A survey last year by Manpower indicated 84% of those currently employed (at the time) were interested in pursuing opportunities with a new employer.\u00a0 This showed a few things: a climb in confidence among the general public, a clear interest in personal improvement, and a desire to make a move even if only for the sake of some motion.<\/p>\n
It also showed a lot of us are either on the move or wanting to be.\u00a0 Where it comes to IT professionals, there are some positions where that kind of motion is difficult to do without causing a lot of interruption and consternation with one\u2019s former employer.\u00a0 Many companies are tied around a handful or even one IT resource who \u201cknows where everything is\u201d and whose knowledge are so unique that nobody can really take it over.<\/p>\n
Here are a few tips for IT professionals who know they are in a unique position but want to leave without leaving the old business hanging.<\/p>\n
Do an assessment meeting.<\/strong>\u00a0 Get your boss and a few people who make sense in the company or department into a room and get honest.\u00a0 Enumerate all the areas that will need to be handled on a daily, weekly, monthly and ad hoc basis.\u00a0 For that list, indicate what sort of skills, knowledge and tools are necessary and give an idea of how much time investment to expect for doing said tasks by someone of average knowledge.\u00a0 Start the conversation that needs to happen, the one where the company starts making decisions on who will take over what, how that will happen, and when.<\/p>\n \u00a0This does a few great things for you.\u00a0 First, it covers your rear end by showing you are up front.\u00a0 Second, it lets you get everything out in the open so everyone learns and understands all the moving pieces involved; people like that and it will reflect positively on you.\u00a0 Third, in doing this you are being proactive about making a graceful handoff.\u00a0 This is something that will NOT go unnoticed by your current employer and will also enhance your image.<\/p>\n Document what you know.<\/strong> After the meeting, write everything down and email it out to everyone after the meeting.\u00a0 Following on that, spend some time thinking about each of the major points and start documenting what you know.\u00a0 What should you write down?\u00a0 Exactly what you wish you could be told or handed if you just arrived and were responsible for handling that piece.\u00a0 Don\u2019t try to write technical documentation or else you\u2019ll get bogged down in devilish details that serve nobody.\u00a0 Allow yourself some creative license.\u00a0 If it really is important to say \u201cThat server needs to be rebooted every once in a while until we replace it,\u201d then write it down.\u00a0 That 4-second sentence could save your company tons of time and money.<\/p>\n When you are finished documenting, make sure it is all in an orderly fashion.\u00a0 Form it as a report that can be handed from to the new person or persons.\u00a0 Give it to your boss in hardcopy and put a soft copy on your primary machine and the company network as well.\u00a0 Then it can be easily found.<\/p>\n Brush up what you need to.<\/strong> Through the course of having that assessment meeting and then documenting all sorts of things, you will come up with a short list of things that you basically should take care of before you leave.\u00a0 Open ends, loose strings and other things that needed addressing but didn\u2019t have the time for during the normal course of things.\u00a0 This is the time to do those things.\u00a0 You don\u2019t have to tell anyone what those things are if you are worried about looking less than fastidious, but just get them done and when someone asks what you\u2019re working on just tell them you\u2019re getting everything in shape for the next person to take over.\u00a0 That\u2019s all they need to know and they will like hearing it.<\/p>\n Leave your info and be available.<\/strong>\u00a0 Leave it with your boss and also that person you sit next to or speak with the most that you know will need to ask you questions after you\u2019re gone.\u00a0 Be sure to answer those questions, even if it costs you lunch hours at your new job and dinner time at home.\u00a0 The questions will only last for a week or two then tail off.\u00a0 If they don\u2019t, after a few weeks tell your old employer perhaps it would be better to hire a contractor (or offer your own services at a reasonable rate if your schedule will allow it).\u00a0 Either way, making yourself available during this time is critical in preserving all the good will you\u2019ve built up during your time with the old employer.\u00a0 That kind of thing can be obliterated by a few unanswered phone calls and emails after you leave even if you were an outstanding employee for five or more years before you left.<\/p>\n Transitioning from one job to another is difficult enough for people in non-technical jobs.\u00a0 As an IT professional, you hold keys to kingdoms that are critical to the company and your very reputation and job reference from them will depend on how gracefully you bow out.<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n