Dave's a busy chap !

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I , too , know someone called Dave .

Where Dave works , things have been on a downward spiral lately , due to funding cuts , and new managers have been brought in to make economies .

This has resulted in Dave's workplace no longer being the happy place it once was , and for the first time in years Dave looked at the job market .

It just so happened that there was a senior post advertised in Dave's exact line of work so he applied for it , had a telephone interview last week , which seemed to go quite well , and now he has been asked to a second stage interview next week . The prospective new employers are asking Dave how quickly he can start and if he can reduce the months notice he is required to give . Assuming that the Christmas break will count as part of the notice period , together with six days annual leave still to take , might it be realistic for him to leave before Christmas if he gets the job ?

Dave is torn between loyalty to his current employer , who has been good to him for more than a decade , and wishing to please the new employer .

Also , not wishing to let the existing employer know at this stage he is looking to leave , and not wishing to 'throw a sickie' for the interview , how does he get the morning off ? It so happens that a neighbour died last week , perhaps a half day annual leave to attend the funeral ? Dave also feels that dishonesty would not impress a new employer , but at the same time can't say why he really wants/needs the time off .

Opinions ?



Now , Dave finds himself torn
 
New managers come and go.
Culture changes more slowly.
Pension and/or other benefits worth considering?
 
I think 'Dave' should have a day off for the interview for 'personal reasons' and 'when' he gets the job he should go for it with renewed enthusiasm and excitement. :thumb:

Tell 'Dave' that life is too short to be unhappy in a job that he no longer likes/loves and that unfortunately loyalty counts for very little. :cool:

Tell him good luck from me. :D
 
My mate Dave couldn't in all conscience be dishonest.
If he had no holiday left he would ask his manager for a day off from next year's holiday for an important personal matter.
 
All's fair in love and war and job interviews. Dave's prospective employer won't ask how he took the time off, merely that he got there. Secondly, if Dave does want the new job, then he should look at the past good times with his old employer with gratitude but move on if misery is all he has to look forward to.

Meanwhile my friend Dave wishes Dave all the best as he hears Dave is an excellent sort of chap!
 
New managers come and go.
Culture changes more slowly.
Pension and/or other benefits worth considering?

They do , but culture is being eroded , and about a year in , Dave feels his department is being run down . There is a good pension with the current job which would be 'frozen' until retirement age ( 7 years ) . Dave isn't at all sure the current job will last another 7 years .

The new job comes with a good step up in salary , pension has not been discussed but is on Dave's list of questions .
 
If there is only 7 years to go till current pension maturity, and if that pension was a really good one (like some of the old public sector ones.......), I'd be suggesting to Dave that he explores early retirement with maybe a part time job to stave off boredom :rock:
 
Put the fun in funeral, take the morning off and move on to a better job/company.
 
There's no such thing as loyalty from companies really, they'll drop you the moment the figures make sense for it to happen. Give them as much notice as you can and a definite leave date.
 
Maybe tell Dave to see if he gets a definite offer before stressing on what to do with his current position. An offer will inspire confidence and provide collateral if required when dealing with his current employer.
 
Dave should do what John Key did, but not before trying to understand the true culture at the new place.
 
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Are Dave's current employers sensitive enough to understand how Dave might be feeling about the changes, or would that be too much for them to properly comprehend...?

As attractive as the grass is over there, see if you can get as much a smell of it as possible before committing to the crunch.

Will the new place look to buy out the current place as time goes by...?
 
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Maybe tell Dave to see if he gets a definite offer before stressing on what to do with his current position. An offer will inspire confidence and provide collateral if required when dealing with his current employer.

That is the main reason Dave is keeping this to himself for now - he has confided in one trusted colleague , but doesn't want management getting wind of it yet .

A good many staff in other departments have already left , with the majority not being replaced .
 
Are Dave's current employers sensitive enough to understand how Dave might be feeling about the changes, or would that be too much for them to properly comprehend...?

As attractive as the grass is over there, see if you can get as much a smell of it as possible before committing to the crunch.

Will the new place look to buy out the current place as time goes by...?

There are lots of very nice and genuine people in senior positions , who aren't stupid and know what is going on , but the funding cuts can't be changed so the situation won't change either .

The potential new employer is in a different field from the old one ( although the job is very similar ) there is no chance of a takeover .
 
Well, can you talk things over with them at an appropriate time...
 
^ This!

They might well be about to decide to make Dave redundant (may have already decided....He'll be the last to know) so why hand them that big fat redundancy cheque back?

He could always hurry-up his redundancy chances by being a bit more "difficult"..

I've found "difficult" people are always the first to go when belts are tightened. The sort of people who stand up in the MD's annual lecture and ask why he has just taken delivery of a new top-of-the-range flashy company car when the profits are in free-fall...,.
 
Or 'Dave' could be helpful and enquire about voluntary redundancy?
 
I do not presume to advise on the specific question asked without knowing much more about Dave and the permanence of the situation.

What I do know is that we all spend a large part of our waking time in the work place and if that time is not enjoyable something has to be done about it.

The day ahead should (usually) be embraced with a lot of different but positive emotions.

Mic
 

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