2010-07-15

On the Job Hunt

At my place of employment, once a month, we had a "one-on-one" with our boss, a scheduled time where we could talk about how work was going and such. In my most recent one this month, I expressed my concern that the work I was doing was not being recognized or appreciated. The project I had originally been hired on to work on was basically shelved seven months ago (despite the new feature release I had built last year, the special on-site trip I made to a client's site on its behalf, and my work in getting it through Microsoft Certification), and all the work I had been doing on the company's flagship product since then was going unmentioned and undemonstrated at trade shows and in press releases. My boss assured me that my work was important, that it was bringing the product and the company further than it had ever been in years.

Turns out, I was right. Yesterday, very suddenly, I was told I was being let go. The Powers That Be had decided, as a cost-cutting measure, to completely eliminate the project I was hired on for, and, since I was tied to that project (despite the fact that I hadn't worked on it this entire year, except to get it the aforementioned Microsoft Certification, which was done as a cost-savings measure since it would get the company free OS/software licenses), my position was also being cut.

There were so many things I wanted to say, so many arguments I wanted to make, but the decision had already been made without discussion. My boss, who told me the decision was not his, had in his hands my final check and the termination agreement dated for that day. I knew nothing I would say would make the least bit of difference one way or the other. All I could think was that I have a wife and four kids at home, and attempting to say anything would only lead to a useless discussion that would delay my inevitable departure and keep me from finding my next job so I could make sure my family was provided for.

I am tempted to write more, to rant about how I think it's unfair or how I think it was a bad decision (not just because of how it affects me personally); or I could pine for the things that have been taken away from me, the conveniences I had working there; but really, what would be the point? Nothing changes the fact that I need to get my résumé up-to-date and off to recruiters so I can find my next job.

3 comments:

bookladydavina said...

so sorry they let you go like that. Hopefully they were able to at least give you some good recommendations to serve up with your resume. Hope you can find something even better very soon.

Patrick Koepke said...

Sorry to hear about that. You could always move to Austin, where programming jobs hang like fruit from every company here.

Seriously though, if there's anything I can do - even just a personal reference, let me know.

JediChric said...

I know how you feel. I was working for a (at the time) huge financial stock corporation. I had come to that company because the company I was working for was bought out. In the buy-out, it was stated that no-one was to loose their job from that buy-out for at least a year. What happens two days after Christmas the following year? I was let go. They were really nice about it, and my manager said that I was the best employee she had, and that she wished it was someone else, but that was it for me. Not saying anything is a good thing! I wanted to curse out my manager that day, but didn't. Instead, in a daze, I thanked her, shook her hand and went back to my desk to pack up. That turned out to be a good thing, because she rushed back to my desk and asked me to stay on for one more month and train a replacement and she would throw in 3 months paid severance. Keep your head up, and stay focused.