| Topic Name: |
Should I work here? |
| Message Name: |
Thinking out of the box |
| Date Posted: |
02/21/2006 |
| In Reply To: |
topic you were really asking about; sometimes that happens, and I'm as guilty of it as anyone! So I'll try to redeem myself by sticking to the questions asked/points raised!!
I agree with job hopping looking bad when you are any age, but worse when you are older. [True. However, the job market now is not what it was 20 years ago, heck, not even 5 years ago. It's even acquired a bit of perversity -staying at the same job too long when there are obvious other, better opportunities out there can cause an odd backlash - I've seen this myself; thanks to a big pharmaceutical company I interviewed with. They said the fact that I'd stayed at PwC for so long indicated that I might be unable to think out of the box and would only follow orders. Also, how old is older, exactly? I'm 38 and left for a different, better opportunity 7 months ago.]
I guess my big concern with such a big company was that I know I want to stay at my next job long-term (i.e. more than ten years) and didn't want to get cranked in and out of the big four machine. But like someone else said, if I stayed 2-5 years, the chances for a better long-term job afterwards is there.
[Just like Tip O'Neill said "all politics is local" all of PwC is pretty much local too, unless you're Dennis Nally. It's only a big company and a big machine from the largest view. My experience was much more personal; that actually wasn't always a good thing!! In addition, yes, it will help your resume and increase your chances of getting a long term job at another company, especially if you can build expertise in the industry you intend to pursue.]
Any comments on the reality of PWC being a potentially long-term career? What kind of person succeeds?
[In this economy, and certainly @ PwC 10 years is a very, very long time. Yes, I know several people now who have been @ PwC upwards of 8, 10 years, and as long as 15, who are not Partners and are happy where they are. The chances of making Partner are so small its not worth discussion, but I do think PwC has made strides toward
retaining people and their expertise at the higher levels (and compensating them relatively well) even if they aren't Partner track. The USC study they commissioned in '04 was one attempt at assessing that. It's still mostly baby steps, but PwC and the Big 4 are IMHO making a concerted effort to change their image. So yes, PwC can be a long term career. Not necessarily Partner - frankly few people would WANT to be the kind of person that succeeds at that! but there are more options now.]
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| Message: |
All of your concerns have been experienced by some 'older' individuals at PwC and elsewhere. It is difficult to know exactly how best to handle certain situations, what exactly to say and/or do. So, sometimes the following can apply:
What is perfectly clear, though, is that socializing with anyone except your boss makes you feel good. Sex is best of all. This is handy advice at last. But what if you are having sex with your boss? Whereof economists cannot speak, we must remain silent.
Tim Harford, a Financial Times columnist, is the author of The Undercover Economist.
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