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  3. Are your former companies still around?

Are your former companies still around?

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  • J Offline
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    Joe Woodbury
    wrote on last edited by
    #1

    In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

    D S L OriginalGriffO R 30 Replies Last reply
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    • J Joe Woodbury

      In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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      Duncan Edwards Jones
      wrote on last edited by
      #2

      3 of my former employer companies are no more (including ICL) 1 of my own company ditto 3 are still in existence

      '--8<------------------------ Ex Datis: Duncan Jones Free eBook: Printing - a .NET Developer's Guide (Part 1)

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      • J Joe Woodbury

        In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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        S Offline
        Simon_Whale
        wrote on last edited by
        #3

        Companies 3 Resigned from 1 Made redundant from 1 Company taken over 1 (but its still around or I am working in the wrong place) apart from the company I work for now, the first company is just still around and the second closed before it became financial issue

        Every day, thousands of innocent plants are killed by vegetarians. Help end the violence EAT BACON

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        • J Joe Woodbury

          In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

          L Offline
          L Offline
          Lost User
          wrote on last edited by
          #4

          A full time employee at 11 companies in 26 years yields an average length of service of ~2.4 years. Wow! :wtf: Not to be rude but... why do you change jobs so often? Surely that comes up in interviews. :omg: In February 2014 I will have been at my current company for 28 years. There have been a few non-profitable years here and there but as a whole we are quite profitable.

          Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. ~ George Washington

          J F J S 4 Replies Last reply
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          • J Joe Woodbury

            In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

            OriginalGriffO Offline
            OriginalGriffO Offline
            OriginalGriff
            wrote on last edited by
            #5

            Over 35 years, two Government jobs (both 6 month contract positions) so they are still there, if not under the names they were. Of the 5 other companies: The first is still going, but a shadow and in a totally different business. The second failed a year after I left (which surprised me not in the slightest - that was why I left) The third went bust while I was there (Customer went bust, owing us 1/3 of our annual turnover) The fourth closed about 4 years after I left following a major disagreement between the father and son I had left running it. The fifth is still going and apparently strong (there was a purge about two years after I left and everyone I knew was "persuaded" to leave, so I don't know how well it is really doing).

            Never underestimate the power of stupid things in large numbers --- Serious Sam

            "I have no idea what I did, but I'm taking full credit for it." - ThisOldTony
            "Common sense is so rare these days, it should be classified as a super power" - Random T-shirt

            1 Reply Last reply
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            • J Joe Woodbury

              In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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              R Offline
              Roger Wright
              wrote on last edited by
              #6

              Nope. General Dynamics Pomona Division - gone Northrop Electromechanical Division - gone TRW Ballistic Missile Division - gone When I left, I turned out the lights and took the brains with me.

              Will Rogers never met me.

              1 Reply Last reply
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              • J Joe Woodbury

                In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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                Ravi Bhavnani
                wrote on last edited by
                #7

                27 for me in June. (1) 1987-1994 - DEC = Extinct :( (2) 1994-2000 - Kodak (Digital & Applied Imaging Group) = Extinct :( (3) 2000-2003 - Startup 1 = Crashed and burned :( (4) 2003-2006 - Startup 2 = Acquired by Oracle :thumbsup: (5) 2006-2007 - Company 3 = Acquired by Microsoft :thumbsup: (6) 2007-2011 - Company 4 = Alive and well :thumbsup: (7) 2011-now - Startup 3 = Acquired by Ceridian :thumbsup: /ravi

                My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

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                • J Joe Woodbury

                  In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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                  J Offline
                  JMK89
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #8

                  Companies - 4, 3 still around Laid off - 1 (they went bankrupt, I was literally their last employee, and was there a week longer than anybody else, prepping all of their computers and servers for auction for the administrators) Resigned - 2 (although talking to one of these about heading back for a while) My own - 1 (well sorta, it's what I call myself when I do freelance work)

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                  • L Lost User

                    A full time employee at 11 companies in 26 years yields an average length of service of ~2.4 years. Wow! :wtf: Not to be rude but... why do you change jobs so often? Surely that comes up in interviews. :omg: In February 2014 I will have been at my current company for 28 years. There have been a few non-profitable years here and there but as a whole we are quite profitable.

                    Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. ~ George Washington

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                    J Offline
                    Joe Woodbury
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #9

                    Mike Mullikin wrote:

                    why do you change jobs so often?

                    Layoffs. Usually because the company was in fiscal free fall. Half of those weren't actually profitable when I was hired! Like I said, of the ten former companies, five don't exist anymore (they aren't shells of their former selves; they no longer exist at all.) In one case, the company owners had a bitter divorce. The ex-wife stayed on as CFO, the ex-husband as CEO. One day they got especially pissed at each other and laid off everyone working for them but whom the other had hired. Several, including myself, got caught up in the mess. The most common thread is that the companies which expanded the fastest, especially with over hiring, fell the hardest. As for interviews, my experience is fairly common where I live and most people have heard of the companies in question. In one case, in every interview I was asked "what IS going on over there?" Almost everyone they were interviewing was from that company. (When I was laid off from there, the remaining employees were told that this layoff would stabilize the company and there was nothing to worry about. Four months later they had a massive layoff. A similar thing happened ten years ago during the dot com crash--the company had a layoff, said everything would be fine, and then a few months later declared chapter 7 bankruptcy.) BTW, if you add up all my contracting, my length of service averages even less. But, that's averages.

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                    • R Ravi Bhavnani

                      27 for me in June. (1) 1987-1994 - DEC = Extinct :( (2) 1994-2000 - Kodak (Digital & Applied Imaging Group) = Extinct :( (3) 2000-2003 - Startup 1 = Crashed and burned :( (4) 2003-2006 - Startup 2 = Acquired by Oracle :thumbsup: (5) 2006-2007 - Company 3 = Acquired by Microsoft :thumbsup: (6) 2007-2011 - Company 4 = Alive and well :thumbsup: (7) 2011-now - Startup 3 = Acquired by Ceridian :thumbsup: /ravi

                      My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

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                      G Offline
                      Gary Wheeler
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #10

                      We worked for Kodak at the same time! At that time, I worked for Dayton Operations. I still work for Kodak, but we're called IPS (Integrated Print Solutions, or some rot like that) now.

                      Software Zen: delete this;

                      R 1 Reply Last reply
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                      • J Joe Woodbury

                        In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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                        G Offline
                        Gary Wheeler
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #11

                        34 years of experience, 4 companies. Company 1: Resigned, profitable when I left; now defunct. Company 2: Local office closed, but profitable at the time; self-performed lobotomy followed by self-performed castration, and now defunct. Company 3: Startup, profitable but no new business coming in; essentially sold. Company 4: Just exited chapter 11 bankruptcy; 23 years and still here!

                        Software Zen: delete this;

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                        • J Joe Woodbury

                          Mike Mullikin wrote:

                          why do you change jobs so often?

                          Layoffs. Usually because the company was in fiscal free fall. Half of those weren't actually profitable when I was hired! Like I said, of the ten former companies, five don't exist anymore (they aren't shells of their former selves; they no longer exist at all.) In one case, the company owners had a bitter divorce. The ex-wife stayed on as CFO, the ex-husband as CEO. One day they got especially pissed at each other and laid off everyone working for them but whom the other had hired. Several, including myself, got caught up in the mess. The most common thread is that the companies which expanded the fastest, especially with over hiring, fell the hardest. As for interviews, my experience is fairly common where I live and most people have heard of the companies in question. In one case, in every interview I was asked "what IS going on over there?" Almost everyone they were interviewing was from that company. (When I was laid off from there, the remaining employees were told that this layoff would stabilize the company and there was nothing to worry about. Four months later they had a massive layoff. A similar thing happened ten years ago during the dot com crash--the company had a layoff, said everything would be fine, and then a few months later declared chapter 7 bankruptcy.) BTW, if you add up all my contracting, my length of service averages even less. But, that's averages.

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                          Lost User
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #12

                          I guess (depending POV) I've been lucky. Over my 28 years here I've moved around a bit, traveled the world a bit and have been well compensated. I started in mechanical engineering, evolved into pure IT, then returned to engineering concentrating on machine controls and now managing the department. I know some (most?) people would get bored staying at one company for so long but it works for me. This place must not be too bad because there are at least a dozen people here with longer tenures and we only employ ~300 worldwide.

                          Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. ~ George Washington

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                          • L Lost User

                            A full time employee at 11 companies in 26 years yields an average length of service of ~2.4 years. Wow! :wtf: Not to be rude but... why do you change jobs so often? Surely that comes up in interviews. :omg: In February 2014 I will have been at my current company for 28 years. There have been a few non-profitable years here and there but as a whole we are quite profitable.

                            Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. ~ George Washington

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                            F Offline
                            Forogar
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #13

                            A statistic I saw somewhere said that in the Software industry the average time for a developer with one employer is around 18 months so 2-4 years seems good (I have about the same ratio) having had three companies go bust while I was working for them, and in one case the owner fled the country with the FBI and the IRS in hot pursuit! My question is, and I don't mean to cause offence but, how come you have been so stuck in a rut to still be doing the same old job for 28 years? Sorry, but you wouldn't even get to the interview stage with that record.

                            - I would love to change the world, but they won’t give me the source code.

                            L 2 Replies Last reply
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                            • J Joe Woodbury

                              In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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                              Gregory Gadow
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #14

                              In the late 90s and early 00s, I was headhunted extensively: I still had resumes circulating where I admitted to knowing COBOL. I chose -- regretfully at the time -- to stay with the company I was with. Almost 18 years later, I'm still with this company and doing quite well. As far as I can tell, none of the companies that had been falling all over themselves to get me exist any more.

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                              • G Gary Wheeler

                                We worked for Kodak at the same time! At that time, I worked for Dayton Operations. I still work for Kodak, but we're called IPS (Integrated Print Solutions, or some rot like that) now.

                                Software Zen: delete this;

                                R Offline
                                R Offline
                                Ravi Bhavnani
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #15

                                Gary Wheeler wrote:

                                We worked for Kodak at the same time! At that time, I worked for Dayton Operations.

                                :thumbsup: I was at KBDC (Kodak Boston Development Center).  Kodak was a great gig!  I've made life-long friends there.  We had an awesome manager - she now runs R&D @ Frog. /ravi

                                My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

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                                • J Joe Woodbury

                                  In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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                                  M Offline
                                  Maximilien
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #16

                                  20+ years, 3 companies, 2 still alive.

                                  I'd rather be phishing!

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                                  • R Ravi Bhavnani

                                    Gary Wheeler wrote:

                                    We worked for Kodak at the same time! At that time, I worked for Dayton Operations.

                                    :thumbsup: I was at KBDC (Kodak Boston Development Center).  Kodak was a great gig!  I've made life-long friends there.  We had an awesome manager - she now runs R&D @ Frog. /ravi

                                    My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

                                    G Offline
                                    G Offline
                                    Gary Wheeler
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #17

                                    Despite the Chapter 11, Kodak is still a good place to work, at least for me. I'm doing things I enjoy, and the company seems to be more sane than a lot of the places my friends work.

                                    Software Zen: delete this;

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • J Joe Woodbury

                                      In April, I will have been a professional developer for 26 years. I'm now working for my eleventh company as a paid employee (thus not counting all the contracts I've done.) Most the companies I worked for weren't very healthy and were having problems. Out of curiosity, I made a list of all the companies, whether I resigned or was laid off, whether they were profitable when I exited and if they are still around. Not counting my current position (a company that has always been quite profitable and still is), here are the results: Companies: 10 Resigned: 4** Profitable upon exit: 3* Still around: 4.5 (half for Novell which is a shadow of its former self.) * One company has a massive debt, but runs solidly in the black otherwise, so I counted it as profitable. Another has since recovered, but was losing money when I was laid off. I was laid off from a third the day it was bought. It was profitable and is still around, but the new owners have driven into the ground. ** One of the companies which isn't around is one I started and ran in the late 90s. On tax returns it made a profit until the very end, but only because I often didn't pay myself. After the CDROM-based infotainment market collapsed in 1997/98, I used the company for contracting. I made several thousand on my last contract and officially shut the company down at the end of that month. Still, I didn't count it as profitable. And, while I voluntarily exited, any other choice wasn't practical.

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                                      S Offline
                                      S Houghtelin
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #18

                                      Most of the companies I have worked for no longer exist. In every case the result has always ended in better employment. :) The company before my current position was bought out and liquidated and production sent offshore. The CEO of that company ended up in jail for throwing a two million dollar toga party for his wife's birthday party using a million of the compnay's money. Details.[^]

                                      It was broke, so I fixed it.

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                                      • L Lost User

                                        I guess (depending POV) I've been lucky. Over my 28 years here I've moved around a bit, traveled the world a bit and have been well compensated. I started in mechanical engineering, evolved into pure IT, then returned to engineering concentrating on machine controls and now managing the department. I know some (most?) people would get bored staying at one company for so long but it works for me. This place must not be too bad because there are at least a dozen people here with longer tenures and we only employ ~300 worldwide.

                                        Government is not reason; it is not eloquent; it is force. Like fire, it is a dangerous servant and a fearful master. ~ George Washington

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                                        Joe Woodbury
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #19

                                        Mike Mullikin wrote:

                                        mechanical engineering

                                        My experience is that companies that have a hardware component tend to be more stable than pure software companies. I tend to work for pure software companies, which come and go like dust in the wind. Incidentally, the below comment isn't a joke; at most places I worked at, we wouldn't even consider someone who hadn't worked at multiple companies. This isn't out of spite, but because the work tends to resemble contract type work more than long term stable work. I don't know if I could stay at one place 28 years, but I planned on staying at my last two companies more than seven and nine months respectively. The first of the two was an awesome company in all respects. Then the president died and they were bought by the biggest jerk company in the area (which is owned by one of the worse Private Equity firms out there.) Since then, almost everyone who wasn't laid off, has quit in disgust. My last company had the best product in their niche, but management were lying, vindictive, micromanaging, crazy bastards. Among many other things, they made the mistake of hiring based on future, hoped for gross sales, not actual earnings. They also tried to do too many things, leaving them vulnerable to startups concentrating on one sub-niche. The only company I truly regret leaving was three companies ago. The commute was hell, they weren't giving me the raises promised and which I deserved and I was tired of arguing over several issues (ironically, I was totally vindicated months after I left.) Still, I really enjoyed the people I worked with, their product is kick ass and I had the best manager ever. If they matched my current salary, I'd probably go back.

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                                        • R Ravi Bhavnani

                                          27 for me in June. (1) 1987-1994 - DEC = Extinct :( (2) 1994-2000 - Kodak (Digital & Applied Imaging Group) = Extinct :( (3) 2000-2003 - Startup 1 = Crashed and burned :( (4) 2003-2006 - Startup 2 = Acquired by Oracle :thumbsup: (5) 2006-2007 - Company 3 = Acquired by Microsoft :thumbsup: (6) 2007-2011 - Company 4 = Alive and well :thumbsup: (7) 2011-now - Startup 3 = Acquired by Ceridian :thumbsup: /ravi

                                          My new year resolution: 2048 x 1536 Home | Articles | My .NET bits | Freeware ravib(at)ravib(dot)com

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                                          PIEBALDconsult
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #20

                                          Ravi Bhavnani wrote:

                                          DEC = Extinct

                                          It's only mostly dead.

                                          This space intentionally left blank.

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