I did a new graduate development program at a mature tech company where I rotated teams every four months for a year. I stayed in the last role of my rotation. It wasn’t where I wanted to end up, but that is where the need was for the company. This company has mass layoffs every two to three years so it is best to be in the department where the most need is. I had friends in the development program that ended up in departments that had layoffs the following year.
I actually taught more senior people on the team how to use analytics tools and Excel tips and tricks. Despite all of that, my manager wouldn’t give me any of the analytics assignments I asked for. Instead, I had to train the new hire who eventually took on the analytics assignments and I got stuck with really boring, tactical tasks like sending email newsletters. I learned how to automate a lot of my tasks and was only doing two to four hours actively working a week. I was bored, and after speaking to people who had worked there for a while, moving teams could take up to two years.
They also talked about how a lot of the skills they ended up honing in their roles were specific to the company, which made them less marketable to other companies if they ever wanted to move into a role outside of the company. After a year and a half in this role, I decided I needed to move into a role at a younger tech company where I could learn more and gain skills that made me more marketable in the future.
