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Company Loyalty and career decisions
Fozwazerus
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I have some questions regarding work that require a little back story:
I am a relatively fresh graduate with an MS in mechanical engineering. I moved to a town with absolutely no industry (tourist town) and couldn't find a job that I wanted for 6 months. There were a few interviews and one offer that I didn't accept (shitty "engineer" position in a factory 1 hour away.) I was getting desperate, so I started interviewing for anything that I had skills for: CAD positions, teaching positions (I've been a TA twice), and basically anything that required a degree. I went in for a CAD draftsman interview with a guy who owned a small engineering contracting company. When I got into the interview, he asked me why someone with my degree would move to that particular town, because there were absolutely no engineers there. He basically hired me on the spot (few more interviews after) for whatever reason (lack of other candidates or me being awesome, I don't really know/care) and I was friggin ecsatic. When we were "negotiating" pay, I gave him some numbers of what I would expect and he added 10 grand to it (I bid high because I was expecting 10k LESS). As a fresh grad, I was making 100th percentile for my graduating class. He sent me off to a job site to work for 6 months, making my salary and overtime AND per diem (money for living expenses that I get to spend as I see fit.)
The problem: I am not doing any engineering work. I am basically working as a CPA in the power industry. I like making ridiculous amounts of money, but I want to start learning some real engineering skills. I sit at a computer looking at spreadsheets and calculating costs all day. It is really a bore and not what I wanted to do with my career.
I recently found a company that is willing to train me to be a construction supervisor because of my new-found intimate knowledge of the money side of the power industry, my technical degree, and my willingness to travel to job sites. I would be getting paid about the same but learning the skills that I actually want to learn. As of right now I know almost nothing of the actual mechanics of a power plant. I walk the plants and have no idea what this valve or this pump is or how this turbine works- it is kind of pathetic in my mind. This company is another contractor that I am working side by side with currently, so hiring on to them would be a breach of ... something? I know the general rule is that you don't hire your contractors, but I am working with these guys, not for them. We are both contractors for the same power plant. Is there anything wrong with this?
So cue 8 months later, still making awesome money, not progressing in the direction that I want to go career wise. I could make a career out of what I am doing, and the top guys doing what I do are making 60+ base hourly, but I would rather be doing something technical. I could go work for this other contracting company as a construction supervisor, but I feel like I owe loyalty to my current boss. He has been nothing but awesome in regards to, well, everything. EXCEPT: He is a PE (professional engineer) but he isn't really teaching me any engineering. The work I am doing does not count towards my 3 required years experience for my PE license, and I really want to get that. He has said that he would have engineering work for me eventually, but I keep getting these same jobs. I don't want to be pigeon-holed into this.
I guess my biggest caveat is that I don't want to abandon the guy who threw me a huge friggin meaty bone when I was starving. It would be the best career move ever, but I feel like I owe him for getting me on my feet when I was so desperate, and not even taking advantage of me in my bad situation. Honestly, I would have taken so much less than what he is paying me.
SOOOOOOOO H/A, does anyone have any insight into my situation? What would you do? Sign on with the new company and learn what you want to learn without giving up any moolahs? Stay with current company and keep doing what I am, eventually becoming a powerhouse of both income and boredom? Donate all my money to whoever most satisfactorily answers this post?
I am a relatively fresh graduate with an MS in mechanical engineering. I moved to a town with absolutely no industry (tourist town) and couldn't find a job that I wanted for 6 months. There were a few interviews and one offer that I didn't accept (shitty "engineer" position in a factory 1 hour away.) I was getting desperate, so I started interviewing for anything that I had skills for: CAD positions, teaching positions (I've been a TA twice), and basically anything that required a degree. I went in for a CAD draftsman interview with a guy who owned a small engineering contracting company. When I got into the interview, he asked me why someone with my degree would move to that particular town, because there were absolutely no engineers there. He basically hired me on the spot (few more interviews after) for whatever reason (lack of other candidates or me being awesome, I don't really know/care) and I was friggin ecsatic. When we were "negotiating" pay, I gave him some numbers of what I would expect and he added 10 grand to it (I bid high because I was expecting 10k LESS). As a fresh grad, I was making 100th percentile for my graduating class. He sent me off to a job site to work for 6 months, making my salary and overtime AND per diem (money for living expenses that I get to spend as I see fit.)
The problem: I am not doing any engineering work. I am basically working as a CPA in the power industry. I like making ridiculous amounts of money, but I want to start learning some real engineering skills. I sit at a computer looking at spreadsheets and calculating costs all day. It is really a bore and not what I wanted to do with my career.
I recently found a company that is willing to train me to be a construction supervisor because of my new-found intimate knowledge of the money side of the power industry, my technical degree, and my willingness to travel to job sites. I would be getting paid about the same but learning the skills that I actually want to learn. As of right now I know almost nothing of the actual mechanics of a power plant. I walk the plants and have no idea what this valve or this pump is or how this turbine works- it is kind of pathetic in my mind. This company is another contractor that I am working side by side with currently, so hiring on to them would be a breach of ... something? I know the general rule is that you don't hire your contractors, but I am working with these guys, not for them. We are both contractors for the same power plant. Is there anything wrong with this?
So cue 8 months later, still making awesome money, not progressing in the direction that I want to go career wise. I could make a career out of what I am doing, and the top guys doing what I do are making 60+ base hourly, but I would rather be doing something technical. I could go work for this other contracting company as a construction supervisor, but I feel like I owe loyalty to my current boss. He has been nothing but awesome in regards to, well, everything. EXCEPT: He is a PE (professional engineer) but he isn't really teaching me any engineering. The work I am doing does not count towards my 3 required years experience for my PE license, and I really want to get that. He has said that he would have engineering work for me eventually, but I keep getting these same jobs. I don't want to be pigeon-holed into this.
I guess my biggest caveat is that I don't want to abandon the guy who threw me a huge friggin meaty bone when I was starving. It would be the best career move ever, but I feel like I owe him for getting me on my feet when I was so desperate, and not even taking advantage of me in my bad situation. Honestly, I would have taken so much less than what he is paying me.
SOOOOOOOO H/A, does anyone have any insight into my situation? What would you do? Sign on with the new company and learn what you want to learn without giving up any moolahs? Stay with current company and keep doing what I am, eventually becoming a powerhouse of both income and boredom? Donate all my money to whoever most satisfactorily answers this post?
Fozwazerus on
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Well, doesn't matter how good a guy he is, he'd fire your ass if he had to. If you want to be nice then give proper notice and offer to train your replacement. Maybe even have a chat with him to see if there's any opportunities for what you want to do at your current company.
Read any materials you signed when you were hired. Consult a lawyer.
The only thing i would worry about is the working for another contractor thing, as mentioned check that to make sure its not a breech of the something.
But I say go for it, if its what you want. Make sure you thank your current employer for treating you well. Make sure you give plenty of notice, perhaps offering to stay on to help train in the next guy etc. But other than that, you dont owe them anything.
I was more learning towards breach of ethics kind of thing. An "is this a dick move?" kind of thing.
I worked for this company filled with awesome people (well, tiny office, all 4 people there were awesome though) this summer on a term position, and when my contract was up and I had another job, I realized how awesome the other place was so I'm volunteering to help out at their annual conference this weekend (non profit company, so they do a conference every year sort of like a shareholders meeting). Anywho, the point is that you can still be in contact with your past employer and even help out here and there (though, check the contract with the new co in regards to competition and suchlike, even if on a volunteer basis) and be appreciative in all sorts of ways.
Not at all. Allowing your current company to match salary or benifits is a favor to them. So ask the great boss to get you doing what you want and tell him about the offer. The balls in his court then.
Do not expect your current company to hesistate a quarter of second to fire you if you being to cost them more than they want.
Do not expect any sympathy from your boss, from your HR, from your hierarchy if things turn ugly somehow.
Do expect however, that they will fully understand the postion you're in, because frankly, it happens alllll the time. Be bluntly honest about it, give your 2 weeks, or whatever that is, and move on to a better place (well, better salary, at any rate).
In a way i really envy you for not having ever been dump like toilet paper for economical costs...i really wish i would ask myself those kind of questions again... Oh well.
The old saying of "Better to be half way up a ladder that you want to be on, rather than at the top of one you dont" springs to mind.
Reasons for this are:
1. If you get a solid block of experience in this job then you should be able to get other similar jobs if you have to do so and 8 months might not be enough to allow you to change employers/locations. This is a risk mitigation strategy just in case either 1) you hate/suck at the technical stuff you trained for or 2) economic necessity forces you back into a better paying field OR the recession hits and construction work collapses*
2. You've already seen how useful having this non University training related experience is for getting jobs you actually trained for or want to get, so imagine how useful it might be in a year or so.
I did something similar to you when I graduated with my Masters, I decided to work outside of my profession for a large ITT company, in their commercial division. Now that I've returned/taken up the profession I've trained for a couple of years later this experience has made me far more effective than I think I would have been if I'd gone straight into it.
3. Commercial training is always useful when allied with a non commercial/financial profession - see 2.
4. With most professions you have a little bit of leeway before your qualification starts to lose its lustre. I have no idea how long this is with your field, but hopefully you should be able to spend 1-2 years working in a different field before it starts to hurt your engineering prospects.
On the other hand, if engineering is your vocation then you are probably always going to be unhappy until you give it a good try.
*There have been substantial job losses in this sector in the UK - no idea what it is like in your area.
However, if you have a lot of college debt and the other job doesn't pay as much as your current job, why not wait a year or two and pay off some of that debt before getting a different job?
I understand being loyal to your coworkers/immediate supervisor, though.
Give him 2-week's notice, explain that it's a good opportunity for you, thank him for what he's done for you, and shake his hand. You will have satisfied honor.
Also, it sounds very much like your on the road to being project manager in which you don't need to know fuck all about the 'how' just the finances about hiring the people that do. You need to know enough about engineering to know when someone is blowing smoke up your ass, but as for the nitty gritty- well, thats what peons are for dude.
Are you sure you want to be the peon? Because from the sounds of it you're working in a position to teach you the business of engineering, and at the end of the road, that's going to be far more valuable. Being in the engineering trade, and running an engineering company are two completely different things, just make sure youre after what your long term goals are. I mean, you can always make bajillions and build model bridges to scale in your basement, yah?