JOB SPECIAL...TO QUIT OR NOT TO QUIT?

TO QUIT OR NOT TO QUIT?

What is the ideal time to quit without obviously irking the bosses?

    Is twelve months the magic timeframe after which you can quit or is two years a better choice for acquiring skills that will help you find a better job? What exactly is the ideal duration for staying on in a job?
    You find them in every organisation – the ones who began their careers in a particular company and will probably continue working there until retirement. And in certain cases and industries, that may be a wise choice. But in most cases, a successful career is rarely built upon a single job. “Stay as long as you are learning, growing and contributing, but when it becomes tedious and stagnant and there’s no room for advancement, you better start looking,” advises Sameer Bhariok, director HR, Eli Lilly and Company. The ideal duration for ploughing on in the same job has changed over the years. “It used to be two to five years, but you have to be careful. On an average, four-five years is the accepted norm, depending on your
function and level. A shorter timeframe is often seen as ‘job hopping’, which employers don’t appreciate. Longer, and you might get stuck at the company. Leaving during a time of crisis, or after the company has significantly invested in a person (by way of premium quality development interventions, above average pay/benefits) leads to bitterness and burning of bridges. Also, much depends on how ambitious and how much of a go-getter and risk taker are you,” suggests Bhariok. “If a smart person is willing to devote time and focus on acquiring the skills required, on an average, it takes him/her about 18-24 months to be ready to move on to a greater role,” says Debabsis Nayak, director, Data64 Technosolutions Pvt.
    “From the perspective of both, the employee and employer, staying too long with a company means a winwin situation for both the parties. Longer association has positive implications and proves the employee is some one who is reliable,” opines Govind Rammurthy, CEO & MD, eScan Microworld. “Unless a job is grossly mismatched with a
    person’s abilities,
    there can be no positives out of staying for a
    short span in the same job. Staying too long may take the challenge out of the job and makes it less exciting and routine. In such situations, the person will simply do his/her job mechanically without giving his/her best,” remarks Nayak.
    “If you are in a company you respect and admire, you find it meaningful and satisfactory being associated with the company that compensates you fairly, then it is probably well worth to make serious efforts to address the issues and salvage that relationship via constructive win-win dialogue and open communication, before you think about throwing in the towel,” concludes Rammurthy.

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