Second thoughts?

tk123

is it normal to have second thoughts when leaving? I handed in my notice a couple of weeks ago - the background is that my boss left but I was told that i wasn't suitable to take on his role by my acting supervisor. He is implying that my boss took the credit for my work and that nobody was aware of the amount of work I was doing so I wouldn't be considered - ie all the tasks that are listed for the position that needs to be filled are my daily duties but I don't believe this because everybody except him seems to know what I was looking after. They offered me more money to stay on in my junior role but I refused - why should I train in my new boss who'll be earning 10-20k more than me but more importantly not progress up the career ladder so I handed in my notice. I've been going to interviews and i'm pretty confident i'm going to be offered a position in this one place thats great and is the step up I wanted in my current job BUT in the back of my mind i'm having doubts. Nobody in the place can understand why I haven't been offered the job and it's not that i'm big-headed and think I'm brilliant or anything but I really think I would be good at this job. Also its really handy for where I live, I like my workmates, i know the place backwards and would really relish in the extra challenges. I'm starting to think yer man was just chancing his arm as nobody from HR gave me a reason for not being considered? Any advise?

0utshined

Yes it is normal to have second thoughts. You're taking a step in to the unknown and it's always going to give you doubts when you're leaving something comfortable. Where you are now you know the people, you know the company, you know how things work. By moving somewhere else you're giving all that up and have to re-learn everything in your new place, the personalities, the unwritten rules and all that. I have found that almost invariably it's worked out and you shouldn't worry about it too much (but you will still have those niggling doubts).

You're a smart girl tk and that's come across in your posts over the years. Chances are that your boss has been taking credit for your work, it's not uncommon. Have they held interviews for the new job or has someone got it without having to go through that?

Personally in your situation I would wait till you have the new offer in place then have a meeting with your acting supervisor and ask him straight out why you were not suitable for the promotion. Don't accept the wishy-washy bullshít he's likely to give you (you don't need to, you're going) and get a definite answer. It might surprise you and reveal something about the way you worked that you weren't aware of and that you wouldn't repeat in your next job. Or it may just reinforce that he's a knob.

Whatever happens, best of luck and I'm sure i's going to work out for you.

tk123

Ah thanks Outshined! They haven't got anybody yet so i'm going to see what happens - i reckon i could get a good deal out of them!

Eoin

What is the nature of the job you are doing now, and what is your manager's job? If it was something like, SysAdmin -> IT Manager, then it's certainly not a given that the SysAdmin should be promoted, as there are so many different responsibilities that a SysAdmin may not have had any exposure to at all (e.g. people management, budgeting, dealing with other managers etc).

Anyway, to answer the original question, it's definitely not unusual to have some doubts about moving on. As Outshined says, it's leaving your comfort zone, you will have to get used to new people, new policies, new everything. In fact, you may well have more second thoughts until you're in the new job for a good while - it can be quite overwhelming at first, but as you get used to the new company, the doubts normally fade.

tk123

I was/am jnr sys admin and he was sys admin. I had a think and decided to tell them that i'd like to apply for the sys ad role if it was ok. I listed why I thought I was suitable etc etc and it looks like a goer I also explained that i'd been interviewed and taken seriously as a sys admin (not jst jnr) and this had given me more confidence to apply and in my also in my abilities. There's loads of changes on the books and loads of scope to learn new things, also its close to where I live, I get on with everyone etc so i'm happy to stay put for now. I have to admit thou I felt a bit embarassed at first -will they think i'm a messer - but i think they were more impressed by me standing up and saying wait a minute i CAN do this and here's why I think I can.

Eoin

Without knowing much about the company, it sounds overly hierarchical to have a jnr sysadmin reporting to a sysadmin. Did the previous person do your annual appraisals and all that, or was it just a team lead position?

tk123

lol yeah he was meant to do all that kind of stuff - appraisals etc but never bothered!

Eoin

tk123 wrote: »

lol yeah he was meant to do all that kind of stuff - appraisals etc but never bothered!

Who does he report to? Is he also the IT manager?

Have you any management experience - would you be able to conduct annual reviews / appraisals, sit on interview panels etc?