For the first time ever, I was laid off, and had to find a new software developer job. I managed to find a new one, but it took longer than I thought, and it was a lot of work. I was in contact with 30 companies, got a no from 8 companies, no reply from 6 companies, and offers from 3 companies. Here is what I learnt from the process.
Posted in Programming, Work
Tagged career, interview, interviewing, job, job hunt, job-search, new job, work
I often get contacted by recruiters asking if I am interested in changing company. Even if I am happy where I am, I briefly check out companies I have not heard of before. One reason is that you never know, maybe the new company is a fantastic opportunity that really is interesting to me. Another reason is that I don’t know how things will change – maybe I will want to change in a year’s time or so. These are the things I check when I am trying to evaluate a company I haven’t come across before.
Here are my thoughts on programmer career planning. You should always stay employable, mostly by changing jobs regularly (every five years or so). When changing, don’t wait until you have to. Your negotiating position is much better when you can turn down a potential new job.
This week I will give a presentation at a local high school on what it is like to work as a programmer. I am volunteering (through the organization Transfer) to come to schools and talk about what I work with. This school will have a technology theme day this week, and would like to hear what working in the technology sector is like. Since I develop software, that’s what I will talk about. One section will be on why I think a career in software development is great. The main reasons are:
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