Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
(OP)
(Sorry that this is so long...thanks in advance for hearing me out.) I work for a large multi-discipline engineering firm with several offices. For over a year, my department has been without a senior engineer/manager/leader to direct and grow our staff. As such, we have seen our projects gradually dwindle with the market. This is because the staff consists mostly of non-registered engineers and designers who have to spend too much time on production work and/or are not qualified to put effort into marketing. Granted, we still have enough work to keep our remaining staff busy, but definitely not the load or the revenue that we would like to have. Up until several weeks ago, HR was actively looking for a senior for us. Now I have just heard from our office director that HR is no longer actively seeking a senior or additional staff because the projected revenue for our office doesn't justify it. In addition, there is noone in our department who is qualified to step into the top leadership position. We do have one PE, but he doesn't have the qualifications to be the department head. (We have been working under the part-time direction of a senior engineer (PE) in another office.) To make a long story short, I am basically happy with my job, but am frustrated with the corporate business model for my department and office.
So the question is this: Should I stick it out and wait until a new senior engineer is hired or start looking for employment elsewhere? There is also the possibility of transferring to another office that has a great senior engineer, but my requests to transfer have been rejected because it would leave my department short-handed (and also for political reasons). Any suggestions here? Thanks for reading all of this and for replying.
So the question is this: Should I stick it out and wait until a new senior engineer is hired or start looking for employment elsewhere? There is also the possibility of transferring to another office that has a great senior engineer, but my requests to transfer have been rejected because it would leave my department short-handed (and also for political reasons). Any suggestions here? Thanks for reading all of this and for replying.





RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
It sounds like management has lost some perspective, on the surface, based on what you shared, the reason revenues are down is because there is no captain at the helm. Seemingly poor judgement. What happens next? You guessed it, revenues down, we gotta start cutting back. Hence the reason you are going to start looking around.
There is so much work out there, probably one of the reasons HR didn't find a candidate, so you shouldn't have any problems there.
A couple of suggestions:
www.worldwideworker.com
www.rigzone.com
On each of these (there are probaby more) you can tailor the jobs you are looking for into their databases and they will email you whenever a matchingt opportunity arises. They are free and discreet.
Greg Lamberson
Consultant - Upstream Energy
Website: www.oil-gas-consulting.com
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
Is your firm an A/E or strictly engineering consultants?
If A/E, inhouse architects can do the marketing. Once your group finds a leader, then you guys can market and consult for outside architects.
Senior staff from other beanch office may assume a leadership role until one is hired in your office. His presence at your location 100% of the time is not necessary.
In the meantime, it doesn't hurt to look at the grass elsewhere. There are many career paths for a structural engineer. This may be a good time to evaluate your goals and see whether you are headed the right direction.
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
Probably, you could be the next Senior Engineer/Leader !!!
In every adversity, there is an opportunity.
Good luck.
HVAC68
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
I have encountered this problem before in big firms and this is the reason why I dont work for big firms anymore.
I worked for an acquisition design construct firm, when I went for an interview with a director for a PM job he demonstrated to me that he had no idea what acquisition did, what design did, and what the construction department did. I have no idea how he was running a company he knew nothing about, but I decided right there and then to only work for people who used to do my job.
The other thing to think about is your exposure. Your work is not being thoroughly checked by a senior engineer, if you make a big mistake then the crap is going to come down on you. Self checking only picks up so much.
Regards
csd
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
Being the head is inheriting a lot of responsibilities. In order to make it work, you not only have to possess enough technical background and great leadership traits but the firm also has to give you full authority over your group and adequate compensation.
RE: Lack of Leader: Is it time to move on?
In fact you should always be on the lookout for new opportunities. Remember that in today’s economy that the firm would not hesitate to dump you if it was to their benefit then you should always be ready to move ion if its to your benefit.
That doesn’t mean jumping ship at the first opportunity; it simply means always having your lifejacket handy and ready for use.
By all means look around, you may be pleasantly surprised and have an opportunity to better your situation. If nothing comes up then you are only in the same position that you are in now but with better information on the job market as it affects you individually.
Rick Kitson MBA P.Eng
Construction Project Management
From conception to completion
www.kitsonengineering.com