The IT Professional Development Toolkit DVD goes into further details on the who, what, where, when, and why of these topics.
When it comes time to quit your job, how can you do it without burning bridges.
1) Highlight all the positive things that this company has allowed you to accomplish. Show appreciation for your manager and all the opportunities provided on your behalf.
2) Share your individual career goals and plans. You should have been sharing this all along with your manager in your regular one-on-one managers meetings (detailed in the Professional Development Toolkit). Therefore, this will not be the first time your organization hears about your career goals.
3) If you have been sharing your career goals with your manager and mentors; and your current company can not provide your ‘next step’ – there will be no bridges burned. You are simply continuing your career growth and following your IDP (Individual Development Plan detailed in the Professional Development Toolkit).
4) Stay in touch with your managers/mentors/co-workers. After you leave, stay in contact with past managers, mentors and co-workers. Everything changes. It’s a 75% chance that those people will also move on (change their positions) within the next 5 years. Continue to network with them to understand how their power of influence is growing. Continue to share with them about your career plans (as well as understanding their goals). Continue to help each other achieve those next steps. Stay on their radar – such that when a great opportunity presents itself to them, you are on their minds.
5) You never know who other people know or what the future will bring. Make sure you stay LinkedIn.com (or similar) connected so that you easily see who they are connected with. This way you can more easily leverage your links or network. Joe may not be in a direct position to help or mentor you; but you see that he knows Dr. Barklette that would be a great mentor for you. If you had asked Joe if he had any recommendations for a mentor, he may not think of Dr. Barklette. But because you can see Dr. Barklette in Joe’s circle, you can ask for the specific introduction. You also know that Dr. Barklette might need a research assistant or project manager on his next program, etc.
Bottom line is that right way to quit your job doesn’t stop when you walk out of the door. It’s really just the beginning. Make it a point to continue the business network and build a working relationship with those past relationships. The biggest mistake that people make is to close the door on those years of collaboration and professional network.