6 Clues It May Be Time to Look for a New Job

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It may be time to find a new job.

 There are two inflection points when it is the most advantageous to find a new job – when things are going great and when “the writing is on the wall.” When you’re at the top of your game and you notice some of the signs listed below, a window of opportunity has opened, but it won’t be open for long.

The trick is to both recognize that you’ve have reached one of these inflection points, and know that the time is right to make a move – whether it’s an internal advancement where you are already work, or a departure for greener pastures. Fortunately, there are some common signs that tell you when it’s time to act with decisiveness.

1. You just received an amazing performance appraisal. Clearly you are doing something right and it could be time to cash in on your success. If you are a high performer at one company, there is expectation that you will be at another. Investigate your options, and don’t wait! You don’t need to make a move, but this is one of those windows of opportunity that may not stay open for long.

2.  You just had a really terrible performance appraisal. The writing is on the wall. Your performance is “wanting” and your “days are numbered.” Time to make a brutally honest self-assessment of your future where you are. If conditions aren’t ideal for you to turn your position around quickly, you should start searching for new work as soon as possible even if the job market isn’t as ripe as it could be. Do it before you have no choice.

3.  You were passed over for a promotion. Somehow, you’re caught between the two poles. You’re a top performer but you’re not receiving the accolades and advancement you believe you are due. However, this shouldn’t be just a feeling. It should be the result of an actual interview process for a promotion that was then given to another candidate, especially if the new hire has been hired from outside the company. Upward mobility at your current employer may not be in the cards and it’s time to go.

4.   A big transition is happening beyond your control. Sometimes the writing on the wall isn’t about you – it’s about your company. It can be a recession, a buyout, a re-organization, or a sudden change in corporate leadership. Regardless of the reason, when big changes are on the way that have a direct impact on staff livelihoods, or there is uncertainty about the future viability of a company, it may be time to seek something more stable and secure.

5.  There is a surge in overall job openings. When there are a lot of job openings, it’s a sign that the labor market is advantageous for job seekers. Companies are in recruiting mode and compensation ranges are high to attract top talent. A company’s highest fixed expense is payroll, so when a lot of hiring is going on it means confidence in the economy is high and that companies are investing in human assets.

6.  There is a surge in job openings related to what you do. If you notice a ton of ads for job openings related to exactly what you already do, the iron is hot. Strike. Your chance may not come again. For example, at this moment there is a major surge in demand for health care professionals right now - if you’re in medicine, the short and medium-term future is rich with opportunities. Increased job demand often equals an easier search and a very enticing paycheck.

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Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

What Is The Future Of Working From Home?

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As we move into 2021 (thank goodness…), a COVID-19 vaccine is rolling out nationwide, and the world starts to refocus on business as usual. If circumstances progress as expected, a gradual shift back toward “normal” business operations will begin.

The U.S. experienced a dramatic spike in remote employment when the pandemic began, with employers moving much of their staff to continue their work from home. While it’s uncertain how things will ultimately mean for the long-term, there does seem to be an early consensus that remote staffing will continue at levels higher than prior to COVID.

• In April, Facility Executive reported, “88% of companies have required their employees to work from home in response to the coronavirus pandemic.” 

• In May, a Gallup poll revealed that the number of American employees working from home rose from 7% pre-Covid to 62%.

• In June, researchers from Stanford University predicted, “the share of working days spent at home is expected to increase fourfold from pre-COVID levels, from 5 percent to 20 percent”.

• In July, a Gartner survey showed, “82% of company leaders plan to allow employees to work remotely some of the time” [once the pandemic is over].

• In September, data came out that showed productivity levels of remote workers previously working in an office had shown a statistically significant increase.

• Global Workplace Analytics now predicts 20%-30% of workers will be working remotely “multiple days a week” at the end of 2021. 

The convergence of five factors may be explain why current COVID-forced trends will remain in some form once the pandemic has been contained.

1.     Many professionals want to work from home, and some would take a pay cut to do so.

2.     Per Global Place Analytics, people who work from home spend less money (incurring fewer commuting-related costs) and often take home more net income as a result.

3.     Large companies can save thousands of dollars per employee, per year in real estate and other administrative costs via remote work.

4.     Remote work technology and tools are now able to meet the demand and needs of the work community. Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Slack, Basecamp, Blink, and other applications make this possible.

5.     Attitudes and perceptions about remote work have evolved because in many cases staff productivity levels have on par with the period of time prior to COVID.

Many well-known companies have already announced their intent to swing in that direction, giving credence to current predictions, and not surprisingly they’re a “Who’s Who” of Big Tech – Amazon, Snapchat, Facebook/Instagram, Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Salesforce.

Of course, there will absolutely be employers that want to bring their staff back under one roof. The feeling of a loss of control by executive leaders when they can’t physically supervise their employees on a day-to-day basis, will play a role in that. As will situations in which their best customer service and collaboration occurs with everyone working together.

Happy 2021!

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Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

5 Tips For Career Success In A Matrixed Environment

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If you’re confused about who, exactly, your boss is, you’re not alone. Welcome to the age of matrixed work environments.

A matrixed environment is one in which an employee has more than one boss in the traditional sense. You might have your manager – the individual to whom you report in the organization charts – but also less structured reporting relationships to other managers known as “dotted-line” reporting relationships. You may already have a matrixed reporting relationship and not even know it.

Here’s an example. Let’s say you work in an Information Technology department. You have two clients – the internal technological operations of the company for which you work, and your company’s external customers. During the course of normal operations, project managers or other professionals are routinely hired to head critical initiatives. The various departments of the company are linked by cross-functional groups that blur the lines between, for example, IT, accounting, marketing, and sales.

In such a scenario, you are reporting to at least two bosses – the immediate supervisor in your department and a project manager. You may even have an unofficial third boss, the owner of the company and/or another C-suite executive who requires personal attention outside of the regular organizational structure altogether. Additionally, you might be immersed in work and decision making outside of your specific field of expertise (such as acting as a database administrator working in a cross-functional group with accountants and salespeople), and lastly your work is both internal and external with vastly different mission objectives whose success and failure are measured by different people in completely different ways. Welcome to the matrix!

Working in such an environment is tricky and requires you to navigate a great deal of uncertainty with some real skills. Here are five recommendations to boost your effectiveness in a complex organizational structure, and to ensure you receive the accolades you’ve earned being what is really the modern business version of the Renaissance man or woman – an artisan who is skilled in many areas.

1.     Understand Who Each Of Your Bosses Are – And What Each Expects Of You. It’s up to you to keep all your bosses satisfied. This can be tricky in nebulous work structures. It may be clear who writes your performance review, and certainly he or she commands special attention, but it may be unclear whether your job hinges on his or her review or the opinion of another boss, official or not. If you have any confusion about your deliverables for each boss or adapting to individual management styles, be aggressive about discovery. If you’re unsure, initiate conversations early. You don’t want to learn in your exit interview that your assumptions didn’t align with your bosses’ expectations.

2.     Know Your Priorities. There is no master class for this; it’s is a major skill characterized by an advanced level of observation, learned through work experience, and unique to the company and dynamic in which you operate. In short, learn to “read to the room.”  This takes common sense and emotional intelligence. For example, you may report to two bosses who have an equal say in your future, but an unofficial boss who has more influence than both of them combined. Who is first priority? Second? Third? It’s not an easy decision and it may take some trial and error before you can read the room with clarity, but if you can do that you will find it easier to manage competing priorities and people.

3.     Overcommunicate. Maintain high visibility and transparency so that everyone knows what you are doing at all times. Be proactive about keeping everyone in the loop. If necessary, request regular touch base conversations with your various bosses to remain aligned on objectives. CC: all stakeholders on relevant conversations. Provide detailed updates at regularly scheduled meetings.

4.     Move, Document, Move, Document. It’s tough to slow down when you’re juggling bosses and deadlines, but it is up to you to track your duties and accomplishments. Think of master chess players who write down each of their moves the moment after they make them. That’s what you need to do. It serves as proof of your work, boosting both your position in performance reviews and helping to resolve any disputes about how your time is allocated. It’s also a great analytical tool for postmortem reviews and professional development conversations.

5.     Focus On Developing The Professional Relationships. Ideally, everyone has everyone’s back in your matrixed organizational structure, and that starts by nurturing the web of interpersonal relationships that make up your professional partnerships. To be effective, you must be collaborative, both mentor and mentored, and flexible in your thinking when dealing with conflicting personalities.

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 Philip Roufail contributed to this article.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, career coaching services, and outplacement services. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.