Work Update
A new rapid-development project with SQL, ASP and VBA/Access components that has been sucking away every minute of my workday (and many "thinking hours" at home and while sleeping) for the last few weeks is finally moving on to field testing (as soon as I can finish up this last bit of sync code...) so I've taken today to breathe a bit, catch up on some (work-related, of course) e-mails and prioritize my projects for the rest of the week. With a good 30 minutes left before I can head home and nothing pressing to do, I thought I'd take a moment to write in ye olde LJ.
Since I'm on the topic of work, perhaps it would be good to give an update on the whole raise thing and my resulting career path.
After taking a few days to think about what had happened and what I needed to happen, I decided I didn't need to take "no" for an answer. More specifically, I didn't need to (and probably couldn't) trust my boss to be the right advocate for me to the higher-ups.
As it turned out, I was right. I met first with his boss (medical director), and then the business manager, who I knew was the biggest obstacle, but also one that I've had a fair degree of success navigating where others have failed. My relationship with her is no accident... when you figure out who wears the pants, that's the person you make sure values your efforts. It turns out my boss hadn't even shared my competitive salary research with them... they hadn't seen the numbers to see just how underpaid I am. That opened the door to more conversations, a formal compensation review, a mandated increase from HR of about 0.5% that I negotiated up to about 6.5% -- less than what I was hoping for, but more than I would have received if I had taken the initial answer without pursuing, and I'm fairly confident it is more than they would have given anyone else.
Through the process, I was reassured how valued I am, but also given some insight into a pretty bleak financial picture for our department. We're a student clinic that is funded mostly by premiums from student health insurance plans. The new healthcare laws allow students to stay on their parents insurance plans until 25 and our insurance enrollment is dropping dramatically because of it. Cash reserves are plummeting, and though they are working on ways to keep revenue up, there's no telling if we'll even be in business in 2-3 years. So the problem, while not really mine to deal with, is real.
For my future, then, I am not immediately looking for something new, but I am keeping my eyes open, and I am pursuing appropriate personal development opportunities. I have been accepted into an online-based Health Information Technology program at Cincinnati State funded by a government grant that will enhance and legitimize my healthcare workflow and process redesign skills that I developed "in the trenches." Based on how that goes, I may pursue some industry-specific certifications as well. I think this is the right field for me, which is more than a lot of people can say right now, so I am grateful for that.
Since I'm on the topic of work, perhaps it would be good to give an update on the whole raise thing and my resulting career path.
After taking a few days to think about what had happened and what I needed to happen, I decided I didn't need to take "no" for an answer. More specifically, I didn't need to (and probably couldn't) trust my boss to be the right advocate for me to the higher-ups.
As it turned out, I was right. I met first with his boss (medical director), and then the business manager, who I knew was the biggest obstacle, but also one that I've had a fair degree of success navigating where others have failed. My relationship with her is no accident... when you figure out who wears the pants, that's the person you make sure values your efforts. It turns out my boss hadn't even shared my competitive salary research with them... they hadn't seen the numbers to see just how underpaid I am. That opened the door to more conversations, a formal compensation review, a mandated increase from HR of about 0.5% that I negotiated up to about 6.5% -- less than what I was hoping for, but more than I would have received if I had taken the initial answer without pursuing, and I'm fairly confident it is more than they would have given anyone else.
Through the process, I was reassured how valued I am, but also given some insight into a pretty bleak financial picture for our department. We're a student clinic that is funded mostly by premiums from student health insurance plans. The new healthcare laws allow students to stay on their parents insurance plans until 25 and our insurance enrollment is dropping dramatically because of it. Cash reserves are plummeting, and though they are working on ways to keep revenue up, there's no telling if we'll even be in business in 2-3 years. So the problem, while not really mine to deal with, is real.
For my future, then, I am not immediately looking for something new, but I am keeping my eyes open, and I am pursuing appropriate personal development opportunities. I have been accepted into an online-based Health Information Technology program at Cincinnati State funded by a government grant that will enhance and legitimize my healthcare workflow and process redesign skills that I developed "in the trenches." Based on how that goes, I may pursue some industry-specific certifications as well. I think this is the right field for me, which is more than a lot of people can say right now, so I am grateful for that.