It's Your Move, 4th Edition

Marge Watters

• Publisher: Collins
• Year: 2012
• ISBN:
  9781443409087
• Topic: Personal Development
• Subtopic: Careers

For over a decade, It's Your Move has been helping Canadian executives, managers and professionals get the job they really want with proven advice and strategies. Today, competition for jobs is tough, but at the same time, opportunities for career change are plentiful. Thoroughly revised and updated throughout, It's Your Move offers clear, proven advice and strategies including

• How to use social media effectively—from establishing a powerful online presence to making the most of professional sites such as LinkedIn.
• A step-by-step guide to networking—approaching contacts and conducting networking meetings in a way that generates new leads and, eventually, employment opportunities.
• The importance of research for the job search—how to differentiate yourself from the competition through research that goes much deeper than what can be found easily on the Internet.
• How you negotiate a job offer—this can set a positive or negative tone for your relationship with a new employer.

Understand what to negotiate and what to leave as is. For the millions of Canadians contemplating a career change or currently experiencing a sudden job loss, the updated edition of It's Your Move will be a key tool in their storehouse of career strategies.

Part One
Get Your Head in the Game

Winning relies as much on attitude as it does on hard work.

Objectives

Whether you have decided to move on, or the decision has been made for you, this first step involves ending your current employment situation with confidence and professionalism. By taking care of the details of transition and dealing with the emotions you experience, you can make a positive start. The chapters in Part One cover:

• Evaluating your readiness to move on.

• Handling the announcement of your departure effectively.

• Reasons for seeking legal advice.

• Financial planning for transition.

• Building a support network.

• Practical strategies for coping with your emotions.

Rules to Follow

• Be committed to moving on. Fence-sitting is not good for you or your career.

• Pay attention to your finances up front. Establish the maximum length of your transition period on the basis of your finances. Set a minimum remuneration requirement for your next opportunity.

• Separate the emotional issues from the legal issues.

• Choose your confidants wisely. Don’t bare your soul to anyone and everyone.

• Plan carefully what you will say about why you are making a change.

Moves That Can Set You Back

• Being negative about any organization or person, thereby appearing unprofessional.

• Sharing your plans for moving on with anyone inside your organization before you are ready to act on them.

• Being dishonest with yourself about the feelings that change brings.

• Ignoring the effects that a career change will have on the significant others in your life, including children of any age.

• Jumping into the job market before taking the time to do a career assessment and create a strategy for finding the work you want.

Chapter 1
Start Here

Nothing is more important than your reputation with yourself.

Getting your head in the game requires that a decision be made about managing your career. If your employment is terminated, the decision is made for you. You probably won’t be consulted, and the news can be quite a shock. The quick hit can be devastating at first, but there are advantages; for example, you don’t have to suffer the turmoil of indecision or the disappointment of slow rejection by your organization. The decision is made, and you’re at the starting line.

“Working notice” is a common practice, and it isn’t always easy to handle. In this situation, your current responsibilities end, often as the result of project completion or restructuring, and you are given the opportunity to conduct an internal job search. Organizations vary in the degree of clarity they provide regarding their processes and the level of assurance they give regarding job availability. Some offer excellent internal support; others, none at all. If you are given working notice, get your head in the game right away and start managing your career.

Early retirement can be good news or bad news. You’re off to a great start if you’ve been waiting for the opportunity and you already have ideas about what you want to do next. However, if you’ll be in bad shape financially, or you’re unprepared emotionally and psychologically for this news, the phrase “early retirement” can seem like a euphemism for being fired. Regardless of your initial reaction, there are benefits. You will be able to position your leaving as an early retirement, and having some pension income, you probably won’t have to replace all your income to stay even.

If the decision to make a career change is entirely yours, being decisive and making time to do it right will be the challenge. Deciding to leave on your own can be the most difficult starting point. It isn’t easy to be proactive about making a move when you are spending all your energy keeping up with the demands of your day-to-day responsibilities. Not devoting the time needed to pay attention to your future, however, is one of the greatest errors in good career management. Doing so requires commitment, organization and discipline. Dedicating yourself to this task is something that only you can do.

In any of these circumstances, you can take control and be determined to make the moves that are right for you. Too many people make mistakes with the closing steps of leaving a job because it is such an emotionally loaded decision, regardless of who makes it. Be very careful about what you say and do. How you handle your departure from a job will affect your reputation, your references and consequently your future.

Are You Ready to Move On?

If the choice is yours, there will be signs telling you when it’s time for you to put yourself into the career management game. Sometimes, colleagues and family can see those signs more clearly than you. After a few years in the same job, some people simply find that they need a new challenge. Perhaps your enthusiasm has diminished because you’ve become too comfortable in your current role. If you are stale, restless or bored, it’s time to consider a change.

Relationships can create or destroy satisfying work. Unproductive and unhappy relationships generate some of the most common reasons for making a change. A reconfigured team might generate too many conflicting opinions. It could be that you and the new boss or the new team can’t find a way to work together well. If you’ve genuinely given it your best shot, consider moving. Chances are high that a move is being planned for you, and it may not be one you want.

When you gain significant practical experience or when you complete formal education adding relevant credentials to your résumé, you might be justified in seeking out a more senior role. Surprisingly, some organizations find it difficult to acknowledge the growing capabilities of their own people. You may have to move on to move up.

In bad economic times, downsizing is commonplace. In good times, mergers and acquisitions bring restructuring. In every economic climate, job loss can result from technological advances, process re-engineering, a change in strategic direction or the arrival of a new leader. Do you wait to see if the organizational change will affect your position, or do you become proactive before you are forced to find a new job? If you are still challenged and enthusiastic about your work, and if that work is likely to continue regardless of structural reorganization, stay put. In this era of non-stop change, you might dodge one upheaval only to land in another.

Regardless of your reasons for a career change, decide to get your head in the game. Don’t wait for something magical to happen. You won’t find out what else is out there until you go out and have a look. Terrific job offers seldom land in people’s laps unsolicited. They’re not like junk mail! Most people have to generate new opportunities through thoughtful and diligent effort.

Tip: If you feel so trapped or overwhelmed by your responsibilities or personal circumstances that you can’t focus on managing your career, getting professional support is probably a smart idea. First, see your family doctor to make sure nothing is physically wrong. Then, find a qualified counsellor or a competent career transition consultant to help you.

As you work through the following guidelines, remember that you are simply making the decision to begin an active career management process. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you will change employers. You might find the ideal opportunity within your current organization.

GUIDELINES FOR DECIDING TO MAKE A MOVE

• Fence-sitting is uncomfortable and unproductive. Find some way of making the decision. Make a list of the pros and cons of staying where you are. Evaluate your current job as if it were a new opportunity. Would you take it?

• Think about what it would take to initiate a career change. Can you dedicate the time and effort to doing it right? If not, can you make some lifestyle changes to make this dedication possible?

• Are you reacting to a temporary or recent situation? If you give this situation more time or effort, is there a chance that your discontentment will vanish?

• Do you like the organization overall? Would you be content with another job in your company if one was offered?

• Career transition consultants are skilled at helping people determine whether or not to look for a new job. Ask someone outside your organization to recommend one and make an appointment to see them.

• Be realistic about the benefits of staying where you are if you have long service with your organization. Consider that leaving might significantly reduce your pension and you might forfeit some types of deferred compensation.

• Once you’ve decided to look for a new opportunity, commit specific blocks of time to carrying out your intention. Become organized and disciplined.

• Do not discuss your thoughts about leaving with anyone in your organization. Deal with points of dissatisfaction about your job as if you fully intended to be part of the long-term solution.

• Do not make direct or veiled threats about leaving. If you are unhappy, deal with the specific issues directly and with the appropriate persons.

• Work through confidential channels. Be cautious with your network and find out which search firms are working for your company so that you do not contact them.

• Use private email and voice mail systems to avoid the possibility of having your search discovered.

• Consider getting legal advice before engaging in conversations with any of your employer’s competitors.

A senior risk manager found herself increasingly dissatisfied with her work and decided to leave her corporate role to pursue a completely new career that would involve a significant salary reduction. Over the course of several discussions with her boss, she focused on aspects of her role where changes might convince her to stay. At the same time, she planned her exit but did not reveal this to anyone associated with her work. On the morning that she intended to resign, she received an emergency call from her husband. He told her that his employment had been terminated. As a result, she continued to work in the same position for three years before she could pursue her plan. It was a good thing that she had kept her plans to herself.

You’ve Decided to Resign

Once you know that you are leaving and where you are headed, give the amount of notice required by your employment contract or company policy. Do not announce your departure too far in advance. Deliver the news of your resignation or retirement respectfully. You never know when you might need to return, or when you might have to deal with your boss or co-workers in another setting.

If a counter-offer is presented by your organization, think about it very carefully. If a substantive change in your role or mandate is on the table, weigh it against your external opportunity. However, if the counter-offer is based solely on remuneration, moving on might be wise. Regardless of what is said, employers have a hard time seeing you as a committed team player after they have had to pay a ransom to keep you. Search firms and placement agencies also become significantly less interested in you after you have jilted them by accepting your company’s counter-offer.

Think about what you will say to colleagues, senior management, clients and suppliers about your reasons for leaving. Say more about the new opportunity and less about what you’re leaving behind. Be truthful in your explanation, but be respectful. Do not disparage your current employer or anyone who works there.

You’ve Received Working Notice

Your boss has told you that your current role will be ending, and you will have a specific period of time to look for work while your salary continues to be paid. If you are given the option of looking for another job internally, you can sometimes access internal job boards, career centres or telephone hotlines for help. Here are some questions to guide you.

GUIDELINES FOR DEALING WITH WORKING NOTICE

• Is it possible to receive pay in lieu of working notice and leave immediately? If so, would this be preferable to you?

• Ask now for the details of the severance package you will receive in the event that you do not find suitable employment within the organization. This information will help you decide how to divide your time between an internal and external job search.

• Is a retention bonus offered? If so, is it sufficient to warrant your staying to the end of the working notice period? If none is offered, consider asking for one.

• How much freedom will you have to look for work internally during the notice period? Will you be given the time to plan your next move, make contacts and attend interviews?

• How likely is it that you will find suitable work within the organization? Will your current boss recommend you for other positions?

• If you find a new job internally, will you feel the same way about the organization? Can you be happy staying if you feel you’ve previously been rejected?

• If you choose to forego the internal job search, how much time can you take to make contacts and look for work externally?

• Is the support of a career transition consultant available during the working notice period, and, if you haven’t landed a job within that time, what quality, level and length of career transition support will be provided?

• If you land a new job outside the organization, can you be released before the working notice period is over? Would you receive any portion of the severance package?

• How would either of these early exits affect your benefits, pension and deferred compensation?

A marketing director received working notice when his department was restructured. He had 90 days to find a new job within the organization. He asked to use the services o...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of Worksheets
• What You Need to Know Before You Start
• Part One: Get Your Head in the Game
• Part Two: Develop Your Strategy
• Part Three: Prepare to Communicate
• Part Four: Move into Action
• Part Five: Cross the Finish Line
• Recommended Resources
• Appendix: Sample Résumés
• Acknowledgements
• About the Author
• Copyright
• About the Publisher