In a bit of a pickle - Advice needed on job-hopping

mipouk

Hi Guys,

Got myself into a bit of a state recently. I got made redundant from my job on July 1st, the night before going on a 2 week holiday - Great timing! Well im back now and have been looking for jobs for several days now.

Long story short, i had a recruitment lady call me up, she briefly went through my CV with me on the phone and basically pointed out the fact that i was "seriously in danger of being discounted as being a job hopper". Now i know this isnt a desirable trait for an employee to have, and its not something that employers go for, but surely we dont all stay in jobs for 5 years each time and expect to be high up the ladder when we are older?

As it stands ive just turned 25, and the extent of the damage is thus - Ive just been made redundant from a permanent role after just 3 months ( they got rid of 2 of us with just a weeks notice as we were just at the end of our probationary period). Previous to this i had a job for 10 months which i moved on from for more server work. Previous to that i worked on a helpdesk for 14 months. And previous to that i was doing 1st line work for just a year.

Am i unemployable because ive moved on after 1year, then 14 months, then 10, then 3 months? Granted its not my fault i got made redundant but I do worry... Is the IT industry not full of "job hoppers" like me? Should I be making out that some of the jobs were temporary or contract perhaps?

Cheers in advance for any advice guys.

macdude

Do most young people job hop in there 20s in most jobs, yes. Does it look better on your resume if you stay at a job for at least 2 years or longer yes. Are you unemployable I would say not. Just look for a job and stick with one for a couple of years.

HeroPsycho

You can't control what's happened in the past. Control your present and future. I would pick something you're more likely to stay at if it comes down to choices between positions next time.

gojericho0

Being young i think it is fairly common. IT is a pretty high turnover field as it is. If possible I would try to get at least 2 years in with your next company though. I really wouldn't lose sleep with your employment history.

If you have an objective in your resume you can always say that you have a variety of experience in previous position in order to help benefit for a career as a(n) (your role that you are applying for)

jbrown414

In my early 20's I job hopped. That's mainly because I didn't know what I wanted to do. I worked at a car dealership, then as a an a/c repair man and then landed a call center job with a financial institute. It was there that I realized I wanted to work in IT. When I got my current job, I told myself that I would be here 2 years to get some experience and then move on. My 2 year mark just passed so i will probably be looking again soon after a few more certs.

dave_ne1

mipouk - were these jobs permanent or contracts/temp?

I know plenty of people of similar age who have done a large number of short contracts (less than a year) without any issues.

Myself i worked 4 less than a year contracts before starting my current job (been a permanent employee for 7 months now) the question about the short term jobs came up and i just explained why i left each one to the interviewer and they seemed satisifed with the reasons

Mishra

1st job - 3 months and laid off
2nd job - 1 year part time
3nd job - 2 weeks (not listed on resume)
4rd job - 17 months
5th job - 6 months

Only time I've ever seen a negative remark is when I was looking for my 6th job I was questioned at 1 interview about why I was leaving so early. 2nd interview I had (different company) I landed the job.

Currently at my job for 10 months.

LarryDaMan

Where I come from that is not "job hopping", you're young and to a certain extend it is to be expected. As a manager, I might be even more concerned with a 25 year old who wanted to be in the same position for 10 years. It is rare to find a position with enough room for challenge, growth, and advancement that it would benefit you to be there more than 3-4 years.

undomiel

The last interview I was at I asked what was their biggest reservation about hiring me and they said my job history. I don't have over a year at all of my previous positions due to them being either contract jobs or the company shifting me to non-IT roles. I didn't get the job so it does look like it can hold you back a bit. So as the previous posters have advised see if you can find a good permanent job and stay there for a couple years. That should make your resume look a lot better.

vsmith3rd

mipouk wrote:

As it stands ive just turned 25

Ah, the naivety of youth. At 25, you still have your whole life ahead of you. This can easily be remedied with the suggestions posted above. I wouldn't sweat this too much, but I'd also learn from it. There's a balance between stability and growth that must be struck. If you sit for an interview, you can even spin this your way by stating something like, "As you see, my previous opportunities lacked some elements of stability, which is very important to me. If accepted, what assurances can be offered that your company is looking for a long term solution, as am I?" I don't know, something like that. I'm sure you can find a way.

mipouk

Cheers for the replies so far guys. (BTW all the jobs on my CV have been permanent)I certainly agree, staying in the same job for a long time can actually work against you - A friend of mine still does helpdesk work for a company he has been at for 5 years. When I joined the company i had never used RDP, yet now Im aware of server technologies and he still supports XP machines... but he's happy and he isnt out of a job so fair play to him.

I think I am panicking due to the fact my resume has yet another job on it, this time showing April 08 to July 08. And however much i try to convince myself otherwise, i do think there is a stigma attached to being made redundant. As cliched as it sounds, i actually thought about my CV looking bad with all the jobs on it and so made a promise to myself that i would really try to stay grounded with my last job, stick at it whilst getting my MCSE and put in at least 18 months, plus it was close to home so i got to go home for lunch!

Just need to keep browsing the job websites whilst trying to get my 70-291 exam out of the way!

Thanks, mipo

jbrown414

One of the IT managers where I work told me that he didn't want to see me in my cyrrent position for more than three years. He said I should be in another position within the company or looking else where. I admire his honesty.

jbaello

Currently at my job for 6 months, I moved cause the cost of living is rising, and I needed to make more money, I have a daughter I need to support, I was at my last job for 1 1/2 years, to be honest I wish I would have sticked with them, cause it is true that job hopping makes you look bad, but I gotta do what is necessary for me at that time.

Then the past 3 years was all contract works, I made sure that an employer is aware of this, I cannot tell if I will be moving to a new job sooner, but I will most likely put in 1 year with them.

blargoe

jbrown414 wrote:

One of the IT managers where I work told me that he didn't want to see me in my cyrrent position for more than three years. He said I should be in another position within the company or looking else where. I admire his honesty.

We could all use management who is "real" with us. I would say your manager's comment would apply to most of us here regardless of position unless already Sr Admin or manager level.