Need help deciding if this offer is worth moving for. Received an offer from Booz Allen Hamilton for an Associate level Sr. Systems Engineer in Los Angeles for $135k base. I countered $150k and a $15k singing bonus and asked if I could be brought on as a lead associate since I've been a lead/manager for a while in my current company.
Current company TC: $125k in Utah.
YOE: 7 with M.S. and MBA
Is the switching cost/risk and higher COL worth it?
7 YOE, MS and MBA? And in LA? 150 salary 15 signing seems a bit low, but Booz tends to not be super generous with comp, and the job market is slowing down. Personally I wouldn’t sign the offer unless you really value WLB, then Booz is the way to go. Just know comp will not increase very quickly, even if they promote you to LA after 1-1.5 years.
OP, it’s hard for me to say since I don’t know your skill set, if this is for federal / you have a clearance, or what your education was in. But I would say 180 base for a job in general. For Booz, I guess 150 is more or less fine. Just not worth it for you per se. I say this because a job is a commitment and you’ll be stuck with it for a good bit of time. So my philosophy is to only jump ship if the offer really really makes sense.
Mentor
I don’t know where you live in Utah but the COL compared to LA must be incredibly lower and a 25K increase will not cut it.
A quick COL calculator shows that Salt Lake City (depending how you search it is Utah most expensive city), compared to LA, your 125K is equivalent to 182k in LA.
Thanks! I think I used that same calculator. It's crazy. Might need to continue to hold out until I find an offer that gets at least in the ballpark
I moved from lower LCOL to LA. It’s big cost difference. Like rental seemed fair but when I went to see it, the standard was definitely not what I thought so had to move up in cost. Also, depending on the type of car you have, gas price is crazy. It certainly was great and fun living in LA, but definitely would ask for more than 150k
I currently live near Salt Lake City and that's where I would be coming from.
Is the job remote? Or will you be negotiating a relocation package?
They also offered relocation assistance and the job sounds a hybrid of remote and office
You’ll get more relo $ as an LA but if you’re LA you may never be promoted again (not kidding). Relo packages are standard per level.
Almost all roles are hybrid right now, meaning they are remote but you have to go in 4-5x a year to check a box. More if your client requires it.
I wouldn’t do Lead Ass at Booz. You might like leading people but it’s not worth it here.