Company I work for being bought.
Company I work for being bought.
(OP)
I have heard that the small company I work for is being bought by a larger firm and that all engineers are going to be asked to sign a non-compete agreement. I am not sure if I want to work for this company so I am looking elsewhere. If there is an agreement currently being drafted, how quickly could this aquisition take place? Did any of you sign a non-compete agreement with the company you are with?





RE: Company I work for being bought.
Google "restraint of trade non-compete".
RE: Company I work for being bought.
RE: Company I work for being bought.
Anyway, it's been a fun ride, albeit not without it's moments of trepidation and even pain, but in the end, the cream always rises to the top
John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:
To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.
RE: Company I work for being bought.
Of course for legal questions you may be better looking on law-tips
What is Engineering anyway: FAQ1088-1484: In layman terms, what is "engineering"?
RE: Company I work for being bought.
If you do a search on eng-tip.com you'll see this topic discussed several times and the conclusion keeps being that NDA are not worth the blood that they are written in for virtually all non-executive employees (and most executives with the exception that if they continue your salary after separation you can't compete while being paid).
David Simpson, PE
MuleShoe Engineering
"Belief" is the acceptance of an hypotheses in the absence of data.
"Prejudice" is having an opinion not supported by the preponderance of the data.
"Knowledge" is only found through the accumulation and analysis of data.
The plural of anecdote is not "data"
RE: Company I work for being bought.
Obviously there is potentially some relationship between them, and sometimes both are present in any given employment 'contract'.
I forgot to say that at one point yes I had to sign a non compete.
What is Engineering anyway: FAQ1088-1484: In layman terms, what is "engineering"?
RE: Company I work for being bought.
RE: Company I work for being bought.
That should make you a lot of points...
Mike McCann
MMC Engineering
http://mmcengineering.tripod.com
RE: Company I work for being bought.
Neither acquisition turned out well - one closed it's doors, the other is a fraction of its former size. In bith cases, the larger firm failed to appreciate the value of a low-overhead, nible organization, and instead burdened the small company with the overhead of a large company - prestigious office, new vehicles, marketing staff, etc., - and then wondered why profitibility was down. Maybe your new employers are different. But if the buyers are bringing in new bureaucratic measures (non-compete agreements and the like) before they've even introduced themselves, they sound even worse than the companies that acquired my ex-employers. If I were in your shoes, I'd be working my network for a new job pretty hard.
RE: Company I work for being bought.
2. Non-compete agreements can also take many forms. In most jurisdictions in the US, there are two general criteria that will make them stick...if the period of time is reasonable (usually does not exceed 1 year) and if the geographical area of limitation is reasonable (usually within a certain distance of the main or branch offices of the company).
3. Non-compete agreements ARE NOT limited only to starting your own business. They usually include that you cannot work for a competitor of the company as well.
4. There is a large national engineering firm that is famous for its non-compete agreements and they enforce theirs all the way down to technician level. Absurd, but actual.
5. When I sold my first firm, I was the only person required to sign a non-compete agreement. I made sure that it was reasonable and more importantly, that it expired in a reasonable time. Most companies do not have expirations on their non-compete agreements. It was important to me so I made it a sale condition. You won't have that option, since you are not the owner of the business being sold.
6. Unfortunately checking with a lawyer will not likely get you anywhere in your case since they will likely give you two choices....sign the agreement or out the door. They will usually not negotiate on an individual basis, but might listen if the whole company balked at their provisions. If the whole group considers balking, then get an attorney for the whole group.