IT/Software career thread: Invert binary trees for dollars.

I've got an interesting dilemma.

My old company called me to offer a 6 month contract position with guaranteed full time employment after the contract expiration. They need to contract the first 6 months because of reasons. I trust this to be true because my old boss and I had a very good relationship and he is a straight shooter. They are offering $100/hr for the contract, better benefits (somehow, I can't believe it but they are offering 42 days of PTO vs my current 39), and a guaranteed salary that would at least match my current salary (would be written into the contract such that if they extend me to full time those would be the terms) but here are the issues:

1) I wouldn't have insurance again until September and I've been having some health issues lately that I don't know how much I can put off or what it will cost me. I have already hit my deductible for the year on my current health plan
2) Quitting would disqualify me from continuing current benefits through COBRA
3) Commute is an extra 35 minutes each way, but they've said I should be able to work from home at least 2 days a week. Not guaranteed however
4) I completely trust my old boss but the CIO is a lying sack of shit and there is a possibility he could change his mind about the need for the technology platform I specialize in, thus eliminating my position
5) I have a comfy deal right now. I work maybe 30-35 hours a week, good benefits, plenty of PTO, great salary
6) There are good career advancement opportunities at each place and I can't decide which would be more fruitful long term
7) I hate leaving people high and dry and my current employer needs me. We are doing a system wide software upgrade and 2 big projects and I am the only one here who knows anything about what I do. I am upgrading my software platform solo. I don't like burning professional bridges, I like to try to leave on good terms, such as with my old employer, so they or people that I used to work with can be used for networking in the future.
8) The CIO of my current company is an ex pharmacist who knows nothing about technology and my current boss is completely apathetic so we work on a lot of really dumb things and I get stuck in a lot of terrible meetings thinking about how the CIO got his job. He's clueless and makes everything harder on us developers here by massively wasting time and resources.
9) The process and development team are much better at my old job vs current job but the executives are awful human beings who treat their CT offices and employees as an enemy rather than part of the same company

I usually don't have a hard time with these kinds of decisions but this one is a tough one

Deathwing_sl said:

You should talk to both and see if either is amenable to an open employment.

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Damnit DW!

That indeed is a dilemma. The contract would have me worried. COBRA wouldn't. Not sure where you are but Obamacare out of pocket can sometimes be cheaper, depending on the plan. I just don't like contracts. Like you said, there's no guarantee.

I wish you luck in making your decision. If you talk to people in the real world then try to make sure it doesn't have much of a chance of making it back to your current employer.

I'd like to make $100/hr

moontayle_sl said:

That indeed is a dilemma. The contract would have me worried. COBRA wouldn't. Not sure where you are but Obamacare out of pocket can sometimes be cheaper, depending on the plan. I just don't like contracts. Like you said, there's no guarantee.

I wish you luck in making your decision. If you talk to people in the real world then try to make sure it doesn't have much of a chance of making it back to your current employer.

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The COBRA is a dilemma because I am on a high deductible health plan which I have already hit the deductible on. Therefore I have no more out of pocket expenses on healthcare for the remainder of my time on this health plan for this year. If I was COBRA eligible I could continue with my current plan through end of year. If I switch to Obamacare I would have to hit another deductible or go with a traditional plan with much higher premiums. It's quite a bit of money.

Tuco_sl said:

Seems like a good problem to have. My recommendation: Judge which position will help you get a better job in 6 months with the technology you want to work with.

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Same exact technology in slightly different scenarios. One is mostly HL7 which is great for career advancement. Other is EDI and healthcare claims type stuff, which is equally great for career advancement.

Khane_sl said:

The COBRA is a dilemma because I am on a high deductible health plan which I have already hit the deductible on. Therefore I have no more out of pocket expenses on healthcare for the remainder of my time on this health plan for this year. If I was COBRA eligible I could continue with my current plan through end of year. If I switch to Obamacare I would have to hit another deductible or go with a traditional plan with much higher premiums. It's quite a bit of money.

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In that case it really does come down to something like what Tuco suggests. And yeah, I'd love to make $4k a week.

lendarios_sl said:

Since is a contract it comes down to around $80 after taxes, still a NICE chunk.
You work on Biztalk, you dont need to be there in person if they trust you. Talk to your old boss and tell him that you like where u are, but you are open to work as a contractor, around 20 hours a week remotely but a lower rate maybe $60. If they can work with that, then you have 2 jobs for a while, but you will be swimming in money.

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That was the first thing I suggested. They need a full timer during normal business hours so it was a no go

I know my line of thinking is a bit different than most but you already make enough money. Making a little bit more won't increase your happiness at all. If you work a cushy job with cushy hours and still make more than enough money to live I don't see the point of leaving that to work more hours to make a bit more elsewhere. Even though I like my job I'm the happiest when I'm not at my job. And although having unlimited money would be nice I'd just buy a bigger house and a more expensive car so I'd be in the same situation where I can't spend without thinking but just with some nicer stuff around me.

Tenks_sl said:

I know my line of thinking is a bit different than most but you already make enough money. Making a little bit more won't increase your happiness at all. If you work a cushy job with cushy hours and still make more than enough money to live I don't see the point of leaving that to work more hours to make a bit more elsewhere. Even though I like my job I'm the happiest when I'm not at my job. And although having unlimited money would be nice I'd just buy a bigger house and a more expensive car so I'd be in the same situation where I can't spend without thinking but just with some nicer stuff around me.

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It's not about the money, after the contract ends I'll be making about the same. My current job is very cushy yes, but I also work with managers and executives who don't understand or really embrace technology. I get to work on stuff that looks good on my resume a bit (the HL7 stuff) but mostly do little pet projects for the various teams in the company that never end up getting used.

The other job is a very, very good development shop and the company is 100% a tech company. I'd be working on a lot of cool shit. The issue is the CIO of that company is a liar and my old boss, who I trust completely, may be reading the situation wrong which is a risk. And the insurance bit is definitely a risk.

I'm kind of surprised you're still concerned with the "work on cool stuff" line. I kind of stopped caring about that after a few years being out of college. I guess if I had the option and all things equal to work on interesting stuff obviously I'd take that one but I wouldn't make too many concessions for it.

Tenks_sl said:

I'm kind of surprised you're still concerned with the "work on cool stuff" line. I kind of stopped caring about that after a few years being out of college. I guess if I had the option and all things equal to work on interesting stuff obviously I'd take that one but I wouldn't make too many concessions for it.

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My rule is nothing retarded (AKA: Social Media, Game Development,Sales Apps, Fiance)

Cad_sl said:

One of the guys I worked with long ago (who was a middling developer, to be honest) took a sweat equity job at a social media company in like 2005 (not facebook) and is now worth something like 130 million dollars. When he told us what they did at first, we were like, what the fuck dude? Thats retarded. Joke was on us I guess.

Granted, probably 10000 guys have gone that route for each success story, but still.

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This is why Social-Media is so popular right now. There are a few HUGE success stories

Yeah instagram/reddit/imgur all got a ton of VC. There is still money to be had in the social market.