Are you frustrated with your job/career? ARGH!!

[Uwila]

I just need a big old whinge!

I am so fed up with my job. I just feel like I work work work and the career progression / salary rises aren't happening. I'm fed up and contemplating looking fro a new job.

So, come on. Misery loves company. Anyone else feel the same way? Do you hate your job? Is your boss neglecting your career progression needs?

I work in the oil and gas industry (moslt we build offshore platforms). I used to be a mechanical engineer. But jumped ship about 7 years ago for IT. I think if I left the company I'd like to do Project Management. Anyone elses work in this business? What credentials do you need. I don't really have any technical IT skills. Will this be an obstacle?

thank you it is great things have worked out for you so well

expat - I'm doing a first year law course with the OU and its really good and fits in brilliantly round my life (ie I can do it on my commute into/out of work plus some evenings). If you don't have plans already be worth looking at but not sure they do Scots law.

Yes, we are in Sunbury. The uni comment was for when I have to pay for my kids to go. I thinkI'm through with uni. My kids have dual citizenship. I am just a permanent resident. Although I am considering dual citizenship for myself.

I've just met with my project boss who has picked up on my unhappiness. I'm slightly happier than I was, but still think it's worth having a look.... and so I shall.

Pupuce, thanks for kind words, but a switch to being a doula is definitely not in my future!

Aha. Yes, that makes sense re the Uni.

What's the benefit of Dual Citizenship instead of PR?

Good luck with checking out other options. I hope you either get some more job satisfaction in your current role or find something else that makes you happy.

I can't quite see you as a doula either
I was just sharing how you can go from business to self-employed and be happier and successful... not to fear it!

Benefits of UK citizenship:
1-I can vote.
2-If I leave the country for 2 years I don't have to reapply for residency.
3-I can live anywhere in the EU.

I had an 'I am fed up with my job' thread last week.

I work as a business analyst/small project manager in IT for a bank.

I work 60% now so don't expect to make big leaps in my career at the moment (like blueshoes my focus may be somewhere else for a year or two!), but my working day could be more enjoyable :(, for example someone could acknowledge that I am here and they could treat me the same way as they did before I had a baby instead of patronising me! Moan over!

To do PM in IT you need to have a basic understanding of IT but it would depend what kind of projects. The bigger the project the higher the level of technical knowledge you need. I would guess with what you have done you should be able to move into project management. I work on small projects so most of the work is business analysis, less PM.

I have a degree in Psychology, no formal IT qualifications and no project management qualifications. There is no expectations here of doing Prince, but I work for a big company (in Switzerland) that have their own PM methods and training courses. A consultancy could be a good way to get some experience.

Oh, just read your post about the training, sounds as if you are being actively discriminated against. Definitely time for a move.

Uwila sorry you are having a crap time at work

Lots of PM jobs don't need Prince2 or will pay for you to take it. Just have a nose on Monster or computer weekly job site.

Do you have PM experience?

I've never had the job title of project manager. But, I have led in house development where I was the engineering representative overseeing the in house development by the IT department.

UPDATE: My boss has just agreed the training I wanted this year. As you may have guessed, it is Prince 2. We have a Annual Review system. You fill in your targets for the year, and managers have to agree it. This is what prompted all of this. He didn't agree it yesterday, and I had a fit. But, suddenly I've just recieve the automatic e-mail telling me he has agreed my targets. So, it looks like I got what I wanted in the end.

Yes, I plan to update my CV and have a nose around Monster this weekend.

maybe he is a mumsnetter and saw this seems rather an odd coincidence....

It is an odd coincidence. I had revealed this very unhappy event to my project lead (who also works for my corporate boss) and she offered to speak to him. And I said I'd rather she didn't. But, an hour later he approved it. So I'm wondering if she said something??? Can't ask her as she is now en route to Milan.

I think I'd die if he was a mumsnetter.

Actually, I think I'd be fired.

PMSL!!!

Glad things have taken a turn for the better - sorry I didn't see this thread earlier otherwise I would have posted.

You know my history Uwila - anyway if you are putting any "feelers" out, did you know BP is based in Sunbury (you could walk to work!!). I used to contract for them and it was a brilliant company environment. In fact I got offered a permanent position for the consultancy firm that BP use so could pass this (American) company details onto you.

Also, I always use www.jobserve.co.uk and I know a lot of the Oil companies, or Agencies that recuit for them, use it as well (that's where I got the BP contract from).

Hmmm... jobserve, I'll try that too. And sure, pass along any old company name I might be interested in.

I am much happier now that Prince 2 has been agreed. But, after yesterday, I will believe it when I'm sitting in the Price 2 course. It may, however, be better to getPrince 2 under my belt before I seriously job hunt. Anyway, this weekend's task is to update CV and post on monster and jobserve.

I do prefer to stick with the oil industry, though I'm not sure why. Maybe it's the familiarity... and maybe that is a false sense of security. Oh well, I'm open to anything that increases my income.

Just sent you a mail to your personal mailbox Uwila. "Any old company" - cheek I only work for the best!!

That's great about the Prince 2 training. It will look great on your CV if you are job hunting.

Does your company have any rules about leaving within x months of training courses though?

I was fed up at work, loved some aspects, but crap management - so took a sabbatical. doing a masters and loving it. I am a bit concerned that I have got too used to being my own boss (somewhat ironic given that crap management was one of my gripes).

I just need to say AAARRRGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

We are at it again. Said lovely boss had promised me a promotion almost two years ago. I've been harrassing him for ages to get it through HR. Finally came through -- at one grade lower then what we agreed. He said he'd change. But, today he said he won't change it until later this year.

Well.... enough. The promotion he gave me is actually a pay grade lower (though there is some overlap so my pay hasn't actually gone down any) but it's still lower grade on paper.

Anyway, that's it, I've decided to put forth a serious effort to look elsewhere.

So, can I ask, does anyone have Prince2 Practioner. If so, has it helped your career? What do you do?

Uwila

I have just caught up with this thread. I used to be a PM in IT. An alternative to Oil is Banking - similar sized organisations, culture and reward, large requirements for IT, and they tend to like formal qualifications. There are specialised jobsites like Efinancialcareers or careers.hereisthecity.com/, but searching for PRINCE on Jobserve returns 63 pages of jobs!

I have worked in IT Training and at the moment Prince II is one of the fasting growing areas of delivery - which would imply its in demand......

Thanks for the replies Clerkkent and Blackduck. Hadn't thought of banking... but that might be an interesting idea.

As for Prince II, this is what I have decided. I can't really afford a hopping £1500 or so for the course. So, I'm going to self study and take the foundation test. I think this part of the test is quite easy and self study should be okay. Then, I'm going to go back to my boss in August and see if he'll pay for the practitioner part. Yesterday, he said he'd revisit the budget in August. But, whether he pays for it or not, I think I need this qualification to move on.

He also said yesterday that I could have the promotion being disputed in September. I'll believe it when I see it.

Thank you for listening to me moan. If anyone has any experience or advice to share, by all means please do so.

Clerkent, mind if I ask what you do now?

(I only look at MN during lunch at work and quiet periods in the rest of the day, so I am slow to reply - dw/dd/ds hog the computer at home).

I now work in HR for an asset management company, specifically HR information systems, and I am running a project to select and implement a new HR system. I looked at PRINCE and PMBOK during a year out of work.