to carefully avoid bridge burning with the smaller firm too.

essayer

9,008 posts

193 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
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What do you mean by technology SME? It does appear a good opportunity to get into management IF that's what you want to do (could mean no coding and days full of meetings..)

ObSene

Original Poster:

102 posts

150 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
quotequote all
essayer said:
What do you mean by technology SME? It does appear a good opportunity to get into management IF that's what you want to do (could mean no coding and days full of meetings..)
By technology SME, I mean I specialize in a specific technology within IT. It's a hands on, technical role, but after 17 years of being technical, I feel maybe I'm ready to make the change.



Fore Left

1,411 posts

181 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
quotequote all
ObSene said:
essayer said:
What do you mean by technology SME? It does appear a good opportunity to get into management IF that's what you want to do (could mean no coding and days full of meetings..)
By technology SME, I mean I specialize in a specific technology within IT. It's a hands on, technical role, but after 17 years of being technical, I feel maybe I'm ready to make the change.
Subject Matter Expert. The sort of deep techie role that only converses in TLAs* laugh

* Three Letter Acronyms (which as we all know are mainly initialisms wink).

Size Nine Elm

5,167 posts

283 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
quotequote all
ObSene said:
It's a bit of a leap a faith but after 9 years employment with them, there's a level of trust.
A slightly different tangent... its always good to push yourself outside your comfort zone every so often.

And its almost always better to regret what you've done than regret what you didn't do.

If I'd been in a global 400k-employee firm for 9 years I'd be doing my nut in...

elanfan

5,516 posts

226 months

Tuesday 25th April 2017
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Current employer hasn't valued you for a few years, you threaten to leave and all of a sudden there's a substantial pay rise and a sniff at a management role.

I'd be wanting it in writing stating not joy the maximum period before this happens and also the minimum salary increase to go with the new job. Can you negotiate some perks to make up the shortfall, share save scheme, private health insurance, co car allowance?

cadmunkey

447 posts

88 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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Agree with elefan, it's time to move on. You were part of the furniture til you mentioned a job offer...

TwistingMyMelon

6,385 posts

204 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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400k staff is a huge amount, 40k staff is still a large amount, a very large amount!

I wouldn't worry about size of new company, I could see concerns if it was 14 or 40 staff but 40k is still a lot in my book!

zedx19

2,702 posts

139 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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In my previous role I considered myself massively underpaid so started job hunting. I got offered a job with a salary more in keeping with the market which was around 35% above what I was currently on. My employer at the time matched and I remained were I was. 3 years later I realised I still wasn't happy in the role and started job hunting where I ended up with another 35% rise and while they again offered to match, I decided to leave. You need to decide whether it's just the salary you're unhappy with or anything else. If there's any other tiny thing that bothers you, it'll still bother you with an increased salary and thus, you'll only look for a new role again in the near future.

BTW, 400k/40k employees are huge companies! I currently work for a company with 7 directly employed staff...

anonymous-user

53 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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Same role in same company with the whiff or promotion now you've threatened to leave?

I'd have been out of there years ago, if only to prove to myself I can survive elsewhere.

Beetnik

501 posts

183 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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Your current employer doesn't seem to offer career progression - offer of promotion after 9 years and only after the threat of you moving on. Have you asked the new one what opportunities there will be for future promotions?

Reality appears to be that you're valued as a 'workhorse' by your current employer and this could well be the continuing case if you stay. You also run the risk of being seen as someone who is manipulative, threatening to leave if you don't get the attention you want, and this will cloud all future relationship with the employer.

There are lots of threads on this topic and the consensus is that you should move.

More money, a new challenge and the best part of 30 more years working to seize further opportunities that come up - grab the chance with both hands.

ObSene

Original Poster:

102 posts

150 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
quotequote all
Thanks for all the advise, this has been a really tough decision for me to make.

In my current employers defense, I've never felt under valued and in the last 9 years. I've had promotions, nearly doubled my salary, had excellent bonuses and have complete flexibility on working from home. But with my divisions management all be based in the US, there's never been a management position of this level in the UK (this is unique to my division), so when I said I had another job offer, they have set about creating a new management role for me based in the UK for which I've been reassured will have substance to it with additional responsibilities or direct reports.

Foliage

3,861 posts

121 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
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ObSene said:
My current employer counter offered and while they can’t match the salary package
You as a person are a business, your aim is to make a 'profit' you offer goods and/or services for a fee. Your existing employer isn't willing to match the value that your prospective new employer puts on your knowledge and experience. Why would you stay? if you would like to stay get everything in writing because without things in writing these promises are empty.


You make your own career progression, its always there, no one will hand it too you.

ObSene

Original Poster:

102 posts

150 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
quotequote all
Foliage said:
You as a person are a business, your aim is to make a 'profit' you offer goods and/or services for a fee. Your existing employer isn't willing to match the value that your prospective new employer puts on your knowledge and experience. Why would you stay? if you would like to stay get everything in writing because without things in writing these promises are empty.
With the additional commuting and childcare costs, there's not much difference in the actual take home pay, but on paper the the gross difference is fairly large.

Yipper

5,964 posts

89 months

Wednesday 26th April 2017
quotequote all
The academic research typically shows that ~90% of employees who accept a counter-offer and stay with their existing employer regret their decision within 1 year...

There is a reason(s) why you want to leave...

Having said that, big companies pay big and offer big promotion opportunities... Jumping to a less-big company usually means less-big pay in the longterm (all things being equal)...

Six of one, etc.

enemi

96 posts

172 months

Thursday 27th April 2017
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Personally wouldn't take the counter offer.

Like many others who have already mentioned, you were undervalued until you mentioned another job opportunity.

If you do take the counter offer, the company is already aware that you may be easily swayed by other opportunities and have indeed entertained external roles.

Should there come a time when your current company needs to lay off staff or choose to cut down on costs (just an example), you might find yourself at the front of the line.


meehaja

607 posts

107 months

Thursday 27th April 2017
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I left after 12 years for a big pay rise, then realised I was trapped and would never go any further (If I'd have stayed put I'd have earned more with better benefits, but it would have taken 8 years). Came back but lost a lot of the benefits I had and now need to work up again. I say stay, money isn't everything and Porsche offer good finance.

Jefferson Steelflex

1,428 posts

98 months

Thursday 27th April 2017
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I'm of the opposite opinion.

Counter-offers purely for financial gain are not worth taking. That's easy. But counter-offers that give a promotion and pay rise are almost always worth considering, and if I was in the OPs shoes I would give it some serious thought over the weekend.

You want career progression, more money, job security and a convenient commute. If only one of these roles is offering all of them, that's where you go. It's only when the salary and possibly one other of these criteria is substantially better should you consider making the move to the new company. More money is great until you get worn down by a stty commute, or the new company is not as employee-friendly, etc. Your future career prospects should be at the forefront of your mind. IF you can get agreement on promotion plans from the new employer, then you can consider it a no-brainer.

Back in the day, I accepted a counter-offer from my employer on the basis of being added to the short list for future management vacancies, guaranteed promo within a year. I stayed, and my career took off (sort of) and opened doors for me that I have benefited from today. I left that job 3 years later in a much stronger position CV wise.

coupeboy

522 posts

205 months

Thursday 27th April 2017
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The problem with technical roles is that if you are really good at them people want to keep you in them! It's nearly always the average techies that get promoted.

I think the problem with staying is that there was probably multiple reasons why you wanted to leave and a good proportion of those may not be addressed by the counter offer.

I guess you need to weigh all of the reasons you want to leave and see which issues will still remain if you stay.

From experience, if I want to leave a company and start going to interviews if someone offers me a job that I like I'll move regardless of the counter offer, although I've usually moved up when I move and go good offers, and I do like a change of scenery!

Anyway good luck!