Job dilemma - can't decide between two

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Participant

Participant

Caporegime
Joined
13 May 2003
Posts
34,593
Location
Warwickshire
I've been thinking about this for literally weeks and am still unable to make a decision.

I'm an accountant for a small local manufacturing company that are doing well financially, paying me well, and it's five minutes away from home. I've had an offer from one of the UK's largest companies for a job in the service industry that will pay the same but is 35 minutes away and is a relatively unknown quantity in terms of the working hours, the exact nature of the role, etc.

I've talked to wife (who thinks I should stay), family (who don't know), friends (who think I should move), and I'm still stuck, so it's on OcUK to help me decide I'm ashamed to say :p.

Pros of current position:
- close to home
- cushty, easy, pleasant in terms of both commute and job role
- varied experience in terms of range of tasks
- I enjoy working there, the people are nice, and the environment is pleasant. I'm happy.
- 5% performance-related bonus

Cons of current position:
- languishing in a small company could eventually hurt my CV
- no prospect of promotion (unless my boss leaves, which is unlikely)
- not showing ambition by remaining
- likely to only be inflation busting payrises from now on
- will another opportunity like this come along if I decide to make the break

Pros of moving:
- prestigious company, strengthen CV
- greater prospects of internal promotion
- diversify skill set to commercial services
- better benefits i.e. private health, dental etc.
- new tasks, adds interest

Cons of moving:
- longer commute
- spend more on petrol each month but earn the same
- no bonus
- no doubt they will want blood, unlike my current employers

What would you do? I'm genuinely stuck. I'd consider myself an ambitious guy but I'm just so content at the moment. I can't decide if it's because I'm stuck in a rut and happy to go nowhere, or if I genuinely should stay put.
 
you have said it yourself really, stay at your current job.

what about a 3rd option? have you looked in other avenues? there might be a 3rd jo around the corner which has more benefits than either of the first two.
 
What makes you happy?

Time with your wife or time at work ? :p

If it pays the same then it's a no brainer, and how much more money before it is worth it for the time away from your family and things you can do outside work?
 
How old are you?

I can see why you would want to move as the prospects of promotion could bring you far greater rewards than you receive currently.

My main concern would be if the new company has to lay off some staff and you could well be in the firing line.
 
So, you had an offer. Were you looking or did they approach you out the blue? If you went for it, take it. Seems like your up for leaving anyway. If its out the blue, ask for a bit more, what can you loose? Sounds better imo anyway, go for it!
 
If your job security is good at the smaller business i would also stay for the time being, also the list of Pros you wrote seem to answer the question for you..

As Raymond said if it pays the same why bother?

But i am not really one to give advice as i am still at college with a part-time job. Still thought i would express my opinion
 
Sounds like whilst you might feel stuck in a little rut this could turn out to be a case of 'the grass is greener...' and you'd move and then feel you've made the wrong decision.

Personally, unless there's a clear career advantage, if there's no increase in monies I wouldn't move.
 
Moses99p said:
Hi there,



Well he's obviously considering career advancement (or the lack thereof!) at his current place... if he moves there's potential.
Click to expand...


Well I guess horses for courses. Quality of life is more important to me than stress of the big glamorous career in corporate towers.
Take my brother-in-law for instance. He is an accountant. He works in Dublin for pfizer its like a 2.5 hr commute every day.

He gets up at 5 doesn't come home till after 7pm most night after 9pm. He's always tired and hardly sees his young family.

He may get payed more than me but I have a lot more hair lol. and if you divide the hours he works for the money he gets, its probably not too much more than me.

I wouldn't swap his life for mine for any amount of money.

Its a nice 20 min walk for me to work and I'm home by 4.30pm.
 
Last edited:
[QUOE=Robbie G;14151768]

Pros of current position:
- close to home ok
- cushty, easy, pleasant in terms of both commute and job role ok
- varied experience in terms of range of tasks ok
- I enjoy working there, the people are nice, and the environment is pleasant. I'm happy. ok
- 5% performance-related bonus ok

Cons of current position:
- languishing in a small company could eventually hurt my CV why does hurting your cv worry you, if you are happy to stay there?
- no prospect of promotion so you do want to move on (up)?
- not showing ambition to who?, and who says?
- likely to only be inflation busting payrises from now on i don't get that. isn't inflation busting payrises a good thing?
- will another opportunity like this come along if I decide to make the break who knows. Well, actually if you keep your head down in the current job and and 'be happy' in a cushdy position, probably not. If you start actively seeking newer and better things, probably yes.

Pros of moving:
- prestigious company, strengthen CV strenthening the CV for the end game result of???
- greater prospects of internal promotion does this appeal?
- diversify skill set to commercial services as above
- better benefits i.e. private health, dental etc. this is better than current job?
- new tasks, adds interest as above..?

Cons of moving:
- longer commute so? 30 mins isn't exactly a long time I would suspect ANY job you pick would have commute time of at least that. The reasons for worrying about your CV would be null and void if this was a real issue
- spend more on petrol each month but earn the same tell them you want more money. Would promotion get you a net increase in take home?
- no bonus welcome to the real world. You get a bunch of benefits above intead. work out the equiv value
- no doubt they will want blood, unlike my current employers boo hoo. Don't let your self get taken advantage of. Set the tone before you even take the job.

What would you do? I'm genuinely stuck. I'd consider myself an ambitious guy but I'm just so content at the moment. this doesn't make sense to me. So if you are ambitious, but you are content, what will it take to make you DO something?[/QUOTE]
 
Had a counter offer from your current company? That said - were you headhunted for the new role or did you apply? If you applied then there has to be a reason why you applied...

I had a similar decision to make back in September. Decided in the end to resign, this ultimately was the best decision by a long shot (given most of the staff got laid off the month after I resigned). Accepting a counter offer is often dodgy- you'll still end up leaving but now it'll be on the company's terms as opposed to yours.
 
I'd stick where I was, especially if the company is small and stable just now. Loyalty will always be rewarded mate. If you're unsure of the companies future then yes consider moving, but I personally wouldn't do it at the moment. Large companies tend to hire and fire more often.
 
how long have u been with your current company?

hopefully it wont come to it but if u were to take this new job and then subsequently get made redundant. what sort of redundancy package would u get, if any?
 
I reckon you should stay - if this prestigious company gets into financial trouble, you'll be the first to go. Plus you'll be doing an hour of driving a day and spending more in fuel a month.
 
as has been said, the grass is not always greener. i started in a job that was ok but went rapidly downhill so i was looking to move on, for much the same reasons as you - more money, more responsibility etc. however, the new job was a commute up the M1 everyday for a company that treated me like poop, a role that was nothing like it was advertised and i was desperate to get out - more than anywhere i've ever been in any role ever.

fortunately i found something else (same money - 10 min drive or 30min walk) and realised that it was my time that was most valuable to me and not the position or title. think very hard - money and status are not the be all and end all.
 
Dude you have to work to get somewhere in life, and if your current job is "cushty" then its more then likely gonna stay like that, and if you dont have any prospects then leave, go somewhere where you can work on your skills, strenghten your cv etc etc

I moved from a temp post at RBS which looked promising to an apprenticeship.. Best move i ever made, a very hard one but infact the best, easier commute made it easier too :D

Your pros and cons pretty much decide it for you, move now :)

+ ask your mother, they usually know the best move to make i find.
 
Some very good points have been made here, and thanks for not resorting to what I semi expected: 'bully for you for having an option' :p.

I'll try to answer the questions in order, sorry for not quoting each person's point:

- There is no third option, at the moment it's stay or go.

- I value time with the wife and soon to be family greatly but I also want to realise my potential and not have any regrets as far as future prospects go. Following on from this I also want to provide my family with the best possible life, so it's striking the balance between spending time with them and spending money on them :p.

- I am 28 y.o., and you are right that first in often = first out, so if they decide to slash numbers I'll be first in line.

- I found the job via an agency I am registered with, but I was not actively looking. The agency approached me about the job. I literally just told the agency that I was rejecting the offer on financial grounds, and they're going back to the company to ask for more salary-wise, but aren't hopeful.

- I'm earning what I would call a good wage, but long-term I want to be a big cheese corporate FD. I think.

- whitecrook - thanks for the points you made. I'll address each of them in a separate reply.

- I had a meeting with my current boss and handed in my notice. At that point he immediately went into the MD's office and counter-offered 20 minutes later. There was no animosity that I could perceive. I went for the usual lunch time pint with my boss after the discussion.

- I have access to the figures of the whole group and the division I work for. We're doing well, and I mean record breaking sales and order backlog. There's no danger of redundancies that I can see.

- Moses99p - re: negotiating further with offering company, see above.

- I have been with my current employer for two years, having spent 3.5 years with a larger company during which time my balls were busted but I enjoyed the challenge. If I get made redundant from the new company, compensation would be statutory only I'd imagine.

- Grass not always greener - I agree; it's just a case of identifying when it is and when it isn't.

- steve-h - I presume the question mark represents: why on earth are you thinking about moving then? If so, the answer is that I see no long-term future where I currently am.

It's just so blardy close on each side. It boils down to short term gain (stay where I am and be better off by ~£200 per month) versus long term prospects potentially gained by working for a big dick.
 
Sometimes the grass is only greener on the other side because someone has smeared something unpleasantly biological on it.
 
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