(no subject)

[dakegra]

another morning of job hunting has thrown up precious little.

There was one call from an agent about a job in skipton, which turned out to be a job *near* skipton. Five or six miles outside skipton. In the wrong direction. Which would mean a nigh-on 50 mile commute each way.

Hmm.

This job hunting is really starting to get me down now. Project management roles are few and far between, and want all manner of stuff like experience of million-pound projects or Prince2 certification or ITIL certification.

I looked at junior web dev roles, but suspect that people advertising for a graduate-level job would balk at a 38 year-old project manager wanting to retrain.

So, do I keep looking for PM stuff at my sort of salary range (give or take) but broaden my geographical area to Hull/Sheffield/Manchester, or look at doing a less well-paid job somewhere local?

Part of the problem is when you sell yourself to an agent for a particular role and they come back and say 'sorry, the client wants [x]', it's hard to turn around and say that actually I'm happy to do [x] for £y as you end up looking totally flaky and desperate.

Which I am. Desperate, that is. Though only slightly flaky.

What else can I do, peeps? IT support? I've done enough of that, and am good at it.

Anyone out there know anyone who might need an IT chap who has done some PM work, some business analysis work, lots of client-facing customer hand-holding type work?

Anyone?

Comments

[ayoub.livejournal.com]

It's tough out there...

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

question: is it better for your career to be unemployed for a while, or to take a lower-paid job?


I've seen an ad for a library assistant post in Leeds (several, in fact). But earning less than half what I'm on now. Would probably kill any chance of doing PM work if I got it. But would be doing something I enjoy doing.

[myfirstkitchen.livejournal.com]

The problem with the library assistant post is the vast number of unemployed people in Leeds at the moment with library postgrad qualifications, both recently graduated and with lots of experience (so my librarian friends tell me) because Leeds Met just let a load of librarians go and there's recruitment freezes elsewhere.

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

oddly, Leeds Met are advertising for an academic librarian (or two)...

[myfirstkitchen.livejournal.com]

The permanent one is because a friend of a friend just left, she cracked under the pressure of having to cover too many jobs as only a recent postgrad.

They require serious librarian qualifications also.

I looked into being a librarian or assistant when I was made redundant and worked out basically I could if I still lived in a small town and did the IT side too, but it's really a profession for those with the relevant quals now.

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

I've got a postgrad diploma in Information Studies

[myfirstkitchen.livejournal.com]

You're sorted then.

I had the opposite problem when I wanted to go into it - underqualified, wanting to work my way up, never earned more than £13k in my life (still haven't, unless you count a couple of months in temporary positions where the stated salary was a bit more).

I think if you're going to take a salary drop you have to decide whether or not you're OK with that being a permanent lifestyle change, because it's very hard to get back up to higher pay (from experience of my parents and friends).

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

yeah, that's what's bothering me at the moment.

I've been applying for project management jobs which would have meant a drop in salary, but not a huge one, and leaving me in the position I was before starting here. Reason being that it would be experience, and possible to work back up to where I am now in a year or so.

If I went for the library stuff, it would mean a huge paycut, and mean that I'd be unlikely ever to earn anywhere near what I'm on now. We can afford to do it, but only just and it'd mean a long-term change in lifestyle.

Not impossible, but needs careful thought. Would it be better to sit on the dole for six months until the market picks up?

[myfirstkitchen.livejournal.com]

Possibly, or seeing if there are any short term contracts or maternity cover in IT stuff.

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

yeah, I need to start actively chasing up recruitment types for the short-term contract stuff.

[ayoub.livejournal.com]

Better to be unemployed for a while. A lower paid job means having to climb up the wage scale again.

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

even if you've worked out that you don't actually *need* to be earning what you were before?

[ayoub.livejournal.com]

It depends on what you find fulfilling, I guess...

For me, it's leadership, and leadership is highly linked to pay scale... :)

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

not big on leadership, to be honest. Prefer to roll my sleeves up and get on with it.

[dilerium.livejournal.com]

There's nothing there at the moment but a couple of months ago there was a job at Balne lane library. Might be worth keeping an on on the councils website (if you aren't already).

Hope the job hunting gets better.

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

there are a couple of library assistant jobs going in Headingley/Morley, but the pay is less than half what I'm currently earning.

However, it would be more than being on the dole, and would be doing something I enjoy. Would scupper any plans to move back into project managemetn though, and would raise the interesting question of why I wanted to take a significantly lower paid job, and would take some convincing that it wasn't just a stopgap.

[paula-abroad.livejournal.com]

think i haven´t commented about this at all so far, but i wanted to say i´m crossing my fingers for you here!

[dakegra.livejournal.com]

thanks :-)