Kula Consulting Blog

You’re working countless hours, and not real happy with your current position. But the thought of changing jobs is so daunting that you remain mired in your current accounting slot.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

Yes, making a job change is a time-consuming and often-disruptive process. That’s a given. However, my clients who approach this task with military-like precision and preparation find they can effectively streamline the process and garner success.

First Things First

Try and fix your current situation.

Give your employer a chance to solve the issues that are prompting your decision to seek another job. Talk to your manager about the types of issues they can fix:

• Promotion or advancement opportunities.
• Compensation issues.
• Work/Life balance issues.
• Chance to learn new skills.
• Issues with co-workers or management issues.
• Performance evaluations.

Keep in mind that there are things your employer cannot fix. These items include commute issues, being a take-over target, and the company’s cash flow or growth issues (at least not in the short term.)

If this approach fails, take the next step. It’s time to take action on your own.

Here are some things you can do to make your search more effective:

Prepare a baseline of your current situation. List out the following information:

• Current salary and projected date and amount of next raise.
• List all bonuses and benefits, with amounts and costs to you.
• Compute total cash compensation for the last 12 months (TTM) and project your expected cash compensation for the next 12 months for your current employer.
• Determine if and how much money you will “leave on the table” if yo change jobs before any bonus vesting dates, 401-k matching amounts, etc.
• Review stock option, stock purchase, or other equity-type plans to determine vesting periods and your exercise options upon termination of employment. In effect, know your complete financial situation with your current employer.

Commute Issues:

• How long is your current commute?
• What’s your ideal time and maximum acceptable time?

Start Listing Potential References

• List your current and former managers, peers, direct reports, project team members, clients, suppliers, lawyers, accountants, and anyone else who knows you and your work.
• Then call them and let them know your plans and ask them for permission to use them as a reference.
• This is also a good time to ask them for their thoughts on what they think about your plans.

Determine Your Career Goal for the Next 3 Years

• List what you know about the skills and achievements required t reach this goal.
• Do some research to verify and/or add to your list.
• Compare your skill sets and achievements to your goal an determine what you need to add to your experiences to reach your goal.
• This list of needs should become part of your check-off listing to evaluate different opportunities.

Talk to Your Spouse or Significant Other About This Change

Prepare a Short List of the Must Haves for Your Next Job

• Compensation, benefits, commute time, work schedule, job content, industry, growth potential, work environment and learning potential.

Take Out a Calendar and Pick a Date You’d Like to Start

• Check your personal work calendar to determine if anything would prevent you from meeting your goal.
• Move two-three weeks backwards and make this date as your resignation of employment date.
• Move four or five weeks back from this date and mark this period as your interview and job offer period.
• The period of time from the date you prepare your schedule to the beginning of your interviewing period is the time you have to research the job market, contact a recruiter or two, network with your former colleagues, managers, professional contacts, and friends to let them know you are ready to make a career change.

Prepare a Resume

• Review it as though it was someone else’s.
• Thing about the questions you would ask if you were the interviewer.
• How would you rate your performance level compared to peers?
• Does your resume show what you offer a new employer?

When you know what you want in your next job, understand why you want to make a change, know what your offer a new employer and have profiled the type of company you want to work for, you are ready to begin your job search.

If you need any help getting to this point, please call us. We’ll be glad to review your resume, offer assistance in researching companies/industries, and help you further define your career path.