What Would Keep You?
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In wrapping up a mostly career focused week in the editorials, I decided to solicit some feedback from all of you on your jobs. So my question is:
What one thing would make you keep your job?
If you could choose one perk, one benefit, one single thing to make you keep your job, what would it be? Let's assume you have some other job offer that you could take, what would keep you around?
I have to think back a bit to a previous job because I'm never leaving this one if I can avoid it
When I was working at Peoplesoft, my last real job, I didn't enjoy it that much. Flying to CA every month for a week, dealing with management, on the phone 6 or so hours a day with people in other offices, being a part of management, the whole thing was tough. At the same time I had a fantastic team working for me and I enjoyed working with them. It was other groups that got to me more, so I was looking for other offers.
I was also well paid and we had good medical benefits. My schedule was fairly flexible, with me coming and going. I can't tell you how many times I took a conference call driving home, sitting in front of my kid's school, or even in the gym parking lot, so I had a lot of freedom.
The perk I'd most have appreciated would have been the 7 weeks of vacation I saw offered in a job a recruiter called me about. It was at a large software company who shall remain nameless, but suffice it to say they build a product that I write about often
I've never had more than 3 weeks and even that was including sick time. I'm at a place in my career where more vacation, more time really, is more important than more money. A large bonus would be nice, but isn't as important. A car would be cool, but I have a car, so I'm not sure it really would help. Instead a bump up in vacation time, allowing me to take lots of 3 and 4 day weekends, would be something I really covet.
What about you? Free day care? Lunches provided gratis? A computer lab at home? What would be your perk?
Steve Jones
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Excellent health care (including vision, dental and "alternative")benefits
Access to education / training (including fees paid and paid time)
Flexible schedule
And definitely, more time off.
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Lots of money, complete creative control, a personal assistant to pick up my dry cleaning, a bowl of M&M's in my dressing room (all red ones taken out), and a stunt double.
OK, we can get rid of the M&M's.
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The opportunity to develop and be creative.
Money is just something you use to make the boring bits in-between work more interesting. Forget food, the coffee is free, you can live on that, I have done so for the past 20 years and it hasn't done me any hahahahahahahaharm.
David
If it ain't broke, don't fix it...
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Only three weeks? Is that normal in the U.S, I thought it was the land of freedom! Most jobs in the UK are 4-5 weeks holiday.
I'm financially motivated so I guess cash, cash and more cash.
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My job is fairly dull a lot of the time with bouts of overwork and panic, and not particularly well paid. But, I get to work from home almost everyday, which easily compensates. I do not want to ever go back to working in an office!
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Being proud will make me stay. Being proud of what my colleges and I has done and are doing, the working environment, the company. To be able to take anybody to show them what we have done, anytime. Anybody got a place like that? I want to work there.
5ilverFox
Consulting DBA / Developer
South Africa -
Working a three mile cycle-ride across a country park from home!
There is no problem so great that it can not be solved by caffeine and chocolate. -
Time off; 4 or 5 weeks of vacation would have more impact than salary or other perks. There are still other important aspects to a job, respect, freedom and interesting work are necessary. But life outside of work, time with the family, time to develop other areas of my life, time to do things that I remember as 'true living' is most important.
Steve, someday I would like to meet you, it seems like we share a common perspective on life.
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I agree with you Steve - a flexible work schedule, including working from home, along with more vacation would be great.
:{> Andy
Andy Leonard, Chief Data Engineer, Enterprise Data & Analytics
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I am a software business owner and usually only get 5 days a year off. I have been considering selling my business and becoming a greeter at Walmart. The thing that would keep me from doing this would be 1 or 2 reliable employees.
Bruce
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Hear! Hear!
I have a home-office as well & here's what I save on:
1) Time
2) Gas
3) Auto maintenance
4) Laundry
5) I can take time away for medical appmts., house settlements et al and make up for lost time the rest of the pay-period so I manage to save all my vacation time - (& I really do hoard them like a miser..
)I've long been touting the benefits of teleworking and I wouldn't trade it for anything else...it gives me enough of both luxuries that seem to be a common goal - TIME AND MONEY
Really really wish more companies would wake up to this and implement some "forward thinking"!!!
**ASCII stupid question, get a stupid ANSI !!!** -
I would agree with additional vacation time.
Two weeks isn't a lot and sick time shows up on your reviews around here.
Regards,
Scott
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My 2 cents...
I like toys and fun stuff! So, if a company wanted me to be really interested in staying for their benny's it would include a generous budget that had to be used for toys.
Oh, you say, just give me a big bonus and I'll buy my own toys, or stocks, or furniture, or a new lawn mower, or braces for Sissy, or a vacation with my wife, or money to help with my aging parents...
Do you see where this is going? As we get older, and we take on family and children, and our spouse has a family with needs as well. We can do one of two things, spend every extra dime on ourselves or give to those we love and for which we feel responsible.
And for most of you... You take care of your families as you should.
But, what if your new job offer included, pick a number 10K, 20K, or even 30K per year, which you had to spend on fun stuff. Sure your family might get some benefits from the perk but I watch many successful individuals carefully living life and gathering funds to only die young or shortly after retirement.
I suggest an employee FSA (not Federal Spending Account, but Fun Spending Account) that would have a committee to approve or reject where the money would be spent. A set of guidelines would exist that could be easily interpreted by them and the exceptional fun stuff you requested would have to be voted upon or you couldn't have the money. Oh, and you would have to provide proof that the money was spent on the requested "fun" item. (This is to keep all the Scrooges out there from turning this into another investment account!)
And finally, like the Federal Spending Account, use it each year or lose it!
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It's the company I work for...
I work at a non-profit that provides services for people with disabilities and one of the perks is seeing our clients every day and the impact our work has on their quality of life. Even IT work occassionally does something useful, whether it's installing some speech software or just saying hello, it all helps.
I could make more $$$ working for a for-profit, but why would I want to?
Our company values employee retention and works hard to keep us. Can't say that about too many places.
Plus it's only a 9 mile bicycle ride from my house!
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