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Calvin Asks: Time to throw in the towel?

CalvinTheEngineer
I’m a young professional engineer and have been working with my current employer for the past seven years. I’ve applied for a few different internal roles during my time here that I feel would improve my personal and professional development but on every occasion I’ve been turned down.


I’ve been keeping up to date with my CPD and have attended many events and conferences etc related to my industry and have been on many internal training courses. However, the feedback I’m getting is that I don’t have enough experience for the roles I’m applying for? But how do I move forward with my career if I keep getting turned down for the roles that will give me more experience?


Is it time to throw in the towel and start looking to move to another employer or should I stick it out for a bit longer?


Overlooked and frustrated - Manchester

 
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    Roy Bowdler:
    If you stick around in the same place people will still see you as the “jack the lad” apprentice that you were, not what you have become.  




    I've seen that happen so many times. In the worst case I can think of, I knew an engineer who only stopped being labelled as an ex-apprentice after his manager left the company - which was 20 years after his apprenticeship ended! And unfortunately we all tend to act as we are treated, which makes it a vicious circle.


    But just in case anyone was wondering (although I think everyone's been clear on this), 7 years in the same company is not a problem. I was with one company for 9 years and another for 23 (and I still thought of myself as the new boy when I left!). It's 7 years in the same role where you have to be careful that you're not stagnating.




    Don't make idle threats to move on




    Absolutely. Really important. Some employers will fight to keep you if you say you're planning to leave, some will treat you as "dead man walking" - assuming that you will leave one day (if not today) so best not to give you anything important to do. Most companies I've worked for take the second approach most of the time. But it's fine to say internally "I'm really concerned that I'm not making the most of my abilities, and I want to do something about it" (and leave it at that). If they've got any sense your management will respond. If they haven't got sense maybe you don't want to work for them anyway!


    Cheers, Andy

     


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  • 0

    Roy Bowdler:
    If you stick around in the same place people will still see you as the “jack the lad” apprentice that you were, not what you have become.  




    I've seen that happen so many times. In the worst case I can think of, I knew an engineer who only stopped being labelled as an ex-apprentice after his manager left the company - which was 20 years after his apprenticeship ended! And unfortunately we all tend to act as we are treated, which makes it a vicious circle.


    But just in case anyone was wondering (although I think everyone's been clear on this), 7 years in the same company is not a problem. I was with one company for 9 years and another for 23 (and I still thought of myself as the new boy when I left!). It's 7 years in the same role where you have to be careful that you're not stagnating.




    Don't make idle threats to move on




    Absolutely. Really important. Some employers will fight to keep you if you say you're planning to leave, some will treat you as "dead man walking" - assuming that you will leave one day (if not today) so best not to give you anything important to do. Most companies I've worked for take the second approach most of the time. But it's fine to say internally "I'm really concerned that I'm not making the most of my abilities, and I want to do something about it" (and leave it at that). If they've got any sense your management will respond. If they haven't got sense maybe you don't want to work for them anyway!


    Cheers, Andy

     


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