This summer and this year I had set a personal goal to Grow. As the kids got out of school for summer vacation I wanted to set up the summer to be one of MANY memories and I wanted it to be Epic. Then the #EpicSummer2014 had become a “thing” for us. In late June I learned that the President of the company I work for was “retiring”. He was the last of the legacy of management to “retire” from our division. The moment I read that email I knew a big change was happening. I felt a shift in my world.
Within days of that happening we had a Town Hall meeting with our new business leader and I was contacted by a company in North Carolina for a possible job with Lowes at their headquarters. They are hiring a huge IT staff because they are bringing their IT support back to the US from overseas. It was a pretty positive connection with an interview to be schedule. It got the wheels turning in my head. The wheels were turning so fast smoke was pouring out of my ears! Within the 4 days of when they contacted me for my first screening call I had researched houses in the area, reviewed the relocation package Lowes had to offer and thought about how we would sell our house. It was nuts. But in all reality I couldn’t imagine driving away from my house in CT to a new location, and starting over. I can, but I can’t imaging leaving my CT family. I know I could easily make friends and the kids would adjust to living in NC, but they would miss their grandparents and cousins.
Just days after my screening call and the possibility of an interview I received an automated email that my application for the job was reviewed but they decided to select another candidate. I was crushed. But the whole experience opened my eyes to my new future. It made me realize that I am valuable. Companies were reviewing my skills and I realized that could be worth something outside of Honeywell. I realized that while it wasn’t time to move out-of-state, it was time to leave my current job.
On July 3, I was contacted by New Horizons about a SharePoint Trainer and Account Manager position. I hadn’t considered a job doing SharePoint. I just updated my resume to include my SharePoint experience, but I hadn’t planned on going into a job to do SharePoint. It is a task that I am good at and I feel I am stronger at that tool than I am in the actual web design. I am a stronger coder than I am designer.
So after the first phone call with New Horizons, they told me they would schedule an interview. I had my first interview a few weeks after, then was told I would hear from them soon. Shortly after I was contacted to come in and do a presentation on any topic I wanted to discuss. I decided to do a work related topic so it would be kept on the professional level. I had to take a few hours off from work to go up to Bloomfield and do a 30-minute presentation. I felt confident on the way there, but when it came time to present, I didn’t feel that I was presenting as smoothly as I had wanted to. I am comfortable giving presentations, but I am out of practice. After I presented, we sat and talked and Carlinde and Joe asked me some questions. It was a very comfortable conversation and I felt confident about the way things were looking. One question Joe asked me was “what is the future looking like or the goals for Pam Frost?” That was a great question. I told him about my one word resolution that seems to be a factor in all aspects of my life. I told him how I came to the resolution to GROW this year and by looking to leave my company that I have been with for 24 years to branch out and give myself opportunities that I will not receive if I remain at my job, that’s my goal to grow this year.
A few weeks later, I was contacted again to come back for a third interview and to give a mock training class on some elements of SharePoint to Heidi, Joe and Carlinde. Due to some scheduling issues, I had to hold off on that presentation until late August. I studied up on the elements they wanted me to teach and actually taught myself a few new things that I wish I had known in my job at Honeywell because I could have designed our sites in a whole other way had I been taught that. But again, this is how I grow. I presented to them on August 28th. After the presentation I was hoping to hear news by the end of the week, but no news came my way. On September 3, Carlinde contacted me to schedule a call for later in the week so I arranged it for September 5. I was contacted again that something came up and we had to move the call to the following week. I was on pins and needles, but Carlinde assured me that something came up with HR and she was waiting on some documentation. That put my mind at ease that things were looking positive and it was all just a matter of time.
The call came Monday, September 8th. Everything was positive and the offer was what I was hoping for. The company can accommodate my needs to get my kids off to school and I was happy with the terms of the offer. We had to iron out a few details and questions I had and I received my final offer. I couldn’t notify my boss because he wasn’t in the office that Monday.
On Tuesday, September 9th I tried to meet with my boss, but he was on constant meetings and I wasn’t able to get in to talk with him. I finally had to set up a meeting request for 1:00 p.m. When I went into the office to meet with him I think he was completely caught off guard. It wasn’t how I envisioned it would be and it was very uncomfortable. After a short 15 minute meeting, he went to our department manager and shut the door to hash out the details. Thirty minutes later I was called back into my boss’ office and the tone was much more relaxed. Steve and Jack talked with me, wished me well, and told me this is a good move.
As the next 9 days of work unfolded, many things were happening. My job tasks are being shipped over to India, my co-workers may feel the pain of my leaving with assuming some of my old tasks. One of my biggest projects that I hated and part of the reason why I left was finally being removed from our department. There are many reasons why I am leaving, but the sad thing is when people say goodbye and tell me I’m leaving at the right time. The company just isn’t the same. Management has changed and the greed of the shareholders has taken over. There is no more appreciation for the people working there. The personal touch is gone.
I am leaving because it felt like my time to go and this opportunity fell into my lap at the exact moment when I felt the shift in my life happen. I was sitting in my car on the phone with my husband crying and I told him, I can’t explain what is going on, but I had to leave the job. I had to leave the 24 years I was there, 4 weeks vacation, all of my friends that I worked with, and my boss who I think of as a great friend and mentor. But I can still keep in touch with the friends and I plan on it. Now I can move into a new role where I can make a name for myself. I won’t just be seen as headcount and have to explain why I should remain an employee in the company. I won’t just be an EID who gets a good score on my 5S chart for keeping my cubicle neat and tidy. I will be Pam Frost, a SharePoint Technical Trainer and Account Manager. I will teach people and I will show New Horizons how I can be an asset to their business.
It was an Epic summer for me in many ways. But this was the icing on the cake. I needed this. I am happy for this change and I am embracing it. To be honest, the decision was not difficult to leave everything I had at Honeywell. I may have a new commute of 40 minutes versus the 3 minute I had at Honeywell, but I am going to gain so much from it. My kids will also gain from this. I will be happier.
Packing up my office was weird. I went in one evening to do my photographs and personal items because I wasn’t sure if I would be emotional doing it in front of everyone on my last day. Well, come to find out, on my last day there were absolutely no tears. The only time I had emotion was the day I gave my notice. But I think most of that was just a culmination of all the anticipation adding up and the stress of giving my notice.
I packed up my boxes on Friday, turned in my badge and walked to my car with my boss. We will be meeting for lunch on Tuesday and I know I’ll be seeing him around.
As I have my week off between jobs I am looking forward to getting myself organized and preparing for my new journey. I need this break and am also looking forward to putting in some training miles towards my Dopey Challenge! I am going to hit the ground running. This is what 24 years working for a company ends up looking like. Nothing exciting. Just a few boxes.
Goodbye Honeywell. I’ll miss the people there and the job, not the recent culture. On to New Horizons.
