On 12/12/2005 I responded to a job listing for a web-developer on Craigslist. A few phone calls, an interview, and a meeting later I was working on a freelance project (redesigning a page) as a test – to show them that I knew what I was doing and to make sure that we could work together.

Yesterday morning I received a job offer from TechTracker Inc. for the position of Web Developer. The position seems to be just what I want right now, and everything seems to suggest that I accept the offer.

Pros

• I’d love to do web development as a full-time job.
• They have decent time off, great benefits, and 401k (among other things).
• They have transportation reimbursement.
• After working with the managers on a small project, I feel like we’d be compatible.
• The office seems to be a very professional and friendly place.
• It’s located downtown, and I love downtown.
• They’ve been around more or less since 1996, and since I used their products since around 2001 before I knew about the company, I feel that they’re not going anywhere soon.
• I would really enjoy being able to speak to people about technical things, and not receive blank looks back.
• Better pay.
• Better pay means I can cut down on the side-job work I do, meaning more time for Beth, as well as time to just sit down and PLAY.

Cons

• Wells Fargo is obviously much more secure, but there’s nothing above what I do now that I would enjoy doing. I wouldn’t mind getting away from the large corporation aspect of Wells, and there’s certain aspects of my job that I just don’t enjoy.
• TechTracker would require a 50 minute MAX ride every day, whereas Wells is just five minutes from the house.
• I won’t truly know what it’s like to work there until I actually do, so I cannot be 100% sure.

This would be a very big transition for me, and this is not a good time for such a transition to go sour. Granted I would have Wells as a backup, but I’m not sure that I could do what I do now. In order to be sure that this would be a good idea, I’ve done some research.

I’ve contacted a few former employees to get their opinions on their former company. Since techtracker is a small company and most tech people post their resume online, it was pretty easy to find them. I’ve spent time researching the company on the internet. From reading old press releases, news items, to searching the net for “techtracker sucks“. I’ve even tried reading comments from customers who hate their products, but there are not many to find (relatively).

I’ve asked several questions about the job and gotten answers that I was hoping for. On February 10th I’ll be visiting the TechTracker office for the third time to get a better idea of the projects I’ll be working on. I’ll get to see the machines (that’s machines, plural!) I’ll be using, meet other employees, etc. I think that what I learn from just hanging around on a “preliminary first day” will make or break the deal.

I decided to submit my three-week notice to Wells Fargo today, February 1. My last day will be February 22 assuming nothing in the next three weeks changes my mind about TechTracker. My first official day will be February 23rd, a Thursday.

Wells Fargo was a good company to work for. I began on April 15, 2003 as temporary employee working through a temp agency. On October 1st, 2003 I was hired directly with Wells as a telephone rep for their Equity applications department. In May 2004 I was promoted to an application processor for two weeks, as I was promoted again in the middle of my training. My new position was as an Operations Analyst, essentially someone who works on projects.

From planning moves, scheduling, telephony routing, and lots and lots of Excel reports my name made it’s way through the emails of managers in several states. It was an excellent position for someone who was 22 / 23 years old. I worked with senior managers on a daily basis doing this, that, and the other thing. Taking this position is what really saved us after the problems Beth had when she was pregnant. Now that we’re finally getting things wrapped up from almost three years ago, this new position will definately help.

2006 will certainly be an interesting year.

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