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Anyone heard of Ten Oaks Group?
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Where's the new Mumbai office going to be?
Hi Fishes,
Please help me with In hand salary
TIA
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Honest truth: hearing about your personal health journey sounds great over after work drinks. Hearing about it in any context during hiring is a stack of red flags. Employers want to know you're stable, reliable, and qualified. Take some time now to re-cert or cert in related subjects. Do the same for the current LoB.
"I stepped away from employment to focus on other responsibilities while continuing personal growth and career training with the plan to return to the field. During that hiatus I stayed up on industry standard LoB such as ABC, and certified in XYZ. Through the course of which I am more than qualified to return to [offered position] for the right company fit. I'd love to hear how your company can be that fit and how I can put my skills to use with your team."
Chief
Especially the part about focusing on "mental health", that will surely send employers running the other way. They want stable people in the right frame of mind and they're not going to take chances on those with self-proclaimed mental health issues. No offense intended, this is real world talk.
You can’t go back, so you might as well just focus on moving forward. Good luck!
Thank you for taking the time to respond to me. I’m determined to move forward and find something. I have realistic expectations that it might be a challenge, might have to take a lower role, lower pay and job search might be longer, but I will keep trying. I have one follow up question, should I list planned sabbatical on my resume? I have already taken a few certifications that I can list there. Or should I just not say anything about Sabattical on my resume? The reason I was leaning towards specifically calling out sabbatical so they don’t think that I’ve been actively looking and failed to get a job in the past two years.
Personally, I don't see why taking a break or struggling to land a job should be looked at negatively. Imagine a world where everyone had a sabbatical to take care of themselves and their family.
As I understand it, any break in the timeline creates a question mark for the recruiter or the employer. So if you don’t mention the break, your application goes to the back of the line.
Take a breath. Then list the sabbatical as another role in the timeline. Put it in a good light with a title like "Professional Development Sabbatical (2024–2025)” and drop the certificates underneath the headline where it makes sense.
Question mark gone.
Chief
The odds of a comeback are not looking good in this market I'm afraid. Thousands upon thousands of highly experienced laid-off tech workers are struggling to find work - having a two year gap is going to put you at the back of the line.
SSE1 absolutely now how it works. OP should update her resume to show she took time off for personal and health reasons. Even if someone was continuously working till yesterday doesnt mean their skills shine most than someone who took a break 2 years back. With AI some of the skillsets are becoming less relevant so the field gets levelled more. OPs skills could be relevant in the current market, maybe there is an employer who likes her experience. Unless she makes an attempt she would never know.
Even if I have had 15+ yrs of experience prior to the break?
Challenging. I would not hire someone who willlingly took two years off for mental health etc. just being frank.
You won't know if it hurt you until you start applying. I know people that never stopped looking for a job and it took them months. Some just retired.
I agree with he person that said just go forward. you can't undo the past. The important thing is your mental health.
I stepped away when I was laid off in the early 2000s when the market was brutal. I ran my own non-tech business for 15 years but then sold it and came back to tech. You can do it because I did it.
The gender bias can be a challenge. That’s probably where your network can give you support because they can vouch for you and keep you going.
For me, I definitely used my network. But I also picked up a certification in my target field and then started studying for another one. I think the process helped to remind me that I *deserve* to be here. I’m laid off again and the job search is just as difficult, but the market in the US seems to be improving. Good luck!
You may want to talk to a good recruiter that does contract to hire and direct hire - one that will help you and not dismiss you because you don’t have a job and/or they don’t have a current position to match with you. If they take time to know your story and find a that fits you.