Saving fish by writing code! Applications developer in fisheries, specializing in webapps and moving 'enterprise-y' legacy systems to modern agile systems - Email or tweet me if you want to talk!
In all the cases where I have experienced, the direct and honest route has served me well. I typically tell the boss verbally first, "I've accepted an offer at BlahCo, I start in 4 weeks" and then follow up shortly in writing, via email.
In terms of honesty about the "why", I think it is best to be politic. Burning bridges is seldom the way to go, even if it is very satisfying. Something along the lines of, "I'm looking for new frontiers and new challenges. I think I've grown as far as PresentCo can take me, and BlahCo offers the exciting challenges of working in a different cubicle"
Or, you know, people understand "BlahCo offered me double what I make here, and I can't afford to pass it up," or "BlahCo offered me a fully remote position, and I'm going to move to a cheap town and live like a king".
I remember the first time I quit anything. I was a teenager, working retail, and I needed to quit because I couldn't balance homework with evening work. I was very nervous, and spent the whole shift composing a story and how I wanted to say it. When the time finally came to tell my manager, I got one sentence into the story, "I need to quit because I have too much homework," when she said, "That's just fine, you can apply again for a summer job." I was worried about tanking their schedule, and leaving them in the lurch, but it turns out that is what managers are paid to handle!
Thank you so much for your insight. I totally agree about the point of burning bridges, I’m definitely not looking for that.
My biggest concern is that I’ve had a fair amount to read into and understand how my current boss is not a very good people-person, so with me possibly resigning, a worry of mine is that he’s going to be completely against the idea, but as Damien’s said, it’s not in my control on how others react.
Saving fish by writing code! Applications developer in fisheries, specializing in webapps and moving 'enterprise-y' legacy systems to modern agile systems - Email or tweet me if you want to talk!
I see you are in South Africa, so this is likely not relevant, but in the US, employers typically limit themselves to confirming an employee's role and time at a company when asked for a reference. This is to limit their liability both from employees and whoever is asking for the reference.
In all the cases where I have experienced, the direct and honest route has served me well. I typically tell the boss verbally first, "I've accepted an offer at BlahCo, I start in 4 weeks" and then follow up shortly in writing, via email.
In terms of honesty about the "why", I think it is best to be politic. Burning bridges is seldom the way to go, even if it is very satisfying. Something along the lines of, "I'm looking for new frontiers and new challenges. I think I've grown as far as PresentCo can take me, and BlahCo offers the exciting challenges of working in a different cubicle"
Or, you know, people understand "BlahCo offered me double what I make here, and I can't afford to pass it up," or "BlahCo offered me a fully remote position, and I'm going to move to a cheap town and live like a king".
I remember the first time I quit anything. I was a teenager, working retail, and I needed to quit because I couldn't balance homework with evening work. I was very nervous, and spent the whole shift composing a story and how I wanted to say it. When the time finally came to tell my manager, I got one sentence into the story, "I need to quit because I have too much homework," when she said, "That's just fine, you can apply again for a summer job." I was worried about tanking their schedule, and leaving them in the lurch, but it turns out that is what managers are paid to handle!
Hi, Gunnar!
Thank you so much for your insight. I totally agree about the point of burning bridges, I’m definitely not looking for that.
My biggest concern is that I’ve had a fair amount to read into and understand how my current boss is not a very good people-person, so with me possibly resigning, a worry of mine is that he’s going to be completely against the idea, but as Damien’s said, it’s not in my control on how others react.
I appreciate your input, thank you!
I see you are in South Africa, so this is likely not relevant, but in the US, employers typically limit themselves to confirming an employee's role and time at a company when asked for a reference. This is to limit their liability both from employees and whoever is asking for the reference.
I wonder what's on the books in South Africa?
Ah okay!
Well here in South Africa, there's no real procedure to follow, unfortunately. Many things like this are pretty up in the air.
But as far as I know, some organisations follow the US method of doing certain things.