Another entry on the CV

Yesterday was my last day at my now-previous employers, For the rest of this week I’m on emergency phone support only (which they’ll never have to use as things pretty much work). Next week I’m at the UKUUG conference in Swansea and then a couple of days after I get back I start my new job at one of Londons premier OpenSource and Perl companies. No, not the BBC. ;)

I’ve been thinking about why I only stayed for a year at a company that has a hell of a lot of potential and some very top notch people and I’ve come up with a couple of ideas, how valid they are I guess I’ll work out over time.

Firstly the technical challenges. Medical companies are slow and stable. They also spend years in tender for a project and so they are always a long way behind current tech and conservative even then. This is an industry-wide thing I didn’t know about until I became involved. To be honest it makes sense but from a personal growth level it’s not the best way to stay current and challenged. In a couple of years I think I’d like to get back in to that industry but I’m not ready for the change of pace just yet.

Second we have the people: as a company grows it typically moves from a small number of very capable people to a larger number of more conventional employees. I’ve got no problem being a cog in a machine if I get paid well for it and I go in with that known. If you get in at the early stage and then the environment changes enough then you need to be aware that your position in the company will either change drasticly or you need to be objective and know when you should stand aside and move on. I was aware of both happening.

They are moving from a pioneer, driven by ideas position to a more stable service model which didn’t need anywhere as much raw innovation and things were settling down enough that they don’t need the same skill set (and experience levels) in some of their staff. And so I moved off on good terms to find a new opportunity.

To my ex-coworkers, many of whom were very smart and capable people I send my regards and wish you the best of luck. To my new employer I hope you understand how lucky you are ;)