I often get in discussions with other young professionals about job hopping and its potential affects of your career. And the question always stirs up some significant debate, but I will argue that the topic is blown a bit out of proportion.
When we thrust ourselves into the working world after graduating from school we are presented with several mentors, co-workers, and managers that may (albeit subtly) try to push us in different directions. Members of the organization for which we work will probably look down on job-hoppers and try to paint them in a very negative light in an effort to keep the employees they have at their company (and perhaps pay them less). But the question is: is it really that bad?
Before we get into the nitty-gritty of this we have to realize that the architecture, engineering, and construction industry may be a bit different than others mainly because of the fragmentation of the business. The overwhelming majority (possibly over 90%) of AEC organizations have less than 20 people. Organizations of this type may tend to have higher turnovers because of the lack of structured career paths, mentoring, and training. Also, AEC organizations are basically doing the same thing. Principles of architecture, engineering, and construction are for the most part the same across the board unless you are in some very specialized type of construction. This homogeny across the industry allows newcomers to an organization to move in and immediately make a profitable impact, instead of having to learn a completely different product or operational system as may be the case in larger organizations. And really this is what companies are looking for - immediate profitability.
However, in a job market such as this one, employers that by some fluke of nature, are actually hiring, have the luxury of being very choosy. And if you have a resume that shows a slew of less than two year stints at companies, this could easily be used as reason for sending your resume on a one-way trip through the paper shredder. But when things improve, as they always do, these same companies won't care if you have five or fifty previous employers because they know that you can come in on day zero (that's construction schedule talk) and make money for the organization.
Ok, so what do you do if you are stuck in a position that isn't right for you or you are presented with an opportunity that is much better than the one you have? Well, this is one of the toughest choices that a young person has to make, and it is a situation that can come up quite often for people with engineering and architecture degrees due to the stiff competition for qualified employees during strong job markets. Unfortunately there is no right answer, and the best way to learn is to probably do it. But first I would think about the reasons for what you are doing and how you think this move may benefit your career. If you can reasonable articulate why this is a beneficial career move then your best bet is to probably do it and not worry about what future employers may think.
I think there is a stigma out there that if you move jobs too many times you will be branded with some job hopping scarlet letter, shun from the working world, and left for dead as a stock person for Home Depot. I will say that this stigma is largely propagated by employers themselves and doesn't have any legitimate reasoning other than the fact the tenured employee may tend to make the company more money for which they may or may not be paid more. Also, managers look bad when employees under them quit, so a manager that tries to talk you out of going somewhere else may not be thinking in the best interests of you or the company, but in the best interests of themselves.
It's tough being young in this business because there is often so much opportunity and things to see and do that may not be offered at the organization for which you work. I'm not going to suggest that everyone should quit their jobs and go build desalination plants in Kuwait, but I do believe that, especially when you are young, a bit of an exploration of the industry in which we work can be invaluable later in life.
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As a leader in my organization, I am always on the lookout for good talent. In the field of systems architecture, engineers often jump between development, design, test, analyst and similar jobs. Eventually, some people, like myself, find we are systems people. It takes multiple hops to become a good systems architect or engineer. The same tends to be true for designers. Therefore, some more "senior" positions actually look for a breadth of work with a strong thread that ties it together.
ReplyDeleteThe take-away is "What is the underlying story that motived the hops?" If the story shows solid trajectory on a "career collage," you are doing fine. If the story is weak or diffuse, then you should re-examine you personal mission and goals.
--Mark Bergman
Mark,
ReplyDeleteI agree with what you wrote - what motivates the "hops"? I have counseled my teens that especially when they are young, this might be necessary. I think that when I was younger I felt trapped in jobs and was concerned about the image of moving around too much. I have encouraged them to try different things - then hopefully when they find their passion, stability may follow. Hopefully they will discover this long before the age that I did!
Barbara
John,
ReplyDeleteGreat article! I completely agree with your comment that the stigma about how job-hopping looks bad is "largely propagated by employers themselves and doesn't have any legitimate reasoning other than the fact the tenured employee may tend to make the company more money for which they may or may not be paid more." Roughly 3% of the world's population controls 90% of the world's money. Much of middle class fights over the remaining 10% of money. I think it also depends when you are born.
For example, as a Generation X employee, I have developed a large mistrust of Corporate America. Understandably, the generation ahead of us does not want us to be a threat to their well-deserved positions, so they create glass-ceilings that are difficult to penetrate. I would have done the same thing. Unfortunately, as a result, many Generation Xers stay at their jobs for 2-3 years are ready to move on. My first job in the "real world" in 1996 paid me $9 an hour to be a customer service representative. Unfortunately, our CEO (who by the way made $52 Million the same year) withheld important information from our investors. He sold his stock options in July of 1997 and finally came clean with Wall Street in October of that year. As a result, our stock plunged 60% in an hour. He was investigated for insider trading but found innocent. The company stock, which many of the company's employees owned several shares of never recovered and the company was eventually sold. Keep in mind that employees were offered stock at $70-$80 a share and had to sell at $20. It was very difficult for me to trust my employers for many years following. Generation X knows all too well that fear of losing one's job does not necessarily motivate people. It just makes them do just enough to keep their job. Without motivation or incentive, they will not push themselves.
I completely understand that this is just one example and that there are many Generation X employees who have done tremendous things in their careers. Have you (or anyone else) heard similar stories to mine?
Thanks for reading! :)
I appreciate your commentary. However, as with most things in life, it depends. If on a resume one can delineate upward mobility, skills/knowledge development, increasing levels of responsibility or any other forward progression then changing positions should not be negative. If on the other hand “hopping” is the result of reasons that cannot be expressed positively then, as my father would say, “if the shoe fits…”
ReplyDeleteI think one should not hesitate to hop if there is really a good opportunity coming up. Why remain loyal to companies which do not think twice when laying you off in bad times. Everyone thinks of his own benefits.
ReplyDeleteOne should be ready to have some alternate source of income as well. I have tried to capture the importance of having alternate income in one of my article.
http://linkindians.blogspot.com/2009/08/importance-of-having-alternative-source.html
http://linkIndians.blogspot.com
You make a great point here India. Loyalty in Corporate America is all but gone. If a company takes an individual under their wing to groom them for bigger opportunities within the organization, the individual should have loyalty. Most of today's organizations give employees the bare-minimum of training and then leave the rest up to the employee to figure out. A corporation putting time and money into someone's development is worth working for.
ReplyDeleteNow for reality....this is not the norm as we all know. I see individuals take advantage of their company's tuition reimbursement for undergraduate or graduate degrees in hopes of starting their own business. Intel lost so many employees after receiving their graduate degrees that the company halted its direct bill agreement with a large online university.