When you should start to think to leave the ship ?

Simple question actually : When you should start to think to leave the ship ?

We are now talking about a corporate world as a ship, where we sail everyday to get us all closer to the promised land somewhere. And as the days gone by, not even a bird seen to mark that we are getting closer to any rock island in the ocean. Not any. Thus all are getting tense in frustration and start to seek a nose to point to. While we have been gifted by the voice then we all start to join the shouting contest where the loudest wins, not the most logical one. Then it is the time we need to pose a question, not to anybody around but more important to us : Would it be the right time for us to leave the ship ?

Actually there are some big clear signs that may trigger you to a damned conclusion that the ship is sunk or goes nowhere so you need to to think to jump to elsewhere. I think Mr Hanks has given us the clear clue that a non inhabitant island is not always bad place to stay, right ? Here are the signs.

1. Company starts to do bad hirings. Seems like nothing goes wrong, but get your hawkeyes on. Some of new hirings are (so much) well paid for (so less) non credible work or simple job description. This is the sign that your company (or its management) starts to be desperate on something and try to rely so much their survival hopes on the rope offered by some big mouthed cute professionals. If it i s too good to be true then it is too good to be true, a proverb says.

2. Company goes nowhere in the Top Rank List.  Every year, in every country, for every industry, there will always be a top rank list. Legal or illegal your business is, people loves ranks and lists. Once or twice missing the top rank is still OK, but when it gets worse from time to time you need to check and balance : is the ranking system is incorrect, or is your company thrown out of competition ? I may prefer the second one, and put it in my personal list as reason to jump out.

3. There is a confusion when we read and review the financial report. My wife is an auditor, one lesson she always remind me is : these figures should be presented in a very easy to read way so even the dumbest one knows if the company makes money or lose  money. Then you see that your company annual financial report is too complicated to read and to be understood. Then you realize that there are so much non clarities in the information it carries. Worse, that you find that the monthly report is disappear or not anymore issued in a regular basis. You really need to start to find a life vest and ready to jump now.

4. Employee turn over goes higher while employee loyalty goes longer.  A greek philosopher once said that contradiction is one of the best picture of a mismanagement. It is correct actually. When you find new faces come and go, in a short period of time, while some others in the corner would stay calmly even get the roles reduced or got themselves must take over a "dirty job", it is a sign that there is something wrong, so very wrong, happening in your company. Those new faces are taking benefit of enriched CV as they have one more bullet in it. And those long stayers in the corner are simply waiting for a golden shake hands benefit.

5. Your spouse or your kids don't know what is your job and what industry your company is. They may only able to say that you work for a company X without even being able to explain in what department you are now in, or specifically what job you perform. Sometimes they may even know better who your colleagues are or who your boss is. Be careful.. it is a clear sign of non clarity. Sick companies usually change their structure frequently, so you don't have time anymore to explain those changes (even it is not necessary but normally you will do if you are content with your work environment). So start telling them or start to jump.

6. You are getting afraid to exchange business card in convention. You are the best mirror to see your face. If you start to be a bit shaky or nervous when come to a convention, or you start to feel uncomfortable to exchange your card, or becoming nervy to face a question of "in what company you are now with Sir ?", then you are in problem. Not in you actually, but you live and work in a troubled company. The insecurity feelings haunted you and eat  your confidence. Can you remember the old times when you work to a reputable company and you feel so impatient to exchange your business card to everyone you meet ?

7. Some common confidential things become employee breakfast's company. The rubbish should go to trash bin, the meals should stay in the dishes. But now it is very different. The confidential (or even the scandalous items) are becoming the common knowledge and accompanying the employee breakfast time. Oh great.. have coffee in the morning with colleagues talking on change of leadership or stock fall that officially confirmed in the lunch time ? It is sign of sunken ship.

8. Company money goes nowhere but seems your annual bonuses go nowhere too. From time to time so many loss booked to your company's financial report. Its money goes nowhere. But it is not alone, your annual bonuses also go nowhere, sometimes along with your annual rise. It is quite mathematical and easy to explain. It stops making money, it starts losing money, it starts wiping bonuses, and it stops thinking on rise. All are meaning the same : we are in survival mode. An accountant friend of mine tipped me one thing : if the company still creates money but not from the core business(es), means it is now already in survival mode and already use all the potentials left to pursue the survival game. For you and other employee it signs the same actually : jump !

9. There is arising sign of bad business or even more a legal case of its business.  What were easy to pick few years ago becoming drain and difficult now. What are profitable yesterday becoming great loss today. What were attracting people now becoming rushing people away. It is difficult times, everybody know. But then your radar should beep louder once those all arrive with a company : legal case. It may be an unsettled client complaint, an unpaid invoice by suppliers, or a legal sue due to a wrong procedure or a reckless business practice. It is a clear sign that compliance is not anymore people's focus. It is a clear sign of another focus arise : surviving the trouble. But sorry, each business has its own rule, and so far we know, compliance would always come as #1 priority. Again, Jump !

10. Some high profilers are going for a stagnant or downgraded role elsewhere. Take a look at the point #1 and #4. Those are correlated to this point. Bad hirings, traffic of new faces. They all then go to the stagnant role or even downgraded somewhere else in the short period of time. What happens ? So Simple my friend, they all are trying to save their career of putting a bad company into their CV and get the bad mark within the industry. Please consider this carefully, once you found those are the high profilers in the industry, and get caught in the loom of downgrading elsewhere, what about the peanut low grader staffs ?

@katjoengkampret |katjoengkampret@aol.com