Let Go Today - Anybody Hiring? (1 Viewer)

JWC said:
How is the job hunt progressing?
Click to expand...
Slowly, I’d say. I’m actively following a few personal leads, but haven’t started the wider hunt in earnest. I don’t feel good about the state of my resume or online presence. Feel like I need to get those in order first.
 
Davism72 said:
Slowly, I’d say. I’m actively following a few personal leads, but haven’t started the wider hunt in earnest. I don’t feel good about the state of my resume or online presence. Feel like I need to get those in order first.
Click to expand...
I'm a software developer, and back in late 2016 I was laid off from my job of 15 years. Job hunting became my new job.

I spent the first week bringing my resume and LinkedIn up to speed, and creating a couple of resume variants for different position types (principal SWE, architect, systems engineer). Once I'd cut my four page first draft in half and was reasonably happy with it, I started applying.

I settled into a daily routine where I would spend 2-4 hours actively job-seeking: looking at job sites, talking to friends and professional acquaintances, talking to recruiters, applying to interesting positions, and interviewing. When applying, sometimes I'd use one of my boilerplate resumes, but I'd always try to tweak it if the job description called for specific skills that I had and could emphasize.

I spent the other half of my day "sharpening the knife." I studied info that was often important in interviews but that I didn't often use day to day: data structures, algorithmic complexity, etc. If you don't already have it, I highly recommend a book called Cracking the Coding Interview. It's targeted for interviews at the biggies: Google, Amazon, etc., so it covers pretty much everything that you might expect to be asked in a technical interview.

I also wrote code every day. Some days I would refresh my memory on skills that I hadn't used in a while. Other days I would do phone screen problems, where you're given a toy problem and you get 30-45 minutes to design and implement a solution. I mostly used Codility, but there are tons of similar sites out there. It's also a good idea to rubber duck when you do this, as you'll be expected to explain what you're doing in coding interviews, and it's surprisingly hard if you're not used to it.

It took me three months to find a new position. I could have found something faster, but I was selective. As a developer in my late 40s, I wanted a position that put me in a leadership role or gave me an opportunity to get one quickly. A grunt coding spot would have been a path to early, involuntary retirement.

Good luck and I hope my experience is helpful in your search!
 
Schmendr1ck said:
I'm a software developer, and back in late 2016 I was laid off from my job of 15 years. Job hunting became my new job.

I spent the first week bringing my resume and LinkedIn up to speed, and creating a couple of resume variants for different position types (principal SWE, architect, systems engineer). Once I'd cut my four page first draft in half and was reasonably happy with it, I started applying.

I settled into a daily routine where I would spend 2-4 hours actively job-seeking: looking at job sites, talking to friends and professional acquaintances, talking to recruiters, applying to interesting positions, and interviewing. When applying, sometimes I'd use one of my boilerplate resumes, but I'd always try to tweak it if the job description called for specific skills that I had and could emphasize.

I spent the other half of my day "sharpening the knife." I studied info that was often important in interviews but that I didn't often use day to day: data structures, algorithmic complexity, etc. If you don't already have it, I highly recommend a book called Cracking the Coding Interview. It's targeted for interviews at the biggies: Google, Amazon, etc., so it covers pretty much everything that you might expect to be asked in a technical interview.

I also wrote code every day. Some days I would refresh my memory on skills that I hadn't used in a while. Other days I would do phone screen problems, where you're given a toy problem and you get 30-45 minutes to design and implement a solution. I mostly used Codility, but there are tons of similar sites out there. It's also a good idea to rubber duck when you do this, as you'll be expected to explain what you're doing in coding interviews, and it's surprisingly hard if you're not used to it.

It took me three months to find a new position. I could have found something faster, but I was selective. As a developer in my late 40s, I wanted a position that put me in a leadership role or gave me an opportunity to get one quickly. A grunt coding spot would have been a path to early, involuntary retirement.

Good luck and I hope my experience is helpful in your search!
Click to expand...

Great advice! I agree 100%
 
We are looking for someone with extensive python/aws/serverless experience, feel free to pm me if that's ur background and are interested. It's fully remote position too.
 
Schmendr1ck said:
I'm a software developer, and back in late 2016 I was laid off from my job of 15 years. Job hunting became my new job.

I spent the first week bringing my resume and LinkedIn up to speed, and creating a couple of resume variants for different position types (principal SWE, architect, systems engineer). Once I'd cut my four page first draft in half and was reasonably happy with it, I started applying.

I settled into a daily routine where I would spend 2-4 hours actively job-seeking: looking at job sites, talking to friends and professional acquaintances, talking to recruiters, applying to interesting positions, and interviewing. When applying, sometimes I'd use one of my boilerplate resumes, but I'd always try to tweak it if the job description called for specific skills that I had and could emphasize.

I spent the other half of my day "sharpening the knife." I studied info that was often important in interviews but that I didn't often use day to day: data structures, algorithmic complexity, etc. If you don't already have it, I highly recommend a book called Cracking the Coding Interview. It's targeted for interviews at the biggies: Google, Amazon, etc., so it covers pretty much everything that you might expect to be asked in a technical interview.

I also wrote code every day. Some days I would refresh my memory on skills that I hadn't used in a while. Other days I would do phone screen problems, where you're given a toy problem and you get 30-45 minutes to design and implement a solution. I mostly used Codility, but there are tons of similar sites out there. It's also a good idea to rubber duck when you do this, as you'll be expected to explain what you're doing in coding interviews, and it's surprisingly hard if you're not used to it.

It took me three months to find a new position. I could have found something faster, but I was selective. As a developer in my late 40s, I wanted a position that put me in a leadership role or gave me an opportunity to get one quickly. A grunt coding spot would have been a path to early, involuntary retirement.

Good luck and I hope my experience is helpful in your search!
Click to expand...

Hey, I really appreciate all this. It's encouraging to hear someone else's experience. I haven't read that book, but I've been told before that I should -- maybe now's the time!

I'm earlier in my career than you were at the time. Don't love the word grunt, but I guess that's the sort of role I'm looking for. The biggest hurdle for me is that my undergraduate degree is in English. I'm working on a Masters in CS now, but I don't have a lot of formal training to point to. Just on-the-job stuff for the last 4ish years.

hscoots said:
We are looking for someone with extensive python/aws/serverless experience, feel free to pm me if that's ur background and are interested. It's fully remote position too.
Click to expand...

I mean, yeah. PM headed your way. Thank you!
 
Davism72 said:
I'm earlier in my career than you were at the time. Don't love the word grunt, but I guess that's the sort of role I'm looking for. The biggest hurdle for me is that my undergraduate degree is in English. I'm working on a Masters in CS now, but I don't have a lot of formal training to point to. Just on-the-job stuff for the last 4ish years.
Click to expand...
First of all, I have a BS in Chemistry, and I worked for several years as a developer before finishing my MS CS. Once you've got some professional experience plus a Bachelor's in anything, that's a foot in the door at most places.

I don't meant "grunt" in a disparaging way. I'm just talking about the guy who's in the ditches doing the hard work all day. FWIW, if I could write code all day and get the pay and job security that I want, I would.

But reality for most of us is that you either have a highly desirable specialization or you develop additional skills that make you more than a coder. I've got a lot of experience in systems design, requirements development, managing small programming teams, etc., and at my age those skills are important for several reasons.

Ageism exists in our field, and there are hiring managers who simply won't consider hiring a 50+ year old for a coding position. That doesn't mean you'll never get a job, but it's harder. You increase your odds by having additional soft skills and technical skills.

And while I strongly disagree with the ageism, it's a biological reality that as we get older, mental tasks can start to get more difficult. It becomes easier to maintain the skills you already have than to learn new ones. So, having a large, relevant set of skills keeps you employable longer.

Finally, it's a business reality that younger developers are cheaper developers. If you're 55 and asking for 25-35% more than the 35-year-old applying for the same spot, you'd better have more than "20 years additional experience" to justify the additional cost.
 
Schmendr1ck said:
First of all, I have a BS in Chemistry, and I worked for several years as a developer before finishing my MS CS. Once you've got some professional experience plus a Bachelor's in anything, that's a foot in the door at most places.
Click to expand...

Maybe. I certainly hope that's the case. I think it's been a blocker for me. If I'm wrong, that means that I'm just less hireable than I think I am, which is box I probably shouldn't be opening right now, anyways. :)

I really appreciate your comments, by the way. Hoping to pick your brain a little more. PM headed your way.
 
Thanks everyone for your help and good vibes. Just signed on with a company in Reno called Synap. I'll be doing web dev mostly. It's not a perfect fit -- I'm taking the job because I need to get back to work -- but all things considered I'm pretty excited. I'll still be looking for another job, though. Don't want to get into another situation where I need to find something and don't have any clue where to start.
 
Davism72 said:
Thanks everyone for your help and good vibes. Just signed on with a company in Reno called Synap. I'll be doing web dev mostly. It's not a perfect fit -- I'm taking the job because I need to get back to work -- but all things considered I'm pretty excited. I'll still be looking for another job, though. Don't want to get into another situation where I need to find something and don't have any clue where to start.
Click to expand...
Congrats!

There's nothing wrong with taking a spot to pay the bills (been there), it gives you more time to work on the big picture.
 
Sorry to hear. You should be in high demand, given shortage of software engineers everywhere. Lots of luck with the job search.
 
Hey, all. Got some good news today! You all are the first people I’ve told.

After being let go, I took the first job that would have me, and it became clear pretty quickly that the fit was wrong. I’ve been passively looking for a new job the entire time, but some shakiness are work a couple weeks ago made me look a bit harder. The short of it is that I found a company in town that makes a really cool cyclist training product. I applied, had a great interview, and accepted a job offer today. I start in two weeks. Best part: I got a 25% raise!

Thanks again for all the well-wishes. You all made a bumpy road a little smoother.
 
Davism72 said:
Hey, all. Got some good news today! You all are the first people I’ve told.

After being let go, I took the first job that would have me, and it became clear pretty quickly that the fit was wrong. I’ve been passively looking for a new job the entire time, but some shakiness are work a couple weeks ago made me look a bit harder. The short of it is that I found a company in town that makes a really cool cyclist training product. I applied, had a great interview, and accepted a job offer today. I start in two weeks. Best part: I got a 25% raise!

Thanks again for all the well-wishes. You all made a bumpy road a little smoother.
Click to expand...
Congratulations! Happy to hear it. Even more to celebrate and be thankful for this time of year!
 
Congratulations!
 
Congratulations on the hire. Now you’re going to have to get me the inside on this cycling trainer!
 
Davism72 said:
I’m so bad at that stuff. I want to rub it in, but I’ll probably opt for the burn-no-bridges strategy.
Click to expand...

I don't want to repeat Dave @BGinGA but I 100% agree.
Show them your true colors, no job is worth doing things that are not you (even out of spite/revenge).
The world kan be a small place....

But first of all...congrats
My best of luck for the new job.

And thanks for talking openly about it....the job for life is gone for good.
Getting fired should not be something you should be ashamed about...posts like yours (incl. all responses) will help out other people.

Happy holidays :)
 
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Davism72 said:
I want to rub it in, but I’ll probably opt for the burn-no-bridges strategy.
Click to expand...

Definitely burn no bridges. The world is too close these days and there is no need to go in there and kick over desks, no matter how gratifying it would be. It will still be satisfying when you politely tell them that you have accepted employment elsewhere. And the relief after turning in your notice is liberating.
 

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