Man: I’d been feeling for some time that a move was overdue, and I suppose it was just the fact that I thought I’d miss the friendliness of the place that held me back. But in the end I realised that I could spend my life there and not move up the ladder - you could see how the roles with responsibility were filled by people who weren’t themselves about to move on. I’m glad overall - I can see my role will continue to develop here, and I’ve had no second thoughts - the only drawback is that it is a bit chaotic here. So even though I’d say I was pretty effective at meeting deadlines, there are others who aren’t, and their inability to sort out each day’s tasks can create bottlenecks that cause frustrations.

Woman: I was getting tired of the sense of doing the same thing over and over again and decided it was time to ring the changes. I’m pleased I did, because I’ve got a greater range of responsibilities now, and it means my skills and abilities are put to better use. It is a smaller outfit, of course, and the MD does rather keep himself to himself, but, generally, I like the independence that leaves me, particularly with such high-quality support staff. On the other hand, something that should be addressed here is the issue of assessment - the system here isn’t actually very relevant to what people actually do, so sometimes you’re judged on the wrong issues.

Man: I’d been looking around for some time, but it wasn’t until I went to see a recruitment onsultant that I began to focus my aims. I suppose it’s not surprising - I was doing so many different things that it was actually quite hard to work out what the core of the job was - but it was certainly at some distance from what I’d spent so long studying, and the consultant helped me to realise my dissatisfaction came from under-using that background. So I do feel a lot more focused here. One drawback, I guess, is the failure to make the most of all the IT, so that, for example, I end up sitting here emailing away to colleagues who can’t even be bothered to reply o- react.

Woman: Well, I’d been convinced for quite a while that my old company wasn’t moving in the right direction. But of course it was only me that seemed to think so... everyone else was perfectly happy trundling along. So I was delighted when this opportunity came up, the chance to properly investigate market trends, even if it meant a greater number of trips. Some people might think it dull, but I get a lot out of it. I have to say I’d get even more out of it if I thought they had the big picture a bit clearer in their heads. At the moment no-one knows what to do with my findings because the Board don’t know where they’re going long term.

Man: Hm, well I was feeling stuck. It’s not that I’m hugely ambitious - I guess I’d be looking at re-training myself if that was the case - but certainly my interpersonal skills weren’t being used to their full extent. All I’d ever done was deal with one or two suppliers occasionally, whereas now I’m meeting clients and other contacts on a daily basis, which is what I was hoping for. The downside is that my lack of knowledge about computers is beginning to show. This place is so well equipped with all the latest software that I’m a bit out of my depth. In my defence, I’d say it wouldn’t matter so much if they had more than one poor overworked guy that you could contact to ask for help when something goes wrong.