Need Advice (work/job related)

• 10-27-2009 6:54 PM

  the_gopher Joined on 08-02-2006 New Hampshire Posts 1,504 Points 60

  Need Advice (work/job related) Reply Contact I like my current job, for the most part. The things I don't like are the suffocating micromanaging, the unfair expectations and the complete discounting by management regarding the effort my team puts forth (I am definitely not the only one with this opinion). My team has spoken with management, to no avail. We've met, discussed the issues, opened up with communication - they promised change, but if anything its gotten worse. At any rate, the job market sucks and I'm happy to have a job. I'm, frankly, very good at what I do (I manage client accounts who do mystery shopping through our company). I like this type of work, but to be fair I like working in an office - heck I can be happy just filing lol, OK not really I like to use my brain as well :) My dilemma is, I always keep an eye out on what jobs are available. Having worked previously for a struggling company, in which a lay off was imminent for me, I just think its prudent. Well, I found a job that really intrigues me. It's administrative work for a nonprofit company that helps those who are aging and/or developmentally disabled. My bachelors is in Human Services. I'm not in the field, b/c I couldn't survive on the pay that the available jobs were offering (I wouldn't be able to meet my basic expenses/bills). I do not know how much this job offers, but I am tempted to apply and see if I can get an interview to find out more. Should I though? I've almost been a year at my current position. I was a year at my last job (the struggling company). Before that, I had part time jobs in college which I held for just over 2 years (same jobs) and before that I worked close to 5 years in an office assistant capacity and before even that almost 5 years as a dog groomer. BTW I'm 27. At one point I had 3 jobs and worked 7 days a week. After that, and working two jobs while being a full time student - I really ONLY want 1 job. I like spending time at home with dog and significant other. My quality of life means a lot to me - hence why I didn't take a human services job right out of college, b/c it would have meant needing to work two jobs to make my bills. To be honest, I think I might be happier knowing I'm working for a nonprofit versus a for profit. My other dilemma is, I simply don't know what I want to be when I grow up :) I wish I knew, but I was never *that* person who knew. I don't like bouncing around from job to job (I like to make commitments to my employers), but I'm feeling unsatisfied working for the company I am working for. It has its pluses, I like the type of work, I LOVE the team I work with (smart, funny and hardworking individuals) and I know its a stable position. However, the opportunity to move to a nonprofit agency appeals to me greatly.  Would you toss a resume and cover letter to this company and see what comes of it? Or would you not risk your current employers finding out (this would be kept quiet) and attempt to push through the aspects of the job that make you not like working for the company (aka its the management I don't care for)? ~Sharon

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• 10-27-2009 7:27 PM

  In reply to the_gopher

  calliecritturs Joined on 09-10-2007 Central Florida Posts 10,864 Points 3,330

  Re: Need Advice (work/job related) Reply Contact Usually in your cover letter you can indicate if you would prefer they not contact your current employers.  You can also indicate that you really weren't "looking" but thie particular job appeals to you on those afore-mentioned levels.  So essentially you simply tell them you're interested in being interested.  But there is no guarantee they're going to be mutually interested in someone your age and iwth your experience, nor that they may be able to offer you a competitive salary.  A lot of nonprofits are having a HARD time right now. I don't think it's dumb to look if you aren't 100% sold where you are and you're already trying to work on resolution from within.  In some respects you're simply protecting your own sanity -- I want THIS to work and I'm working on making it work, BUT .. if they continue to abuse me and ignore me I'm gonna have to move on.  So keeping your resume up to date and your application skills honed is just good business sense.  Given that you've been a year at at this job you aren't flitting around.  And it's like I said -- even IF they reply there's no guarantee that it's gonna be anything you really DO want.  But you won't have to kick yourself later for failing to pursue possibles either!

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• 10-27-2009 7:32 PM

  In reply to calliecritturs

  Liesje Joined on 03-02-2007 Posts 9,906 Points 655

  Re: Need Advice (work/job related) Reply Contact Honestly, I would never NOT send a resume and cover letter if I were even remotely interested.  I've worked for the same place for almost 7 years now (and I just turned 25), but I have interviewed for I think ten other positions (and have been offered some) during that time.  The ones I was offered ended up not being able to compete as far as health coverage and benefits, a few I was not offered but one of the top two or three choices, a few I was over qualified for.  But, you never know, so if something catches my eye I always send a resume and cover letter.  If anything, it's good practice to keep the resume up to date and keep cover letter skills sharp!  I write DH's resumes and cover letters as well, and he was offered four different jobs in two months. http://vankelderdogs.dutchbingo.net http://www.schhmi.com

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• 10-27-2009 7:49 PM

  In reply to Liesje

  glenmar Joined on 09-10-2007 The Florida Panhandle Posts 13,486 Points 405	Re: Need Advice (work/job related) Reply Contact Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Stress in the cover letter that the job they are offering intrigues you with it's applications that are so close to your degree, blah, blah, blah....... Good luck! A house without fur is not a home. Glenda ,
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• 10-27-2009 11:47 PM

  In reply to glenmar

  Sunshinegirl Joined on 05-03-2007 Florida, USA Posts 1,540 Points 565

  Re: Need Advice (work/job related) Reply Contact I agree with Glenda - go for it! And do as Callie said and let them know that you do not want your current employer contacted. Normally, they don't check references until they've interviewed you anyway. I know what you mean about not knowing what you want to be when you grow up. I still don't know and I'm 45..... I just fell into property management at the age of 17 and have stayed with it over the years because that's where my experience is, I don't have a degree and it pays the bills and then some, generally. That being said, I have always felt that being happy in what you do is really important. I've taken positions that paid a little less because I felt it would be a better fit on the happiness scale. It sucks to work in an environment where you feel unappreciated, even after discussing it with management.... been there... Good luck!!! Sunshine Girl

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• 10-28-2009 6:50 AM

  In reply to Sunshinegirl

  the_gopher Joined on 08-02-2006 New Hampshire Posts 1,504 Points 60

  Re: Need Advice (work/job related) Reply Contact  Thank you everyone so much. I feel a bit better now about sending them my resume and a cover letter. I attempted to talk to the SO about it last night. His only response before picking up a book...nonprofits aren't stable in this economy. I know he's frustrated because I've been frustrated with my jobs since moving to NH - but still little more feedback would have been nice. He's fortunate, he doesn't mind his job. He's paid well and it's a stable position with a company he's been with for many years now. I think this also came up because I have a review today at work. They seriously changed the format and the review sheet. It's awful. They want each review to last no more than 15 minutes. Which, basically gives THEM enough time to tell me what I am and am not doing right, and doesn't allow me any time to discuss how I'm being measured. For instance, I am responsible for seeing my clients mystery shops get conducted. I am supposed to have a MINIMUM execution rate in the high 90's. That's fine. I have no problems meeting a challenge/goal. However, my boss has absolutely no grasp how many hours I spend calling shoppers, emailing shoppers, finding ways to recruit new shoppers. On average, I will fill the same mystery shop assignment 5 times, b/c shoppers don't go on the assignment. BTW I am supposed to conduct, all told, 124 shops per month. Most of my shops are incredibly difficult to recruit shoppers for (which they say they know and understand, yet I'm constantly being told I didn't do enough). When I asked what other avenues I could try, they just said fill the shops sooner. I do, then shoppers don't go, I find another shopper (hopefully), they don't go, etc etc. I have talked to them, I have reported back how many calls I've made, emails I've sent out and even gave them information on how many times one shop was scheduled, yet never got done for that month b/c my job relies heavily upon the general public doing what they signed up to do. Not fun. I'm also in "trouble" because a client I have that I conduct phone interviews for, has been nonresponsive to calls and emails to start their program. I call or email EVERY week. How am I supposed to handle that? The client is non-responsive, yet I'm being told I'm losing the company potential revenue.  Sorry for the rant. I didn't sleep at all last night. I have EVERY intention of discussing this in my review, whether or not it goes over the 15 minutes. The owner of the company will be there in my review and its actually HIM that wants our performance based upon measurable items (which BTW they base raises on). He's a good guy, but he's a salesman trying to measure customer service - which sometimes cannot be done in a straight forward way. They just assume that you never do anything because your "numbers" are low.  It's really frustrating, because I do like my actual job. However, my job satisfaction is not there due to the way we are evaluated and micromanaged. The micromanaging gets so bad, I'm almost tempted to email my boss to let him know I'm losing 5 minutes of productivity while I go to the bathroom! I work hard. I put in at least 45 hours per week, more toward the end of the month when things get really busy. I do some work from home to get the job done. I try to find creative solutions to issues. But, at the end of the day, all I feel is it doesn't amount to anything in the eyes of management. ~Sharon

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• 10-28-2009 7:54 AM

  In reply to the_gopher

  spiritdogs Joined on 09-10-2007 Posts 11,723 Points 1,020

  Re: Need Advice (work/job related) Reply Contact Salaries in non-profit elder care are low and the work loads very high at the entry levels, especially if you do not have a professional degree or licensure.  However, there are some avenues for advancement.  I started in care management, and now am the public relations director for my Area Agency on Aging.  I also (no surprise here) founded and still coordinate the "pet program" which tries to provide information and resources that allow elders to stay connected to animals, or retain the pets they have.  I love working with seniors, and doing for them.  But, there is literally no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow;-)  I, and many others, are currently worried about our jobs.  But, the senior network is a wonderful place to work, and the people you work with are caring, smart, and become your friends.  Do I get micromanaged?  Yup.  Do I wish it was different?  Yup.  Do I like what I do?  Well, maybe not as well as being independently wealthy and living on a dog lady commune, but yup.  BTW, you should PM me.  I'm in Mass., and while I don't have a handle on what goes on with NH, I do have some idea of what's involved in most jobs related to seniors.  Regional Director for Massachusetts, International Positive Dog Training Association Director, SeniorCare Pawsitive Connections Program AKC CGC Evaluator #3669 Therapy Dogs, Inc. Tester/Observer Sioux, CGC, TDInc. Maska, CGC, TDInc. Sequoyah, CGC Fergie, Retired Lap Dog, Age 20 1/2 Dancer, CGC, TDInc. (1989-2006) #1 Heart Dog In memory of Mike, please become an organ donor today. "If you talk to the animals they will talk with you and you will know each other. If you do not talk to them you will not know them and what you do not know, you will fear. What one fears, one destroys." - Chief Dan George "The fidelity of a dog is a precious gift demanding no less binding moral responsibilities than the friendship of a human being. The bond with a true dog is as lasting as the ties of this earth can ever be." ~ Konrad Lorenz

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• 10-28-2009 9:26 PM

  In reply to spiritdogs

  the_gopher Joined on 08-02-2006 New Hampshire Posts 1,504 Points 60

  Re: Need Advice (work/job related) Reply Contact  Again, thanks everyone! It really helped to put this all out there. My review went, interestingly. I got a raise actually which was surprising.  They seemed receptive to my feedback and I listened to theirs. We'll see. I'm still going to circulate my resume out there though. I got to thinking about Liesje sending hers out quite a bit. I feel I'll regret never knowing what may have come of it.  Spiritdogs - I did my internship at an Area Agency on Aging in VT. I loved the work. A lot. I miss those elders I assisted. I have very fond memories of them. Mostly, I helped them in their homes (housework, food deliveries, light cooking/cleaning, as well as accompanying case managers so I could shadow what they did). Heck, I even learned a bit of gardening from one disabled senior, who got a real good kick out of me (she didn't like going out of the house much, so I told her that unless she wanted a garden full of weeds, b/c I didn't know a weed from a real plant, she had to come out and supervise). Got her out of the house and made her laugh to boot. It was a very eye opening experience for me. Some good, some heart wrenching - some experiences made me down right angry. Some, pushed the envelope for me to explore deep seated beliefs/biases that I didn't even know I had. I realize salaries are low and grant funding is a joy. When I moved down to NH, the only jobs open in senior care were in home elder care (housekeeping, personal care work) paying 7-8 dollars an hour. I actually enjoy that work, but I couldn't pay my bills making that much (my student loan bill alone is enough to make me want to cry, then add a mortgage on top of it! Thankfully neither of us have credit card debt). I don't actually care much about money. As long as I can meet my expenses and bills, without worrying about checks bouncing, and maybe have a little so I can enjoy life a bit (go camping, see some movies, keep me in my book habit - I'm fairly low key lol) then all is good. The job I am throwing my resume in for is administrative. No contact with those receiving services it seems, but if for some reason they offered me a job and it for some reason it is a good move for me - it's a foot in the door, which is hard to come by. I've found entry level positions for ANY human services job (for persons with just a bachelors degree) are incredibly difficult to come by. A small part of me regrets our move out of VT, as the place I interned at was looking to create a position for me to keep me on at the agency (it would have happened). However, the move out of VT was definitely the right choice for many more reasons. ~Sharon

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