up to 7 weeks to request a day off Small vent.

[vontar]

Just had to vent a little.  Our at work team got this notice today.

 

Work is starting to require 7 or more weeks advance notice for a scheduled day off depending on the day and our the calendar falls.

 

Extreme example Dead line to request a day off is the 18th of a month prior month.  So even on the 19th you find out you need to ask for the 30th of the following month off (about 7 weeks) it will be an unexcused absence.

Nothing directly happened to me on this.  Over the past 10 years there has been an unenforced attendance policy.  Now instead of enforcing it, they are creating a whole knew one that is much worse.

 

Fine if you want the 1st off, you have just 12/13 is all the notice you really have to put in, but the further out it is, the more notice you need.

Plus there is a standing policy of no requests more than 2 months in advance. 

 

Guess it does take management and Excel to really mess things up.

 

 

That is a pretty crappy policy when it only takes 2 weeks to give notice.

 

 

This policy seems to be  enacted solely on the small team of about 25 people I work with out of a internal company with thousands of employees.

I am going to dig into Corp Policy and find out what it says as they drill ethics in to each of us worker bees.

 

Someone said it in another thread, jobs don't get better, they get worse over time.

 

I believe I am in a prime example.  Been there 2 long, need to explorer some options while keeping out of the fireworks I am sure this is going to cause.

Just started training more with AD and a few things that will be a good resume booster, so I need to stick it out for some experience.  Knowing and experience are 2 separate things.

 

Get more experience, hands on and advance or form a viable exit strategy.

Edited August 20, 2015 by vontar

[Sam1]

Hey man, just start looking.  Benefits were good at my last place, but I was literally stuck with zero promotion opportunity for a minimum of 5 more years (after I had already been there for 4).  Spent almost a year straight of searching every single day, but refused to give up & finally had the opportunity to transfer.  Same pay, same type of work, same benefits, but there's a ton of promotion potential after I learn the new systems.

 

Just start looking, because the one day you aren't, is the day the opportunity to move on passes you up.  I'd rather be told no and I don't qualify 100 times for a promotion/new position than sit around and wonder what would have happened if I tried.

 

If you think you can do better, then get your stuff together and start working on it and leave that negativity & stress behind you.

[btq96r]

Best time to find a job is when you have one if you aren't satisfied with your current conditions.

[runco]

You need a little Johnny Paycheck or a little Twisted Sister.  You know, take this job and shove it............or We are not going to take it..................now is the time to look while that check if coming in. 

 

Not sure if this is your area, I hear ALCOA was hiring for production workers.  Great benefits and great wages.  I don't work there, but 80% of family does or is retired from there.

[Oh Shoot]

Phone bank type tech support has always been the bottom of the barrel regarding this sort of thing.

 

Did about 9 months of it myself once.

 

- OS

[EssOne]

OK to go looking, but just remember the title of a book Irma Bombeck wrote back in the '70's - "The Grass Is Always Greener Above The Septic Tank."

[vontar]

Right, I might not like it and not much I can do short term.  However I can plan and try to make things better.

 My current short game is to get some more experience in my new job responsibilities to build my resume.

Pay off a few bills though this winter.  I know I won't get my pay this close to home for sure.

 

Try to find a better job at the company outside of the Org I am currently in would be my best.  So I could keep my 10 years of service.

 

Like I said, had to vent a little, but not doing anything to get myself in trouble.  I guess I am 2 responsible for that.

[Pete123]

What if you and some of your colleagues struck out on your own and started an MSP (Managed services provider)?  I think you are in Oak Ridge.  Claris Networks started over in Knoxville and grew to about 200 people before they sold the company.

 

I have a friend who did this and he gets techie work off website while he builds his business.  Can you install routers?  Comcast doesn't provide managed routers on their fiber product.  You can bet their sales reps have folks like you that can handle router installation and configuration, wireless access point installation, etc...

[BigK]

A month or 2 ago IT recruiters were nagging the hell out me, but I told them I'm not looking. It was true, I wasn't looking. I loved my gig and had no intention of leaving for a LONG time. This was, after all, the best job I've ever had. I was doing what I love, getting paid a fair salary for it, and the work culture was everything I could ask for.

 

A couple of Mondays ago, I got an email from work at 6 pm at night, but I ignored it until a co-worker texted me to ask if I got an email too. When I checked, it was a damn "it is with deep sadness that we inform you..." email saying I was fired, because the company was losing money. My security access was revoked and by 8 pm, they'd shut down our email as well. Turns out 1/3 of the company got that same email and we were all truly blindsided by the news.

 

Moral of the story...strike while the iron is hot. 

[EssOne]

I'm very sorry that happened to you, BigK. Best wishes on finding a new gig.

[BigK]

Right, I might not like it and not much I can do short term.  However I can plan and try to make things better.

 My current short game is to get some more experience in my new job responsibilities to build my resume.

Pay off a few bills though this winter.  I know I won't get my pay this close to home for sure.

 

Try to find a better job at the company outside of the Org I am currently in would be my best.  So I could keep my 10 years of service.

 

Like I said, had to vent a little, but not doing anything to get myself in trouble.  I guess I am 2 responsible for that.

 

Sounds like you think the writing is on the wall, so to speak, where you are. If so, I think your short game is spot-on. Take as much with you when you go as possible and hopefully it happens on your terms. I've heard it said that staying in one job too long in IT is the kiss of death. Promotions are harder to get than better jobs; market value pay is hard to get without switching jobs every few years; and learning/applying new skills is hard when you've only had one environment to work in for a while.

Edited August 20, 2015 by BigK

[vontar]

BigK, sorry how that hit you as well.  I have seen people blindsided before but doing it in an email like that is really bad.

 

 

 I've heard it said that staying in one job too long in IT is the kiss of death. Promotions are harder to get than better jobs; market value pay is hard to get without switching jobs every few years; and learning/applying new skills is hard when you've only had one environment to work in for a while.

Yea, some of that came up in my last review. 

 

I need to take some tests and get some certs this winter.

They like Certs more then working knowledge or experience.

I have seen people with certs I wouldn't trust to turn on a PC.

[R_Bert]

Sorry about that Big K, and also your trials Vontar.  It is amazing how low and how stupid organizations can dive.  But, they seem to always find the lowest common denominator.

 

For me, I was not so fortunate to simply get an email. 

 

I was returning to my office from a meeting with a colleague in another building. They met me at the elevator with a armed guards (on an open campus), at lunch time, in a crowded building..... and likely just to publically shame me.  To compound, they also followed me out of the site under blue-lights.

 

All over charges of "insubordination". No threat whatsoever. And then they lied about why I left.

 

It was indeed humiliating.

[BigK]

Sorry about that Big K, and also your trials Vontar.  It is amazing how low and how stupid organizations can dive.  But, they seem to always find the lowest common denominator.

 

For me, I was not so fortunate to simply get an email. 

 

I was returning to my office from a meeting with a colleague in another building. They met me at the elevator with a armed guards (on an open campus), at lunch time, in a crowded building..... and likely just to publically shame me.  To compound, they also followed me out of the site under blue-lights.

 

All over charges of "insubordination". No threat whatsoever. And then they lied about why I left.

 

It was indeed humiliating.

 

That's taking it way too far, IMO. In fact, I'd say the way they did you is borderline defamation of character.

[Sam1]

 

I need to take some tests and get some certs this winter.

They like Certs more then working knowledge or experience.

I have seen people with certs I wouldn't trust to turn on a PC.

 

Not necessarily, depends on the job itself.  With many certs now expiring every few years requiring a renew, businesses aren't as focused on that because they understand it's become a racket.

 

Except for the higher level certs like CISSP, MCSD or E, CCIE etc.  Those come in pretty strong.

Edited August 21, 2015 by Sam1

[Murgatroy]

I wish you luck, but in a situation like that, it is either meant to run someone off, or everyone. 

[Pete123]

A month or 2 ago IT recruiters were nagging the hell out me, but I told them I'm not looking. It was true, I wasn't looking. I loved my gig and had no intention of leaving for a LONG time. This was, after all, the best job I've ever had. I was doing what I love, getting paid a fair salary for it, and the work culture was everything I could ask for.

 

A couple of Mondays ago, I got an email from work at 6 pm at night, but I ignored it until a co-worker texted me to ask if I got an email too. When I checked, it was a damn "it is with deep sadness that we inform you..." email saying I was fired, because the company was losing money. My security access was revoked and by 8 pm, they'd shut down our email as well. Turns out 1/3 of the company got that same email and we were all truly blindsided by the news.

 

Moral of the story...strike while the iron is hot. 

 

BigK, If you'll pm me with what you are looking for and what you do really well I may be able to help.  

 

My customers are tech leaders, so I keep up with the job market for tech leader jobs for when they need a job and techie positions for when they are hiring.  It's an easy way to build relationships and no one has to pay a recruiter fee with me because I'm not a recruiter.

[BigK]

BigK, If you'll pm me with what you are looking for and what you do really well I may be able to help.

My customers are tech leaders, so I keep up with the job market for tech leader jobs for when they need a job and techie positions for when they are hiring. It's an easy way to build relationships and no one has to pay a recruiter fee with me because I'm not a recruiter.

That's incredibly awesome of you, Pete 123, and I sincerely appreciate the offer.

Actually, I had an interview 3 days later and got hired for about 11% more than I was making at the last job. So, it really worked out in my favor after all.

[analog_kidd]

I agree that the certs are becoming less of a thing for employers. I'm a Windows Server guy, and probably half of my team have any kind of cert at all. My company is sending us to advanced VMware training and going to foot the bill for the certs, so I'll certainly go for those tests, but they hired me this year, and my MCSE is in NT4, with maybe one or two MCP's from the last decade. So, they didn't really care about my certifications. What they were interested in was what I knew.

 

I think I recall you do a helpline of some sort, right? You might want to send a resume here http://www.sciworld.com/careers/ They are the company that runs IT at the plant in Oak Ridge. I know they just had a couple of HelpDesk folks move on, they have a Desktop position open and I think they may have a server position or two open up recently. There have also been a few jobs posted at the lab recently as well. If you have not already, open an account at the ORNL careers site and check the listings regularly. Either of these will be the best options salary wise with remaining in your area.

 

If you haven't already, get a linked-In account and sign up for new job alerts. You'll start seeing jobs show up that don't appear in the paper.

 

The usual progression that I have seen is Helpdesk to Desktop specialist to either Server support or some specialty application, like SharePoint or Web design. If you have been in HelpDesk, you easily qualify for a Desktop type position. That would give you the opportunity to move around, meet folks and make a name for yourself. Find the people in the area you eventually want to be in, and start making contacts. Be the go-to guy and you'll get noticed among your co-workers and management.

 

The big areas I see right now that I would be focusing my career on if I were looking to move up are Virtualization (VMware or Hyper-V), anything made by Citrix, Cyber Security, or Networking (Cisco). On a desktop side, you should know Win10 and Win7/8 inside out, as well as Office. Practice installing and customizing these. Maybe even get certified in a few of them, if for no other reason than to get the training. The certs are a bonus.

 

The thing you gotta do is be constantly moving toward your goal. Every Monday ask yourself, what did I do last week to get me closer? Every week, do something... Put in an application, go on an interview, read a book, set up a new PC, learn a new feature of Windows. Picking on you a little, I recall you being irritated with your job several months ago, and now I hear you say you are going to wait until Winter to get really motivated. There is no time like the present, start now!

 

Good luck

[Sam1]

Yep its all about VM right now. Server 2016 is brining virualized networking on board to give VMware a run for their money, but I think they're a little late in the game on that part. VMware has the entire market cornered with some awesome solutions