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I'm about 4 years into my career and I've held various Finance roles in the tech industry. During those 4 years I've already worked for 4 different companies (including where I'm currently working) but one of them was just a short-term contract position. The longest I've stayed with a company is 2 years. I went into these companies/positions thinking that I would stay long-term, but you never know how it's really going to be until you actually spend a few months there.
I've been in my current job for about 8 months now, but I'm just not too happy with the work/life balance or the culture here. I feel that I need to stay here for a few years though to have some stability in my resume, but I'm tempted to look at other opportunites since the job market seems to be picking up again. Would this be a bad move, and will I be forever labeled a job hopper? Or do employers even care anymore?
I'm about 4 years into my career and I've held various Finance roles in the tech industry. During those 4 years I've already worked for 4 different companies (including where I'm currently working) but one of them was just a short-term contract position. The longest I've stayed with a company is 2 years. I went into these companies/positions thinking that I would stay long-term, but you never know how it's really going to be until you actually spend a few months there.
I've been in my current job for about 8 months now, but I'm just not too happy with the work/life balance or the culture here. I feel that I need to stay here for a few years though to have some stability in my resume, but I'm tempted to look at other opportunites since the job market seems to be picking up again. Would this be a bad move, and will I be forever labeled a job hopper? Or do employers even care anymore?
Yes, they do.
We recently went through the hiring process at my job and whenever I would review a resume one of the things I looked at was how many positions a candidate had held in the last decade. That was not an automatic eliminator; a lot of I.T. work is contract work and due to the poor economy a lot of people have had to take what they could get and go from job to job because a lot of companies simply weren't doing CTH, just straight contracts only. But if I saw a history of job-hopping prior to 2007 that continued through 2007-2010, that was sometimes enough for me to toss the resume in the trash and keep looking. 2007-2010 job-hopping was not an automatic eliminator.
I say just keep applying until you find an employer who is OK with your work history. You have nothing to lose if you keep applying for jobs anyway. If you're not happy there, you shouldn't stay there just so you can build a stable resume. I've been at my current job for over 3 years now and I think it's time for a change myself.
I hired for two positions in the past 6 months. With the understanding that IT is fairly short stinted (especially for those that worked in the late 90's), we did pass up a few that were very qualified - but had very short tenures in their jobs.
We still talked to a couple of them. But in the end, we didn't feel it was worth the risk of having them walk out on us in 12 months.
My boss and I just had this conversation, we have a bit of a unique working relationship in that even though she's my "boss" per se. I work out of state and I have senior people I work under at my location so we are also very friendly and have conversations on the phone that are a bit out of the norm, I would consider her a friend and manager but anyway... we were talking about the old days when you never heard of a person leaving the company unless they had been there 10, 15 or even 20 year nowadays though, it's nothing to have a job 2-4 years and you leave for something else or turnover happens and you lose your job. It's just the way it is these days. I've been at my job a little over three years and in March my job is closing it's doors so I'll be out of work. The last few jobs I've had have varied between 3 - 4 years.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts guys. I thought I might add that all of my moves have been for higher level positions instead of lateral moves so hopefully when employers see that they see a clear career progression. Also, I started my career just before the recession hit so I hope employers will be a bit more understanding.
I accepted the offer at my current job since I was in a contract job at another company prior to this, and I was desparate to have a stable job with benefits. My company is known for overworking their employees, and things just got worse since the job market tanked. Since the job market is starting to pick up again, I think I'll keep my eyes open but I won't jump ship until something really compelling comes up.
I'm about 4 years into my career and I've held various Finance roles in the tech industry. During those 4 years I've already worked for 4 different companies (including where I'm currently working) but one of them was just a short-term contract position. The longest I've stayed with a company is 2 years. I went into these companies/positions thinking that I would stay long-term, but you never know how it's really going to be until you actually spend a few months there.
I've been in my current job for about 8 months now, but I'm just not too happy with the work/life balance or the culture here. I feel that I need to stay here for a few years though to have some stability in my resume, but I'm tempted to look at other opportunites since the job market seems to be picking up again. Would this be a bad move, and will I be forever labeled a job hopper? Or do employers even care anymore?
You may be considered a job hopper already. I think some of the recruiter's hiring parameters include how many jobs the applicant has had over a certain period of time. I'm sure that is one of the many reasons I can't get interviews.
You might consider continuing your search for better people to work with, but don't switch companies unless you're as sure as you can be about the new group/culture. Or maybe not...
I'm about 4 years into my career and I've held various Finance roles in the tech industry. During those 4 years I've already worked for 4 different companies (including where I'm currently working) but one of them was just a short-term contract position. The longest I've stayed with a company is 2 years. I went into these companies/positions thinking that I would stay long-term, but you never know how it's really going to be until you actually spend a few months there.
I've been in my current job for about 8 months now, but I'm just not too happy with the work/life balance or the culture here. I feel that I need to stay here for a few years though to have some stability in my resume, but I'm tempted to look at other opportunites since the job market seems to be picking up again. Would this be a bad move, and will I be forever labeled a job hopper? Or do employers even care anymore?
Employers don't seem to make a big deal out of it anymore. I say follow that gut feeling. Life is too short for you to be unhappy at a job. Put the past behind you, keep the faith (stay positive), and make sure it's your calling. Be happpy!
But if you do find another job that you think would be a good fit long term, and they offer a position, why not move?
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