Looking for a job after 17 years - Please help.

[CHIEF]

Due to the current downturn and the effect this has had on my personal finances at my current employment i have decided to try my luck in searching for another job.

I am currently employed as a purchasing manager for an electronics manufacturing company.

Thing is here is the rub, i have been here since i was a kid of 20 years old. Prior to this my only jobs have been warehouse etc where the process of the interview was a quick chat and 'when can you start'

The thought of going into an interview and what to expect after 17 years of employment fills me with dread, i can pretty much do my job standing on my head and i am certainly guilty of being in a comfort zone but the current situation at work has regrettably forced my hand and i really cant go on anymore.

So i need some tips....

I have done my CV and uploaded it to a couple of sites so far (Reed and Jobsite) Is there any others recommendations, and more importantly is there any i should steer clear from?

Is there any good templates i can look at on the net where i can get a cover letter from?

I do not have my CIPS and i know as a buyer my application could well end up in the bin at the first instance, this is pretty much due to me slipping into my role over a period of a few years, The company never funds any sort of training period so anything like this has to be self funded, To be truthful i just have not got round to doing it off my own back but now i realise this could bite me on my backside.

Would my experience go for me in anyway towards securing future employment?

Finally has anyone any tips for someone about to embark into the unknown after 17 years of relatively stable employment because to be quite frank, i'm crappping myself.

Thanks for listening chaps.

Very much appreciated.

[caz_manc]

I am in purchasing as well. It might be that after 17 years of experience you might be given MCIPS straight off. It is worth contacting them to ask about the process. I think it is called continuous development, and you might find you know everything already.

[CHIEF]

caz_manc said:

I am in purchasing as well. It might be that after 17 years of experience you might be given MCIPS straight off. It is worth contacting them to ask about the process. I think it is called continuous development, and you might find you know everything already.

Thanks for that Caz, The thing is everything i've learnt has been self taught to a degree and i made some right howlers in the early days but it had panned out ok as time went on but i wouldn't have a clue how a buyer who has his/her CIPS goes about their day to day business and what procedures they follow.

There does seem to be some half decent careers out there with reasonable pay and i really want to get out and meet suppliers a bit more which at my current employment is pretty rare to be honest.

I dont expect for one minute i'm gonna walk into a 40k a year job but after 17 years i know i am never gonna get paid any more no matter what added value i give the company and it is time to move on.

[Simon Brooks]

Sorry to be negative, however is it wise at the moment to bail out of a longterm secure job to become the new kid on the block in new a new company

Last in first out usually applies if a company needs to make cutbacks

Worth thinking about before jumping ship

Edited by Simon Brooks on Monday 27th September 08:42

[CHIEF]

Simon Brooks said:

Sorry to be negative, however is it wise at the moment to bail out of a longterm secure job to become the new kid on the block in new a new company

Last in first out usually applies if a company needs to make cutbacks

Worth thinking about before jumping ship

Edited by Simon Brooks on Monday 27th September 08:42

Simon i know where your coming from but we have already made cutbacks and i am (along with the rest of staff) currently languishing on a 2.5 day week and it looks to remain like that for some time.

Whilst i'm better than most at making cutbacks in my non essential expenditure i cannot sustain myself long term on a 2.5 day week.

[Simon Brooks]

any chance of asking for voluntary redundancy, at least that way you could end up with 20 years worth of payout

[ShadownINja]

Do you like the company you're at? Perhaps a part-time job doing something else might fit the bill?

[FuzzyLogic]

Simon Brooks said:

any chance of asking for voluntary redundancy, at least that way you could end up with 20 years worth of payout

Although remember that redundancy would potentially be based upon 17 years of 2.5 days per week, even if you were full time for most of those years. If it was a statutory redundancy payment, that wouldn't equate to a lot.. (50% of max £380 per week before tax)

[Simon Brooks]

chances are that the redundancy can be calculated at the salary declared on the current contract of employment, one assumes that the 2.5 days per week is a voluntary arrangment

there should not be any tax implication as the amount falls below £30k

maybe better to negotiate 3k payoff if it comes down to that than just walking away

good call on the idea of grabbing something else for the other 2.5 days per week, as things are so fluid at the moment anything could happen

[CHIEF]

I've been looking at part time work to tide me over and this is what I did 18 months ago when we was last on short time, but I doubt there will be any call for a buyer for part time so will look at agency work but this is unlikely to pay much more than minimum wage. Still better earning minimum wage than bugger all sat at home watching Jeremy Kyle

[Simon Brooks]

if its any help I have an agency backgroud and know that temp jobs very often morph into perm jobs when you are not expecting anything, especially once a company identifies someone that they can trust and works hard

good luck, hope it all works out

[BEP]

caz_manc said:

I am in purchasing as well. It might be that after 17 years of experience you might be given MCIPS straight off. It is worth contacting them to ask about the process. I think it is called continuous development, and you might find you know everything already.

They've changed the way it's done very recently regarding opt outs etc, so that you will have to pay per MODULE (Not unit) for them to even look at it!! It would seem that experience counts for even less in some ways now. Good luck to the OP, i've been feeling similar msyelf lately. Fortunately we're far too busy but it's incredibly repetitive and like yourself i'm not getting to do supplier development etc as i'm chained to the desk loading orders constantly..I am thankful though that we are busy.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

[CHIEF]

Simon Brooks said:

if its any help I have an agency backgroud and know that temp jobs very often morph into perm jobs when you are not expecting anything, especially once a company identifies someone that they can trust and works hard

good luck, hope it all works out

If i could get onboard a company doing a purchasing role part time i'd jump at it like a shot, whether such a role exists is another matter, I did agency work a couple of years ago and it was just warehouse/driving which was fine by me but only a couple of those were much more than minimum wage.

[Gargamel]

Chief

I am hiring in procurement at the moment, and it is a busy market, so you'll be fine.

Send me your CV, I read it through and give it a once over.

Get yourself a profile on LINKEDIN

Signed up for some of the groups, especially in Procurement, Sourcing and Buyers.

17 years is solid track record so you will be fine, if you can shake off the low self esteem and come across like you are an ambitious person, ready for anew challenge

Stuff your "right howlers" write down the last five instances where you saved the business some money, quantify how much, how did you do it, what suggestions do you make that become part of the methods of the busines.

Rehearse these, have them as projects in your mind, you will need them at interview.

Also look up purcon.co.uk - the are an agent in this area - decent bunch (and nothing to do with me)

HTH - Chris

[CHIEF]

Thanks for the pointers Chris, very much appreciated.

I'll see if i can pop my CV over for you to rip to pieces.... er i mean look over. I have never done a CV because i've not neeeded to before, like i said this is all alien to me and any sort of interview will be my first to be honest.

I'm already on Linkedin and i'll have a butchers on Purcon

Thanks again mate.

Cheers.

Edited by CHIEF on Tuesday 28th September 20:49