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I'm 31 years old, and have worked for the same employer since I graduated in 2007. I work as a mechanical engineer for a large engineering construction company. I've been very happy with my direct-report management, the pay is top notch for my industry, the benefits are outstanding and I have learned a lot. But for two reasons, I am looking for a change.
1) I am ready to move on to a new city. My company has a lot of other offices, but none where I am currently interested in living.
2) I am at a point where I feel I am locking myself in to only work for mega eng/construction companies if I stay on this path. There is a slightly different experience and skill-set at the smaller to medium sized companies that I have no exposure to. I'd like to round out my resume and experience to make me more versatile for my career.
I realize it could be a total bust. I could end up not liking a new city or hating a new job. Switching to smaller / medium sized companies will almost certainly lead to a faster paced environment with the potential that my work life balance is thrown off which would be a bummer because that is important to me (I work hard, but I work to live, not live to work). But I also feel like I need to try this just to see.
Regardless, my immediate concern is the most professional way to handle this with my current company; I am currently in great standing and want to keep it that way to leave the door open in the future. I'm hesitant to tell them I am actively looking elsewhere. Really I hesitate to let them know anything until I actually have an offer letter in hand that I am interested in accepting. But I am also trying to not blindside management with a 2-3 week transition of my responsibilities and a potential need to hire from outside the company to back-fill. I understand that that is their concern and I need to look after myself first. But I still want a smooth separation.
I don't think you should inform them of your plans until you're ready to turn in your notice. If you don't feel a traditional 2-week notice period would be fair to your employer given the nature of your work, I would take that into consideration when working out a reporting date for the future employer. You're staying in the same field, so the nature of the work shouldn't be unfamiliar to them. Also, particularly since you're relocating, you may be able to work out a later reporting date. Figure out what the right time-frame is, and work from there. If 2 weeks is standard, but 6 weeks is optimal, maybe you can work out 4 weeks.
I'm in a totally different field, but when I took my current job, they wanted me in two weeks. I asked for an additional two weeks to complete some projects, and they were fine with it. Granted, this was a move from one state agency to another, but I think showing the new employer that I cared about how I left things with the old employer was helpful to me in the long run.
In the mean time, keep good tabs on your projects and consider how you'll best be able to line things up for a smooth transition. Have your "to do" list worked out for how you'll spend your notice period, and present that at the time you submit your notice.
Definitely DON'T tell them that you're considering relocating or in any way looking for a new job. I made this mistake once and trust me, absolutely nothing good will come from this. Just about every business expects 2 weeks notice from their departing employees. This is all you need to give, along with assurances that you will do everything you can during those 2 weeks to tie up loose ends and ensure a smooth transition of your projects/duties, in order to leave in good standing. Do exactly this. If you want to be a super nice person, you can offer them the 3rd week, but if you end up relocating you will likely need that extra week to get settled.
I'm actually surprised at what I'm about to tell you. It's taken me YEARS to believe this, but it's the truth.
No matter how much you love your employer, appreciate all they have provided you with in your career, are in great standing, etc., they ultimately do not care about you the way you care about them.
Surely, that cannot be true -- right? I thought so, too. I had strong relationships with my managers and coworkers, and I was a highly-regarded high-performing employee at the two companies I previously worked at. I always bent over backwards to make sure everything was perfectly wrapped and tied with a bow, and it's taken several baseball bats to the head (in the form of layoffs, etc.) to finally believe they do not care. Really, they don't.
Your good relationships will survive, don't worry, as will your reputation. All that is expected of you is 2-3 weeks notice. I work in tech where every individual's role is impactful and necessary (certainly not the norm in corporate America), and I actually admire that people at my current company act in their own self-interest and understand this "fact" of working life; people like you and I are a little too kind and considerate.
Unless you are working on an incredibly top-secret and/or multi-year project, no greater notice is necessary. If you have a really - and I mean really - open relationship with your direct manager and trust them, you can let them know of your job-hunting plans for exactly the reasons outlined in your post (career growth, new skills), but be 100% sure you will be moving on.
Wish you all the best! You don't see people stay at companies that long these days. Kudos. You have great opportunities coming your way, I can feel it.
Wish you all the best! You don't see people stay at companies that long these days. Kudos. You have great opportunities coming your way, I can feel it.
Thanks!
And thank you to everyone for the honest feedback. It's pretty much what I assumed, but I wanted to put the feeler out to get others' opinions.
Just for extra information, I just finished a multi-year long project this fall. I started thinking about a change this past spring but I knew it was a very bad time to leave from a client and company standpoint. I finished that and am now at the very beginning of a new project. So, really I'm at about as good of a transition point as there can be, which is another reason I started looking now (before I get too entrenched in another project).
And also just to address this: "people like you and I are a little too kind and considerate." You're very correct. It served me well growing up but it's not always the attitude I need to have in situations like this as an adult. I need to learn to be a little more 'selfish' in a sense - at certain times. I think my best bet is focusing on finding a good opportunity first, and then during final negotiations discussing with the potential new employer how flexible they are with my start date. If I have the ability to offer my current employer a 3rd week AND I feel it is fairly necessary, then great. Otherwise, it will be 2 weeks and I will use any extra time to move/get settled since it would be a long-distance move.
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