Six months

Six months today. That's how long I have now been with the current company, since the crash. It's been a usual workday, building the app, attempting to fix bugs, and such. Not that much different from any other workday. But it's a kind of personal milestone for me. It means that half a year has passed since the previous company "couldn't make it" and dropped the entire R&D team. Their operating phrase was "to let go" but it was the same as "retrenchment without benefits". So, in this way, Biow and I were "let go", along with the CTO, his wife, and the rest of the team including Gwun Wai and his brother.

You could say that I could have seen it coming, since one of the "story arcs" of this blog, and its predecessor, has been tracking the progress of "globalization", in particular the "race to the bottom". How the wage differential between Singaporeans and "you-know-who" has been over two times, and how that differential between Americans and "the-usual-suspects" has been over ten times. You could also tell from the difficulty they had getting new projects. The previous company directors have even told some of us in private about the desperate bidding wars that they encountered, how the companies have been undercutting each other to get the deals at any cost. Hell, you could even tell from the way they cut back in the kitchen/pantry (cheaper and cheaper biscuits, less and less drinks, and then finally, none at all). You know, you could perhaps check in the corporate pantry if you want to see how well a company is doing ...

Well, it's a little different now. The slight uptick in the economy in the earlier part of the year has created some jobs here and there, and I'd suppose I've been fortunate enough to have been able to secure one of these. Better pay, better prospects, and stock options to boot. At a company which is an established technological leader in its field, and recipient of contracts for projects in the hundred-million-dollar league.

The price? Vastly increased complexity. Much less margin for error. Being part of the military-industrial-complex. But I don't really mind the last bit, and the fact is, in the grand scheme of things it's a small role and it's not that they design missile guidance or some such. Actually, in light of the looming advent of peak oil and its various implications, I would *want* to be part of sectors that will do okay, at least medium-term-wise. These sectors might include government, military/defence, finance, logistics, healthcare/biotech, energy and resources.

Full circle? You could say that. I started my career (such as it is) in the military/defence sector. Cyberwarfare (blue team), firewalls and such. And now I'm back in this sector. For Biow, it's at least as interesting, she's now back in the same company that she first started work in. Again, finance sector too. Full circle as well.

What's ahead? Raising the family, continuing to work, paying down the debt, paying the bills, saving/investing the leftovers. And continuing to watch the horizon and beyond for anomalies that might spoil a good day. Well, if you've been following this blog at all, you know what I mean :)

Comments:

I have to admit that the experiences 6 months ago have changed my perspective a bit. I lost some of the naivety, and I gained something as well. Not exactly resignation, but probably a little wisdom.
But it has been a good ride, a good learning experience. Would I have done things differently, yes, I would. Would I have taken up the same job 4 years ago, definitely.
I guess that's all we can ask for eh?

Posted by gwunwai on October 31, 2005 at 11:32 AM SGT #

On the bright side, I see growth in your work and family life. Treasure your blessings, learn from your experiences and look forward to milestones (may it be six months, a new family member).

Oh, continue to indulge happily in whatever you like to do (like fantically tracking the energy sector) as long as it is not harm your well being.

Posted by Sze Chieh on October 31, 2005 at 01:41 PM SGT #

"The slight uptick in the economy in the earlier part of the year has created some jobs here and there"

Hey there, I've been out of action for some time (i.e. not blogging), but you sound as if you don't trust the official figures that over 28,000 jobs were created this quarter?

Posted by Akikonomu on November 01, 2005 at 06:32 PM SGT #

I hear you, my man. It's been a jolly good 6 months for you alright, but the horizons do indeed look much darker than ever before -- even more so from where I was and will be (where the slide is gentler). Here's hoping that we all can have that 2 (now 1.5) years left in order to clear as much as we need to prepare for the cliffoff.

I wonder if there are ways to watch how your current company is doing. The larger the companies, the more drastic the fall (if and when it comes).

Posted by Rostov on November 02, 2005 at 07:29 AM SGT #

Thanks for your comments, all.

gwunwai - would I have taken the same job too? Yes I would, except for the last part, it's been a pretty good experience where I've picked up JDBC, O/R, CVS, Ant and more. But I'd also suppose that I should/would have exited earlier as well, lol :)

Sze Chieh - not to worry, tracking the energy sector fanatically has been rather profitable so far. Exxon Mobil earned $10 billion dollars in the past quarter and the smaller energy companies have been doing quite well also ... ;)

Akikonomu - in the spirit of Mark Twain, who did say that there are "lies, damned lies and then there are statistics". Sure, 78000 jobs may have been created (or some such number), but we have to consider, what *kinds* of jobs were those, hmmph? I'm not saying they're wrong, I'm saying that it's all just numbers, while the real story behind the numbers may - or may not be - what the numbers seem to portray.

Rostov - yup, the clock *is* ticking but we don't know when the alarm goes off. You already know what my plans are, eh. Even if I can't, well, exactly *achieve* what Jay Hanson has, uhh, you know, "advised", at least I would have tried, huh. All the best to you with *your* plans too :)

Posted by lowem on November 02, 2005 at 03:06 PM SGT #