Resigning - Do I tell them why? 16

[joekm]

In the past, when I've resigned, it's been driven by things like severe reduction in health care, or just normal career growth move.

While it is a career growth move in this case, the main reason I was even looking is because these guys didn't seem to know what to do with me. I sucked it up for a year but now I've been presented with a better offer.

If I were to tell them why, this is what I would probably say:

It seems that, when I first hired on here, management had no clear idea as to what role I was expected to fill. This has left me struggling to find ways to be effective and questioning my perceived value to [WITHELD].

I have now been with [WITHELD] for over a year and, while things have started to improve, I still find myself unsure regarding any real prospects for long term career growth.

Meanwhile, another company has come forward with a generous offer for my services and I have decided to accept.

My last day of employment will be [DATE].



never really quit due to bad management before...any thoughts?


--
Great Spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds
-- Albert Einstein

 

[corus]

In the UK I think you're obliged to tell them where you are moving to so that they can pass on the necessary forms to the new employer for tax and national insurance purposes. You can always ask for the forms to be sent to your home address, but then you never know if your new employer will think you left under a cloud and then wonder why. Other than that I'd follow Mike's advice and tell them as little as possible. At my last job I just sent an email to the HR, manager and his boss, saying "I am terminating my contract of employment. My last day of employment will be ..". It's enough to say. I think my exit interview went along the lines of my boss saying 'you could have made more of this job if you'd made an effort'. I walked out of the interview.


corus

 

[prohammy]

Just a quick note about something that I don't think has been mentioned.

Remember, even though you are goping to a new (and better) position, there will come a day when you decide to leave there as well. Once you start looking for a new job then, how you performed and left your present company will come back into play at interviews. References (especially the ones that previous empolyers give telling what a good engineer you were, how plesent/nice a person you were and how it was a shame you left) can be golddust to the people who have interviewed you, be they engineers or HR.

Leave with people wishing you well not cursing your very existance

Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK

 

[joekm]

Good advice prohammy and, my reputation at prior positions probably did help me get my next gig. However, I don't know if I would ever list this place as a reference for a couple of reasons. One, the turnover rate is fairly high. Secondly, these people will smile at you to your face and rip you to shreds behind your back. I've seen it happen to several engineers here and I can only assume it's happening to me as well. In any event, I wouldn't want to rely on these people for an objective opinion.

I know, that's a terrible thing to say, but that's a large part of why I'm leaving.

--
Great Spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds
-- Albert Einstein

 

[prohammy]

Joe,

Believe it or not, this puts you at a bit of an advantage when it comes to subseqent interviews. Firstly, remember that not every job you have is a good job, and in terms of career and personal growth, one bad job (with all the backstabbing etc you have mentioned) that YOU have used to your advantage (learned from and moved on, shows that you have personal drive) will impress people at a later date.

Be honest about what happened to you at your present company without being sarcastic/derogatory. Explain how it helped you develop and you are using it to show the interviewer what a 'go-getter' you are. This approach is usually more than enough in the interview to show the interviewer that it is not worth him/her contacting this company for a reference. (If they do, then you probably don't want to work for them anyway.

PS On the subject of honesty (and that to me is probably the most important thing in an interview....there is nothing wrong with admitting that you don't know something or you have a bad experience, so long as you can show that you have used it to your advantage) as my father always says...'When you lie you have a lot of work to do remembering who knows what and who knows where etc, but when you tell the truth you need only worry about what you are talking about'



Kevin Hammond

Mechanical Design Engineer
Derbyshire, UK

 

[WGJ]

MikeHalloran gets my vote.

Bill

 

[ttuterry]

To add to this post, what is the best way to resign? Should you send your immediate supervisor a letter or go speak to him/her in person? Would an e-mail work? I am looking to leave my job soon and was just curious how to go about it as this is currently my first job out of college.

 

[michfan]

I always think you should type up a very short, businesslike letter stating you are resigning and the date it will be effective. Date it and sign it. I think most companies keep these for your file.

But definitely tell them in person when you hand them the letter. Speak in a nice, calm tone and don't let on how freakin' excited you are to be moving on to something better...

 

[winpop123]

All wonderful advice so far which I agree with.

ttuterry - How to resign in my opinion goes as follows:
1. Type up a letter with the elements described by other posters. Just the facts, date of your last day, thank them for the opportunity, and sign.
2. Make a copy of the letter.
3. Approach your supervisor and ask to speak in private. Hand the letter to your supervisor and re-iterate whats in the letter. Don't get caught up in trying to apologize for leaving or gloating that you are leaving. Just that you are and the date.
4. File away the copy of your letter.
5. Take a brief vacation.
6. Start your new job.

If your company does an exit interview with you and HR, careful not to get caught in the trap of bashing management. HR will relay everything you say to management. Remember you may want to return to this company in a couple of years doing the same job for a 20% raise.

Good luck.

 

[KENAT]

If you're in a large enough company you may want to consult HR policies and procedures as they may cover this.

The notice period is graually going the way of the dodo in some companies/industries since as soon as you hand in your resignation you get walked out of the building. You may want to check if this applies in your place!

 

[mshimko]

Simpler is better.

Two years ago, our most recent "Employee of the Year" resigned. His notification was a one line email to the Division Manager (cc to HR I believe), "I am notifying you of my intent to terminate employment, effective XXXX".

Can't get much simplier than this.

You can always provide more info, if desired, if/when "the boss" asks you why.

AHowever, keep in mind that if there are reasons for leaving other than "a whale of an opportunity just came up", then one of several things has already occured:
(a) you didn't make management aware of a existing problem,
(b) management didn't listen, or
(c) management didn't have the capability of addressing the problem.

Bear this in mind when deciding how forthcoming to be.

 

[dpc]

I would put as little in writing as possible. Just tell them when your last day will be and how much you've enjoyed working there.

All they want is something signed by you that says you are leaving voluntarily in case you decide to file for unemployment. But that letter will be on file forever, probably long after most of the management staff is gone.

The exit interview is another matter. I see nothing wrong with telling them you got a better offer, but I'd avoid any specific criticisms.

Also, if you signed an employment agreement and/or non-disclosure/non-compete agreement, you may be obliged to tell them where you are going. But I still wouldn't put it in your resignation letter.

 

[atlas06]

I'll add my two cents,
You will need your former boss in the future for a PE application, job reference, and especially a security clearance.

NOw, very important that you make sure you clean up your C:\ drive and have all personnal belongings (files, books or other) out of there before you hand that resignation letter, they could lock your computer and drive you out the door in 15 minutes.

It happened before, they hand you two empty boxes, a security guard over your shoulder and out. Be ready to go, NOW, some employers take it pessonally.

 

[josephv]

Here is President Richard Nixon's resignation letter.

Many consider it very good example of brevity.

http://www.watergate.info/nixon/resignation-letter.shtml

 

[joekm]

Well, I "pulled the trigger"

Thanks to all for your advice. In the end, I discovered a couple of things:

1) They are under just as much pressure to "be professional" in their response as I was in resigning (seriously, I was half expecting to be "fired for quitting")

2) Even though I did nothing but state I was leaving and "thank them for the opportunity", everyone here knows exactly why I am really leaving.


It seems there are no secrets and it was mearly an exersize in keeping up appearances.



--
Great Spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds
-- Albert Einstein

 

[Heckler]

Good for you Joe. It sounds like everything turned out well.

One other possibility that could happen in the future is you could cross paths with your current manager at company ZX if you remain in the same field. So being professional is the best thing to have done. It can be a small world is very specific industries.

Best of luck to you at the new job.

Heckler
Sr. Mechanical Engineer
SWx 2007 SP 2.0 & Pro/E 2001
XP Pro SP2.0 P4 3.6 GHz, 1GB RAM
NVIDIA Quadro FX 1400
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