Avoid Job Hopping 12

[ptb5021]

Hi all,

New to the forums, so forgive me if this has been discussed. I saw a few threads about this general topic, but still wanted to start my own.

I graduated May 2013 with my MS MechE degree. I've had two jobs since graduating: DoD-related position, which I left after ~9 months because I felt that there was too much Project Management involved and too little technical work. Next job, which I've been at for ~5 months, is involved in warehousing/robotics. Here too, I am finding that there is too much Project Management involved and too little technical work.

Both industries - DoD & Robotics I find to be interesting, but have been looking for more technical/research work as opposed to simply managing projects. I understand that new-hires will get stuck with mundane tasks, but looking at some of the more senior engineers, they certainly aren't doing more technical work either.

Being out of school for only a year, and getting ready to look for a new position, how do I avoid job hopping? I am confident that I can defend my position in seeking new opportunities, but don't want to fall into a third job that isn't challenging. I was significantly more prepared during the interviewing process for the position which I am currently in, and felt that I asked very specific questions relative to mechanical design. However, expectations from interview have not panned out and are not in the foreseeable future.

Advice from anybody who has been through this before?

 

[MacGyverS2000]

I find it hard to believe they're putting someone fresh out of school into project management positions, particularly if they have no technical work experience other than school.

Perhaps what you consider project management is simply the usual work required and you have nothing to compare it to?

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com

 

[rotw]

I complained once to somebody that I found my job not enough technical, was kind of marketing position, although the industrial branch itself involved a lot of technical content. This complaint happened soon after I graduated from school.

This is how this person reacted, he said : "what prevents you from measuring a temperature ?"
Temperature is here trivial. Meaning was : what prevents you - during your spare time for instance - to go on field or near some machine, pick up some equipment and take measurements to figure out how things work - to know about the process, about the order of magnitude of things like pressures, temperatures, etc.

This has changed my life forever.

Whatever is the position we are in, there are always plenty of ways to educate ourselves technically - like reading documentation, looking at a layout, reading a maintenance manual etc. It demonstrates nothing else than the attitude.
Landing a technical job is good but attitude is much more powerful. My opinion.

 

[desertfox]

Hi

Rather than find another job can you talk to someone at your present company about your feelings?
If you can talk to your line manager maybe and tell him you would like more technical work he might explain why your doing project management.

 

[zdas04]

Let me second Rotw's excellent advice--you job is exactly what you make of it. I was hired into a project management role in systems development and quickly found that I didn't know enough about how the end result was going to be used. SO I FOUND OUT. I scheduled meetings with the ultimate end users. I spent extra time understanding their real needs instead of what got written down (rarely the same thing) I read everything about my industry that I could get my hands on. At the end of the day my projects were more successful than my colleagues who were content with "managing the project". Eventually I ended up in a role that was all technical operating an Oil & Gas field that no one thought could be managed, but my willingness to go above and beyond singled me out as someone with a chance to succeed.

Going the extra mile and then looking for more gets noticed. Spending time with your peers and asking them what their projects look like and learning from them gets noticed. So does sitting at your damn desk waiting for someone to bring you a research job.

David Simpson, PE
MuleShoe Engineering

Law is the common force organized to act as an obstacle of injustice Frédéric Bastiat

 

[ptb5021]

Thanks for the advice everyone. I have had a few internships while still in school, so I had an idea of the amount of generic work associated with holding a position for a corporation. I know that my current role is 95% PM and 5% technical, (yes MacGyverS2000, I'm surprised too) but I will try to make the most of it as suggested by rotw and zdas04. Desertfox - I have discussed it with management a few times already - my role in the company seems to have changed from what I was told my role would be during hiring.

 

[squeeky]

Macgyver2000. Opposite thought. How can you get involved technically when you have so little experience. Rotw. On the button. To manage a project you get to see all the tecnical specifications, compliance forms, conditions on installation, Project management staffing, How meetings are run. YOu have the opportunity to lift your head and look at the desired outcome while everyone on the coal face keeping digging for the next shvel full. There are so many learning experiences. In project management you will get to meet technical people who come for meetings. Lunch breaks and tea breaks ask the right questions.

 

[GregLocock]

At the grand old age of 18, from sheer boredom, I wrote a paper suggesting how the idiotic job function I was temporarily engaged on (time estimation for build time of a vehicle) could be done on a computer, instead of by hand. The department head liked it so much that he wanted me to stay on. No uni. No hands on experience. Yet i still managed to throw a hand grenade into their department. For goodness sake, you lot are supposed to be the enthusiastic mold breakers, and all I see are whingeing nay sayers.

Cheers

Greg Locock


New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376

http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?

 

[MacGyverS2000]

Squeeky,

In general, I find it best to have a hands-on role in all of the various technical fields of a project before being handed a PM position. You can't properly manage what you don't understand, and learning 10 different fields at once while coming at it from the other direction is unnecessarily confusing.

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com

 

[SomptingGuy]

Project management means different things in different places and to different people. I've seen people with "project manager" roles that are effectively doing clerical work. Arranging meetings, booking resources, collating progress & spend information.

- Steve

 

[steellion]

Perhaps they are looking for someone that can maintain the status-quo for their equipment rather than re-inventing the wheel? I wouldn't start looking for another job. 3 jobs in just over a year, especially right out of school = huge red flag on your resume. Keep on grinding, and figure out a way to get technical work in that will satisfy you and help you grow IN ADDITION TO your daily project management tasks. Even if it's on your own time, even if you aren't getting paid for it. No one has ever had a problem with someone trying to educate themselves and going above what the job calls for.

 

[ptb5021]

Thanks for all of the input everybody.

My current plan is to observe the job market - if something ideal pops up then I'll try to get an interview for it, but I certainly am not going to rush from one set of problems to another. I'll be working on adapting myself to my current role to make it fit my goals and ambitions.

My biggest concern: from what I've seen thus far when looking at job requisitions for mechanical design engineers is that they are typically looking for i-j years of design experience. While I'm gaining X years of experience, it's not in mechanical design engineering. So I'm not really progressing towards my goal expect by gaining a paycheck and learning about a different industry/role.

I'm definitely going to have to tackle some design related projects in my spare time to remain a credible candidate for future positions...

 

[moltenmetal]

You are job-hopping. You need to stop job-hopping or you will be labelled as someone who won't stay because they bore easily- nobody wants to hire and sink training resources into people who won't stay. You need to follow the advice given here and find something to apply your technical skills to. It's possible that there isn't such an opportunity in your current job, but frankly it's unlikely. Use your imagination, find the problems and solve them. But make sure you do the work you're assigned as well.

 

[macmet]

On the other side of the argument, you don't have to put all your jobs on your resume. You can leave it off and tell future interviewers you filled the gap traveling, or working in an unrelated field that is no longer relevant. I would work to find a job you like and try to get it. Worry about your resume and 5 month stints after.

 

[steellion]

Strongly disagree with macmet's idea. It combines two things that are worse than job-hopping: lying, and taking time away from work to "find yourself".

 

[macmet]

I just believe it is extremely important to like your job. IMO it is the most important thing and if you can find it in your next job, you should go for it. You may be turning down a career job to prevent a short stint. Being a reasonably fresh grad, it is easier to make a career change now then if you stay in the role for 2 years. Especially if you are miserable in your current role.

 

[ewh]

Consider temp to perm contract work for awhile. It gives you (and the client company) a chance to see how well you fit in their culture, and it doesn't look as bad on the resume if you state that the positions were under contract. Being "temporary" positions in nature, I have had little problem listing them as such on my resume when I have actually interviewed for "permanent" (no such thing anymore) positions. Just make sure that when a temporary position transitions into a permanent one, you are comfortable enough with that company to stay for while. It is the jumping between permanent positions that makes your resume less desirable.

“Know the rules well, so you can break them effectively.”
-Dalai Lama XIV

 

[MacGyverS2000]

I would also suggest against cherry picking jobs to put on your resume... the moment someone finds out, they're going to investigate why it was left off. I can guarantee no matter what they find, they will always have a nagging suspicion it was left off because it shed a poor light on the employee.

Dan - Owner

http://www.Hi-TecDesigns.com

 

[ptb5021]

I definitely am not going to hide or lie about my work experience. I don't see how that can be beneficial. If a company is okay with me loosely saying that I've been traveling for the past year, I'll probably find myself in another bad position. I have no trouble explaining my position.

I kind of like the idea of temporary/contract-to-hire role. Will explore that.

 

[europipe]

I like job hopping.
When there is a new distillation column or furnaces to be built somewhere, I try to get there.
Rather then doing small maintenance jobs without challenge.
You can put something like that in your resume?