The right way to job hop (Ep. 496)
Not surprisingly, engineers stay about half as long at their companies as the average worker in other industries. The reason? The force is on our side as tech workers. Our skills are high in demand, and we’re compensated well for the brainpower that we bring to the table. Plus, tech is evolving so fast, you need to keep learning in new environments.
The thing is, there’s a right way and a wrong way to do it. Admittedly, it looks a little weird to be upgrading jobs every 3 months. But switching things up every 12-18 is understandable. Employers want to see someone who is leveling up and making major contributions, not tenure. In today’s podcast episode, the home team (Ben, Cassidy, Ceora, and Matt) gets together to discuss career advantages, LinkedIn A/B tests, and why gen Z is doomed when it comes to tech.
Episode notes:
Ceora and Cassidy talk about why engineers are so good at job hopping — and why it can pay off to upgrade roles every year or two.
Ceora speaks openly about the privileges of working in tech compared to other industries.
Apparently, in some places, it’s a thing for engineers to leave their teams and then rejoin the organization with a promotion to get ahead. Who do you know that does the boomerang?
Cassidy’s husband’s favorite interview question to ask: “If you had a magic wand and could change one thing about this company, what would you change?”
Ben poses a question about whether LinkedIn AB tests are disadvantageous to some career seekers over others.
Matt introduces us to the world of AI generated Pokémon.
Ceora, our resident voice of Gen Z, tells us why she thinks millennials are the only true generation to understand tech.
High fives to Unique Username for answering the question “how can I print to the console using JavaScript?” You get a Lifeboat Badge for helping 140,000 people.
Follow Ben, Ceora, Matt, and Cassidy.
Tags: ai, AI Pokemon, Gen Z, job hopping, the stack overflow podcast
8 Comments
Who says engineers stay about half as long at their companies as the average worker in other industries?
Where does that come from and what does it mean?
Is the suggestion that engineers are more dedicated, or less imaginative?
It looks like that one is specifically geared toward developers that are “leveling up and making major contributions”, so may not apply to everyone
Recruiting a software developer costs 1-2 monthly salaries. This means having developers who feel urged to leave after 12 months makes them cost their company almost 20% more. Someone who tends to change their job every 3-6 months is a big red no for me.
Agreed. Plus, you’re not contributing [optimally] for sometime after onboarding, possibly several months. It’s important to take that into account.
Complete shift of supply can occur as a result of change in technology price of the other goods and number of sellers
I will never hire (or even interview) an engineer with multiple jobs with tenures under two years. The hiring process is expensive and time consuming for senior staff and it is followed by a period of time of getting up to speed. Then there is the business disruption and loss of momentum when they leave. As an employer, we should be creating an environment and situation where engineers feel they are valued and given a variety challenges.
Well, give them this 20% raise, so they don’t need to leave after 12 months 😉
Problem is pay is much higher than 20% in some cases, I don’t understand why companies do not offer pay raises that match what the market competition is paying