[charanreddy]

Referral from a college mate.

I am in my 2nd Job and have an overall experience of 16.5 Yrs. My first job was from campus and I stayed in that company for about 6.5 Yrs. Subsequently I got double crossed by a manager (promised me an outcome and at the last moment said policy changed ! ) and decided to pursue outside opportunities. Was referred by my under grad college mate for my 2nd / current job. The process took 11 overall interviews including 5 in one day with a bunch of people from 1 level below the position I was interviewing for to 2 levels above. Then I has to undergo 6 interviews from US folks who were 3 levels above via phone / skype (zoom wasnt a thing back then). Overall process took close to 6 months. I am still with the same company but have moved 3 levels up and done overall 5 different roles in the last 10 yrs..

[wheelspinner]

For whatever reason, referrals are a much easier path to getting a job both in terms of getting noticed as well as the overall interview process. I got multiple offers in a shorter period than LinkedIn. My last job was through LinkedIn. For LinkedIn, make sure to fill up your resume with the exact job keywords. Recruiters parse your resumes with their ATS systems to find out the best match. The best way is to write ATS friendly resumes when applying through job sites. Just be honest about your skills in the interview.

Currently, the challenge is recruiters get 1000 applications for one role. The quickest way to get to the top is a strong referral by an employee at the company.

[am1m]

Originally Posted by M_Poweredd_

To all the active members here, how did you land your current job?

Current job was through a referral, from a former colleague who I had last worked with more than 10 years ago! (So now we're colleagues again.)

Other jobs have been a mix- some referrals, some through job portals like LinkedIn. But as I get more experience, finding that referrals work better. When you're in the 'hot' IT job bracket (5-7 years experience), I think it doesn't matter, recruiters will chase you.

So (and I've posted this before), be nice to your teammates, you never know when they will come to help. And vice-versa, of course. Go that extra mile to help people get jobs in your company too.

[DigitalOne]

Google lays off hundreds in hardware, voice assistant teams

Alphabet Inc.’s Google is laying off hundreds of staff working on its digital assistant, hardware and engineering teams, the company said as it continues its drive to cut costs.

Among the affected workers are those working on the voice-based Google Assistant and at the augmented reality hardware team. Workers in the company’s central engineering organization were also hit by the cuts, the company said.

Source: Moneycontrol

[RollinWheels]

I am still with the first company I joined after College. Since I was abroad after 5 years in India, I never bothered to switch however now that I am back, I am searching for other opportunities. My current job is stable but being 16 years experienced, I have the fear that I will find it really hard to find another job with said experience level.

[am1m]

A friend of mine is going to be laid off next month from a major IT company and is looking for a job. He mentioned that he's interviewing with another major firm and also communicated to the HR folk there that he's ok with a pay reduction.

Was wondering what experiences people might have had with voluntary pay reductions? I've taken one myself, when I was desperate to leave a job with an awful commute. It was more than worth it- my quality of life improved dramatically, and in less than 2 years I was back at the same pay range with a couple of hikes. (Even if I wasn't I would be ok, the commute was truly affecting my mental and physical health.)

But from my experience with that, I've seen that most recruiters won't even register your willingness to take a pay cut, or they won't believe you. I guess they assume that something must be wrong with you, or that you are taking this job out of desperation and will jump soon for more money.

Also, most colleagues and family members will think you are simply nuts. But I think one would rather be employed and continue to draw a steady income, rather than wait it out for more money. I think that with things in IT shaping up the way they are, involuntary career breaks, gig roles and such things are going to become more common, so will differing pay scales at different points.

Has anyone else had any experience with this sort of thing? Say a pay reduction to switch job functions or to join a smaller company that is doing the kind of work one wants to do? (I'm not referring to entrepreneurs who quit jobs to startup, or those who leave corporate jobs to work in an NGO or something like that.) Thanks in advance for any information/discussion!

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by am1m

Was wondering what experiences people might have had with voluntary pay reductions? I've taken one myself, when I was desperate to leave a job with an awful commute.
...
But from my experience with that, I've seen that most recruiters won't even register your willingness to take a pay cut, or they won't believe you. I guess they assume that something must be wrong with you, or that you are taking this job out of desperation and will jump soon for more money.

Very valid. Experiencing this myself - I have tried to leverage via the referral method to apply for another firm for a role that is better aligned with my end goals, with a possibility of no increment (or a pay cut if the situation demands it) but the process doesn't even go ahead; the referrer has got a email response saying the candidature is rejected and on further digging by him, the only point HR is able to state is that the issue is due to the pay scale and the conversation ends there. The HR is not even ready to discuss what other avenues could be pursued.

How did you get around that conversation in your case (if you don't mind sharing)?


Edit: Remembering about another experience 4+ years ago, I had applied through a friend (referrer) for a role in an NGO firm. It was very clear that there would be a significant pay cut and I had made my acceptance of the same via the referrer. I went through 2 rounds of interviews and finally was told that they liked my profile but would not be able to match my salary expectations and didn't even check with me on what they would/could offer. It was a rejection based on assumptions driven from the firm I was coming from (Big4 consulting firm).

[V.Narayan]

Originally Posted by am1m

A friend of mine is going to be laid off next month from a major IT company and is looking for a job. He mentioned that he's interviewing with another major firm and also communicated to the HR folk there that he's ok with a pay reduction.

Was wondering what experiences people might have had with voluntary pay reductions?

This is a tough one. I'm sure many members from the IT industry will have valuable inputs on this. My two paisa worth as an erstwhile recruiter/employer ....

.....an employer views the candidate with suspicion especially given India's culture of job hopping. The candidate would be viewed as someone who will use the job as a parking spot while he continues to search for his next jump. Sadly, in India employers face this too often to trust.

My best wishes to your friend for his search.

[am1m]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

The HR is not even ready to discuss what other avenues could be pursued.

How did you get around that conversation in your case (if you don't mind sharing)?

I didn't in the majority of cases. Most recruiters didn't take it forward even though I up-front specified I was agreeable to a pay cut. Finally, one did, possibly because it was a small company and possibly because they didn't have junior recruiters, I got to speak directly with a senior HR person. She was willing to listen and I guess I was sincere enough when stating my reasons.

But I would say it is very, very rare to get someone senior enough to listen straight off. Most junior recruiters will 'filter' the resume based on the "current/expected CTC question". Keep trying and be clear in your mind about why you want the change and why it's worth it to you. That will help you articulate it better when you finally find a company that can listen.

Out-of-the-box idea: Just coming off a career break (either voluntary or because of a layoff), you'll have a better chance of being believed. After all, you don't have a "current CTC". I've been in that position as well. Had taken a year off a long time ago to travel. Coming back I saw that recruiters were more willing to take things forward irrespective of the previous salary. And because "can join immediately" is very attractive!

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

The candidate would be viewed as someone who will use the job as a parking spot while he continues to search for his next jump.

Spot-on, sir. This is exactly what a couple of HR folk I know also told me. (One of them also told me I was a fool and this would be a 'career-killer'.) To be fair, most candidates jump for x hike and nothing more. IMHO recruitment at the junior screening levels is very broken in most IT orgs. I think that sort of mechanical screening is costing companies a lot in the long run. And I think attitudes might change, as these things become more common, but slowly.

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by am1m

IMHO recruitment at the junior screening levels is very broken in most IT orgs. I think that sort of mechanical screening is costing companies a lot in the long run. And I think attitudes might change, as these things become more common, but slowly.

This becomes a huge problem once the candidate crosses into the 40s and worse, into the 50s. Having seen friends in their 50s struggle for jobs, it is really depressing how HR can cut short your career by using these filters. Unless you can directly reach the people on top, people who can override the HR "concerns", you have no chance of success.

The WITCH companies are nothing but IT enabled Human Resource companies, it is a misnomer to call them IT companies. If you want to avoid HR screening, look at smaller companies (say <1000) where they will value your experience and not apply HR filters.

[Small Bot]

Originally Posted by am1m

Has anyone else had any experience with this sort of thing? Say a pay reduction to switch job functions or to join a smaller company that is doing the kind of work one wants to do? (I'm not referring to entrepreneurs who quit jobs to startup, or those who leave corporate jobs to work in an NGO or something like that.) Thanks in advance for any information/discussion!

My wife accepted a pay cut and decided to move to Chennai from Mumbai recently. It was something she took voluntarily to move away from her current role (very stressful, it was visibly wearing her down), to move away from manufacturing and into financial services, and to move to Chennai where I'm currently working.

We're in our early years of marriage yet, and while we did make a long-distance marriage work for quite a while, we decided it was better if we worked from the same city.

It was a conscious decision she took, and which she explained in detail to her future boss (who is also her B-school alumni, and had worked with me several years ago, hehe). So she made sure that she would not be perceived incorrectly by her future boss or by her team members when she took a pay cut. It also helps that both of us are HR Professionals, so we kind of know what to say and which buttons to push when.

That said, it is a difficult decision and it has not been easy on us. And while my wife has my full support on this (I know she'll rebound to her original pay in a couple of years, she's more than capable enough), we just stopped responding to people who keep questioning the sanity of her taking a pay cut at this stage of her career.

At times, you can't really put a price on peace of mind.

[anandtheleo]

Originally Posted by am1m

Was wondering what experiences people might have had with voluntary pay reductions?

Has anyone else had any experience with this sort of thing? Say a pay reduction to switch job functions or to join a smaller company that is doing the kind of work one wants to do? (I'm not referring to entrepreneurs who quit jobs to startup, or those who leave corporate jobs to work in an NGO or something like that.) Thanks in advance for any information/discussion!

About 10 years back I got laid off and was tapping my network to land a job. I was able to get a contact of a very senior person in an organisation via the network who had a role similar to what I was doing. The org was not a great paymaster and when I cleared the functional interview and went for the HR interview, I was point blank told that I can't be hired as the pay gap will be huge and I will not have the motivation when I see the reduced paycheck month on month which will eventually lead me to seek better opportunities soon after.

I eventually landed a job in another organisation with a referral. I was again transparent in my communication to them about my lay off and to my complete surprise they offered me the job and that too with more than handsome raise (I would not have asked that if I had my job in hand).

I remember both of these HR interactions very vividly for entirely different reasons and feelings!

[JediKnight]

Originally Posted by am1m

A friend of mine is going to be laid off next month from a major IT company and is looking for a job. He mentioned that he's interviewing with another major firm and also communicated to the HR folk there that he's ok with a pay reduction.

If your friend is in 40+ male and in a captive R&D unit of a US product MNC, this could be potentially career ending at the moment at least. Senior people who are OK with a pay cut are viewed with extreme suspicion.

Originally Posted by am1m

Also, most colleagues and family members will think you are simply nuts.

How would they know? In private companies it is very difficult to tell who is earning what from the titles at least. A "managing director" may be earning way less than a "senior engineer" in another organization. I know a person who goes with the title "CEO", has no income, and her only employee is the cleaning lady. Never a good idea to reveal how much you are making to anyone apart from maybe the Government/Spouse.

[ajmat]

Originally Posted by am1m

A friend of mine is going to be laid off next month from a major IT company and is looking for a job. He mentioned that he's interviewing with another major firm and also communicated to the HR folk there that he's ok with a pay reduction.

I took a pay cut after I joined a start-up company at 50+ years. It was more a case of what the company could afford. This was offset but the fact that there were tax saving opportunities (previous org got rid of all that) and that the pay hikes would be in double digits and also a large variable component.

I did not and still do not feel shortchanged.

[NetfreakBombay]

Originally Posted by am1m

A friend of mine is going to be laid off next month from a major IT company and is looking for a job. He mentioned that he's interviewing with another major firm and also communicated to the HR folk there that he's ok with a pay reduction.

This is an unfortunate reality in Captive units of product companies these days. Usually this is a very small world within a domain (Say Google/FB/MS or Intel/Qualcomm), Management will informally reach out to find out facts. Specially if the team had to wait for layoff to manage out that person or did they have to choose someone.

In later cases, process was quite smooth and things like down-level from L5 to L4 are not a concern.