Help me decide on career path

hooblah · 20 Mar 2021 at 14:55

I thought I'd ask here as there is a large and varied mix of people.

I have been offered two roles as a project manager in construction.

The first one is a permanent role with a tier 1 contractor dealing with additional works with facilities.

The second role is a 18-24 month contract working on the client side on one large project in the defence sector.

I need help deciding on which one will be the most beneficial in terms of experience gained. The money isn't an issue, as even though the contract role pays more, I can live comfortably on either.

Thanks in advance.

randomshenans · 20 Mar 2021 at 16:02

hooblah said:
The second role is a 18-24 month contract working on the client side on one large project in the defence sector.

This.

spidiweb7 · 20 Mar 2021 at 16:06

Working in the defence sector should help you with more opportunities in the future.

Randomface74 · 20 Mar 2021 at 16:13

I'd take the permanent role for the job security, but really they're pretty even, just pick the one you think you'll enjoy.

hooblah · 20 Mar 2021 at 16:32

That's the thing, I think I'll enjoy both.

As to opening up further opportunities, they both have their merits.

The tier 1 contractor has many vacancies in many industries, and would potentially allow a sideways move into one of them.

The defence sector I'm not sure about. Not knowing anything about defence means I don't know where it could lead to. Anyone care to enlighten me?
The other thing is, being an 18 month contract at the minimum, would I then have to wait til that ends in order to apply for other roles they are looking to fill?

Noxia · 21 Mar 2021 at 01:16

You may have to factor in security clearance if it's defence related. This can take months so bear that in mind. I'm not sure if it's caught up a bit but back in 2020 it was about 8-12 weeks backlog.
You don't need to know anything about defence either to work in it for a lot of roles.

simc1978 · 21 Mar 2021 at 01:25

I think it depends what your motivation to go to work is, if it's to get stuff done and deliver results go with tier 1, if it's to navigate ac maze of bureaucracy and bank a pay cheque at the end of the month go defence

hooblah · 21 Mar 2021 at 10:25

Noxia said:
You may have to factor in security clearance if it's defence related. This can take months so bear that in mind. I'm not sure if it's caught up a bit but back in 2020 it was about 8-12 weeks backlog.
You don't need to know anything about defence either to work in it for a lot of roles.

Yes I'm aware of that, but I don't think it will be an issue.
It's not that I don't know anything about defence, it's more that I don't know what opportunities it could lead to for future work. Whereas I know what sideways moves I can make with the tier 1 contractor.

Noxia · 21 Mar 2021 at 11:23

hooblah said:
Yes I'm aware of that, but I don't think it will be an issue.
It's not that I don't know anything about defence, it's more that I don't know what opportunities it could lead to for future work. Whereas I know what sideways moves I can make with the tier 1 contractor.

Well as a PM the opportunities are really quite endless. Someone just joined my team without even having an APM qualification, given the job on the proviso they will obtain it within 12 months.
If PM is your thing, there are a lot of positions that come up for it.

hooblah · 21 Mar 2021 at 11:37

Thanks. I meant in comparison to the other role. I guess that's the key thing here.

randomshenans · 21 Mar 2021 at 12:51

Construction is always subject to more change than defence IMO. I would go defence as, it's harder to go from construction to defence but you could always go vice versa. Contracts tend to be longer in things like defence, and are more sought after. I know a PM who retired about 5yrs ago who spent about 30 years contracting in defence.

sigma · 21 Mar 2021 at 12:52

I think only you can decide.

hooblah · 21 Mar 2021 at 16:51

sigma said:
I think only you can decide.

Well that's obvious. Trying to make an informed decision is a bit more difficult... Which is exactly what this thread is for.

HangTime · 21 Mar 2021 at 23:05

If you've found a defence contract that doesn't require you do already have security clearance, I'd say it's worth grabbing. As mentioned could be quite a wait though if you have to go through vetting.

hooblah · 22 Mar 2021 at 00:43

I will need to get SC clearance. I don't see it as a big issue. They're saying I can start after Easter regardless.

BF-Bert · 22 Mar 2021 at 12:29

Its construction there are very few niche positions as skills are easily transferable. Go with the one that fits in with where you see yourself in 5 years.

hooblah · 22 Mar 2021 at 19:32

Haha the age old question of where do you see yourself in 5 years... I don't think I'll ever be able to give a straight answer to this simply because I don't know. There are far too many things I'd like to experience, and so far my career path has meandered all over the place.

Rail seems to be quite lucrative, so I'm inclined to see that as something I'd like to try. I'm just following the money tbh. I don't really have my eyes set on a specific industry. Whatever has the best working environment/pay/perks. Not sure which industry provides that tbh. It would be nice to figure that out.

I've come from a heavily regulated industry, lots of rules, procedures, red tape etc. The perks were good, but had its limits due to regulation. Ideally I'd like to get into something unregulated, where bonuses can be earnt and perks are not limited.

hooblah · 28 Mar 2021 at 13:32

Anyone else care to chime in?

Macky · 28 Mar 2021 at 16:23

Having worked in both defence and rail, my experience is that defence typically pays more for an equivalent position. Both industries have their problems and neither is particularly forward thinking compared to software or similar. Both have lots of "red tape" in my experience. I currently work in major rail infrastructure projects and enjoy this more than anything else I've done. I do get the satisfying feeling that I am genuinely improving the lives of the communities I am serving by improving the transport infrastructure in those areas. Annoyingly, companies will try and use this as justification as to why they don't need to pay as much as competing industries, i.e defence. Ironically, the rail industry actually regards those with defence experience highly, as it's an avenue to bring outside thinking and skills in.

Not particularly helpful - happy to answer any questions you may have, though.

Noxia · 31 Mar 2021 at 09:51

Macky said:
Having worked in both defence and rail, my experience is that defence typically pays more for an equivalent position. Both industries have their problems and neither is particularly forward thinking compared to software or similar. Both have lots of "red tape" in my experience. I currently work in major rail infrastructure projects and enjoy this more than anything else I've done. I do get the satisfying feeling that I am genuinely improving the lives of the communities I am serving by improving the transport infrastructure in those areas. Annoyingly, companies will try and use this as justification as to why they don't need to pay as much as competing industries, i.e defence. Ironically, the rail industry actually regards those with defence experience highly, as it's an avenue to bring outside thinking and skills in.

Not particularly helpful - happy to answer any questions you may have, though.

Interestingly, two people have just joined my team from Network Rail.