Need Advice/Reassurance on Job Change Situation

Background: Graduated with my BS in Civil & Environmental Engineering. Worked at my father's company doing civil site design since I was 14 which made it easy to get an entry level position after college. Know all the computer programs like the back of my hand and have a good grasp on the basic field as a whole (or where I intend to lead my career). Graduated and got a job right away working for a small consulting company with on average, 8 employees.

Commute: 30 minute drive - 15 miles

The Good: I am not the low man on the totem pole (actually only a senior engineer and the Owner are above me). I have freedom to work on what I see fit and as long as I get the work done and out the door, no one bothers me. I do everything from acquiring projects and new customers/proposal creation to design and drafting to billing reviews and project closeouts. I can wear jeans and a t-shirt as long as I dress appropriately for the day's meetings. I work 8 hours a day and leave. The stress is there, but for the most part it is manageable and pretty easy to work with. I enjoy everyone I work with and it appears they enjoy having me here. The job security is pretty good here, if it slows down, I may end up being one of the last people to go due to my skills and abilities, no one else has the total package (really don't mean to toot my own horn).
The Bad: The writing is on the wall. I work at a small company and will not advance any further than where I am now, there is nothing more to do as I basically do it all. Once I get my P.E. License (hopefully will have it before the end of 2014), it will be useless to the company as the Owner stamps all the designs. The pay, while not horrid, is what I consider beneath my peers who work for other companies. This is due to the small business environment; there are no huge projects and residential/small commercial design does not demand high prices. Work is somewhat fulfilling, but still keeps me interested. Not too sure how much longer I will be satisfied with the projects I am dealt.

The Dilemma: I have had three job interviews for large nationwide companies that went very well (one offer should be in by the end of the week). The commute will increase to anywhere from 45 minutes to roughly 1.25 hours (working in Boston) depending on the location. The pay may take a slight dock at first due to being a new hire, but has the potential to almost double my current salary if I stick with it and climb the corporate ladder. I had a job offer about 1.5 years ago and turned it down after speaking with my boss; he offered a substantial pay increase and promised to work on getting the type of projects I was looking for. The salary increase helped keep me here, but the work remains the same. He may never be able to get large scale design projects due to the limited staff and company size; but he is still only in his 7th year of operation and has the potential to grow the business.

I am comfortable with where I am, but I feel like that is factoring in too much. If I fear change that much, I could easily end up spending my entire working life at a place where I am either not challenged enough to grow, or revert to "auto-pilot" and piss away the days just living for the weekends. The other issue is that I am really not bucking at the gates to get out of here, I just applied to some other companies on a whim to see what would come of it. Now the time has come to make a decision and I am looking for any sort of input from anyone who may have been in my shoes. I can't quite see the forest for the trees while being in the middle of my predicament; hopefully a set of outside eyes that are not emotionally attached to the situation can give me a little advise.

 

Well I can't answer much of your question but I do have an opinion about traveling to/ working in Boston.

I'm from Maine but have been going to college and I am a senior now (studying Mechanical Engineering) and I am currently finishing up my last co-op. I work in Lynn and drive outbound every morning from my place in the city. I've recently come to the realization that I will never live in or around Boston, or any big city for that matter again. The great majority of everyone here look miserable and probably very unhappy with their lives. The biggest reason I say that is because of the ridiculous commute. These people spend an hour sometimes 2 just driving to and from work. I'd prefer to make a comfortable wage and be close to my family over a 2-3 total commute. Depends on what you value in life and if you enjoy the city or the country! Just thought I'd share since I regret even coming to the city for my 4 years of college.

 

So you know obviously that nobody is going to tell you what to do. Having said that, I can tell you from experience a long commute can make life miserable. For 2 years I had an hour (1 way, 2 hours total per day) commute and it wasn't fun. The traffic, the gas money, the wear and tear on my car, and just the time taken up with driving all made life that much harder.

That commute was long but it wasn't nearly as bad as driving in boston. If you haven't seen the turnpike at 5pm or the 128/95/93 section you should try it before you buy it. If google maps tells you the drive will be an hour, add another hour to that during peak traffic. Example, just looked at traffic right now at 9:05 and there are long blocks of red and yellow on all the major roads into boston. Add rain or snow and things get even worse.

 

I definitely understand no one is going to tell me what to do (and hope they wouldn't). Just looking for advice from anyone who has been in a similar position and has any experience to offer.

Yeah the Boston commute would absolutely suck (Douglas to Woburn for a while when working on a job out there), but the advancement potential is almost what I am really after. Tough situation.

 

Both these guys make excellent points based on experience in Boston. Makes me think the 45 min to 1.25 hr commute will come out close to the 1.25 hr mark on average. That's 3 hrs a day in traffic. Just something to truly consider.

Your use of the phrase "forest for the trees" brings another phrase to mind, "the grass is always greener on the other side, until you get there."

It's a tough decision that only you can truly decide.

I will say this, I've reached an age where I finally realized that quality of life means a lot more than the size of the pay check.

My final thoughts ... a 7 yr old company with potential for growth, in which you are basically 3rd in line, might be worth hanging with to see where they go. And ... a bigger outfit means more managers/bosses, more managers/bosses means more BS.

Those are the thoughts of a crusty old moose man, FWIW.

 

I have to agree with him on this, especially if this company has shown steady growth over the time you have been there. If they do grow, you may end up better off than at a nationwide company. If they don't, well, you'll still have years of experience. Is it a money issue or just boredom with current projects?

 

IMO anything more than a 45 min commute to work will just become more and more drawn out each day the drive will get worse and worse.

 

Zach, I made a similar move as the one you're considering when I was 2 years out of college. I worked at a smaller, family owned company and moved to a world-wide heavyweight in my field. The pay was ok at the family owned company, I wasn't going to get rich by any means but I could cover my bills just fine. The good thing was, I knew who was calling the shots and there were other perks for working for a small company like knowing the owner of the company personally. Now, I've only ever seen the owner of the company on a training video. Hell, I haven't even met the top guy for my region! My commute is 45 minutes to an hour into Boston for now but my next project could very well be in RI, western MA or even CT, or worse, they could try to send me somewhere else in the country. The prospect of not necessarily knowing what's coming down the pipeline in the future is very stressful and it's not for everyone. The experience I gained and the projects I've been able to work on have been incredible and nothing I'd be able to get on with a smaller company. That being said, now that I have a family, the 12 to 14 hour days and the uncertainty is getting old. I've actually been seriously considering going the other way and going back to a smaller company.

 

Depends on how old you are. If you're in your twenties or early thirties, I'd say go for it. I'm in almost the exact same position you are, save for the field, word for word...but I'm almost 50.

Trying to get another job in my field at fifty would be pretty near suicidal (network/IT security guy). I'm kinda stuck. It's not a good feeling.

No matter how you decide it, good luck.

ETA: oh yeah, first five years of this job was a 45 minute commute in the morning, 1:30 minimum at night. Never again.

 

Definitely appreciate all the advice I was given and in a recent turn of events, it may be time to set on my dream path of owning my own company. An opportunity presented itself and by the end of the week I could very well be putting in my two weeks and becoming my own boss.

 

Best of luck whatever direction you go.

 

Well...that's not always a bad choice either.

 

...there's both good and bad to working at small companies, and working at large companies... no need to go in depth, but large companies may get larger projects, bigger budgets, etc, ...but you're still just "a number", ...and you have to put up w a lot of BS, political correctness, etc... smaller companies a little more laid back in my experience...

...remember to consider the whole package, ...salary isn't everything, ...consider all the benefits, ...

...also, i'd recommend that you consider whether you're learning at your current job... if you're learning new skills, and enjoying your work, then that's a pretty good deal in and of itself IMO ...learning and developing is very important when you're starting out because it gives you more self-confidence and resume fodder which is good to have on hand for the future, should you decide to go somewhere else...