I don't know much

Knowing When to Quit

You Need a Team

• Your family
• Mentors
• Former colleagues
• Trustworthy current coworkers

Find two or three people that can give you good council -- not just what you want to hear, but what you need to hear. You may have unrealistic expectations.

-- Brandon Edling

Why do you want to leave?

• Not feeling challenged enough
• Writing on the wall
• Not feeling valued by management
• Compensation is not balanced with skill level
• Ready for a technology/career change?
• Personnel issues

When considering leaving you need to have a plan.

Don’t knee jerk.​

If there are more than three months where you get up every day, look in the mirror and say to yourself, "What the hell am I doing?", you gotta leave. I say three months because every gig has a season... and things change... If you can say it for three months, chances are you've really felt it for longer than that... and life's too short.

-- Brandon Edling

If you want to stay, but something is wrong, TALK TO YOUR BOSS or HR, or whomever can help. But leav​ing a good job because of a bad person or situation doesn't solve that problem...If you don't tell them there's a genuine problem, they can't fix it.

 

-- Melanie Haas

Before you start looking

• Is the reason you want to leave fixable?
• Do you have some solutions in mind?
• Have you talked to anyone who can make the change?
• Are you the one who needs to change?

Don't threaten to leave

Don't Knee-jerk

YOU ARE HERE

Compensation is more than your salary

• GROSS Salary
• Time Off
• Insurance Premiums
• Disability Insurance
• Life Insurance
• Employee Assistance Program
• Wellness Program/Gym
• Food Subsidies
• Retirement Matching
• Other Matching (e.g. HSA)
• Cell Phone/Internet Reimbursement

Current Total yearly compensation

E - Y = Total Compensation

Changing Ladders

Career change considerations

• You will probably be taking a pay cut
• Get competent on your own to minimize the pay cut
• Go to user groups and start hanging out with the devs who are where you want to be

Navigating the Job Market

List your top 5 priorities of what you care about. Is it leadership? Tech stack? Work time for opensource projects? Look at what your current employer does poorly in regards to those, and use them as criteria starting your job search.

-- Anonymous

Get your priorities straight

• Non-negotiables
• Nice to haves
• Must not have

Finding the Openings

• All-Natural, Free-Range, Non-GMO Networking
• Keep up with former colleagues
• Open source projects
• Check for connections at companies where you want to work

Read between the lines. Words like "superstar" and "ninja" just mean expectations are unrealistic. Look for places that seem transparent and post realistic requirements.

-- Anonymous

Dealing with Recruiters

Before meeting a recruiter in-person

• Identify the company
• Get the salary range
• Get the employment status
• Get the location

The Dreaded Questions

"What's your desired salary?

What do you currently make?"

Be honest and forthcoming

or

Say the salary is negotiable

Sean's Answers to the Dreaded Questions™

Interviewing and Offers

It's important to remember that even though you feel like the interviewer is in the driver's seat, you have a lot of power. Demand for talent is high. If they aren't working to impress you and show you how awesome they are, be very skeptical.

-- Melanie Haas

Red flags to watch for...

• Vague Job Descriptions
• Too much HR involvement during interview process
• Needlessly complicated interview processes
• Upper management present at all times
• Attitudes of those interviewing you
• Promises, promises, promises
• No on-boarding/training plan and options
• Inspirational sayings on the walls

Less Common Questions

• What is the leadership structure like? Who would be my supervisor?
• What is the turnover rate like? What's the average tenure for these types of positions?
• Tell me about the last 3 developers you had to let go
• How does the annual review process work?
• Is there a budget and time available for R&D?

• Are developers dedicated or shared across teams?

• How often are developers working after hours?

Meet the team

Startup Concerns

• Runway
• Clients
• Investors

Evaluating Job Offers

• Get all of the numbers
• Compare the total compensation to your current
• Make sure those who depend on you have buy-in
• Find out the pay period timing

Current Total yearly compensation

$50,565 - $3,600 = $46,965

Offered Total yearly compensation

$53,230   - $8,250 = $44,980

Remember

• Vacation time is negotiable
• Know your worth and don't get undervalued
• Be OK with walking away if things don't match your priority list.

Leaving on Good Terms

Do your best to not burn any bridges on the way out, even if your previous workplace wouldn't do the same for you.

-- Dylan Baumann

Don't burn bridges. Leave any position professionally.

-- Allana Pettigrew

Make sure you don't burn bridges on the way out

-- Anonymous

Do not burn a bridge.

-- Cory House

Don't burn bridges...

-- Melanie Haas

Don't be a dick.

-- Aaron Wolfson

The Counter Offer

Leaving Well

• Mind Payroll's timing
• Give plenty of notice
• Train the next in line
• Show your appreciation
• Happy Hour!
• Keep in touch
• Thank your old company