This is the only real job I’ve ever held since graduating from college. I’ve never held a permanent position. Do I even have a chance in the current job market if I were to be let go?
9 replies (most recent on top)
You don't give much perspective on your situation. How long have you been out of college? Is it is only a few years or decades? What experience do you have? If you are going about your job search with that same vagueness you will struggle. It sounds like you are a CW if you say you have never had a permanent position. It will likely depend on your experience and career stage to determine your prospects.
@18r Oil and gas related companies lay off quite a bit. I suspect that a glut of crude oil next year will trigger another round of layoffs. On the bright side, some oil and gas companies do pay quite well. My friend has a son who worked his way up the corporate ladder at Schlumberger. During the pandemic, his high salary and age made him a target for layoff. He hasn’t worked steadily for a couple years now.
Agree with posters on the relevance of the HP brand on your resume..with one caveat
A friend (and former colleague) just got a job in the Oil and Gas Industry..They were impressed with HP on their resume.
So maybe don't limit yourself to pure tech companies.
And another friend (IT Manager) got a job working for a major commercial construction company. Be willing to stretch..you never know!
The answer - NO.
I see some good advice on this thread. Yes, it’s a long game. I started in the factory at Compaq, went to college at night, and finally made it to the server hardware team. I worked on desktops, laptops, and servers. My advice is to get as much experience as you can but I wouldn’t stay longer than five years. I stayed way too long and I was extremely underpaid when I left HPE. Since leaving in 2020, I have doubled my HPE salary and worked on so many different things. Just remember, computers are commodity items so there’s always a bean counter trying to offshore or eliminate your job.
@ag I couldn’t agree more with your comment. Likewise, I struggle with interviews and have realised how many skills and how much knowledge I’m still missing, especially after being laid off a few months ago.
And btw no cares about HP on CV nobody, HP it's all that!!!
ALWAYS find ways to build your technical skills if you are an engineer. Look for opportunities, asked to be mentored. Its the long game but it pays off.
Typo sorry…
a difficult time*
A lot of outsiders who have never been in big tech like HP will be impressed if you put HP on your resume. However, hopefully you’ve gained meaningful skills. HP was my first engineering job out of college. I was there for about 5 years before I got laid off. I got a lot of interviews afterwards but I had difficulty time with interviews. I then realized that HP never really built my technical skills. These smaller companies were far more technical.
Just my warning to you. If you feel like you’re doing more PowerPoints than real work, that’s probably an indicator that you sure really start building your skills.