I just got a job offer!

[AznMaverick]

Today i just got a job offer for a software engineering position in silicon valley. My question to you is, if work is exceptional and i perform and do all my duties, how fast do you get promotions and how much are they usually?

The reason i'm asking is that this is one determining factor out of a bunch that will play a role into me accepting. currently i work for the federal govt, we get yearly increases and that assurance is always nice. I pretty much know exactly what i'll be making in the next 3-5 years.

I can't say the same about LM. So to you people that are currently working for LM tell me how your salary steps went...PM me if you like, i would appreciate it much. Also, feel free to share what you like and dislike about the company, environment, management, and people.

 

[blustori]

Congratulations! That is a great company to be working for.

 

[BigJ]

That's awesome.

I believe that the private sector allows for much greater advancement and increase on the pay scale than does the public sector.

 

[AznMaverick]

Originally posted by: BigJ
That's awesome.

I believe that the private sector allows for much greater advancement and increase on the pay scale than does the public sector.

Thanks guys!

Yea, starting salary is about 20% more than my current salary. just worried about advancement and job security.

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: AznMaverick

Originally posted by: BigJ
That's awesome.

I believe that the private sector allows for much greater advancement and increase on the pay scale than does the public sector.

Thanks guys!

Yea, starting salary is about 20% more than my current salary. just worried about advancement and job security.

I really don't think you can beat the public sector as far as job security is concerned.

As far as software engineering goes, are you interested in possibly being a lead on a project? Or managing a bunch of software engineers?

Those are two avenues that could help lead to serious advancement.

 

[Pepsi90919]

michael moore <3s you

 

[Soccerman06]

I would seriously doubt (tho possible) that someone here actually works at Lockheed Martin. For that matter, how many people here are aerospace engineers?

 

[myusername]

Originally posted by: Soccerman06
I would seriously doubt (tho possible) that someone here actually works at Lockheed Martin. For that matter, how many people here are aerospace engineers?

Not sure if they are retired, but a couple of them "were" if they aren't.

 

[AznMaverick]

aww bummers.

 

[Gunslinger08]

Originally posted by: Soccerman06
I would seriously doubt (tho possible) that someone here actually works at Lockheed Martin. For that matter, how many people here are aerospace engineers?

Uh.. Lockheed has a crapload of employees. My brother, his business partner, my friend's sister, my other friend's brother, and multiple other people I know have worked/currently work for Lockheed.

 

[theeedude]

Originally posted by: AznMaverick
Today i just got a job offer for a software engineering position in silicon valley. My question to you is, if work is exceptional and i perform and do all my duties, how fast do you get promotions and how much are they usually?

The reason i'm asking is that this is one determining factor out of a bunch that will play a role into me accepting. currently i work for the federal govt, we get yearly increases and that assurance is always nice. I pretty much know exactly what i'll be making in the next 3-5 years.

I can't say the same about LM. So to you people that are currently working for LM tell me how your salary steps went...PM me if you like, i would appreciate it much. Also, feel free to share what you like and dislike about the company, environment, management, and people.

From what my friend who worked at LM in Mountain View told me, you could sit there and push your pencil around all day and still get regular promotions like clockwork. It's pretty much like a government job.
So no need to do exceptional work.

 

[bunker]

Originally posted by: BigJ
I really don't think you can beat the public sector as far as job security is concerned.

As far as software engineering goes, are you interested in possibly being a lead on a project? Or managing a bunch of software engineers?

Those are two avenues that could help lead to serious advancement.

Your kidding about that bolded part, right?

It's damn near impossible to get canned from a gov't job. I've been in the public sector working for EDS and had to find new jobs twice because the contract i was on expired. EDS a direct competitor with Lockheed and Lockheed got the last contract i was on.

Lockheed offered me my own job...at a 10% salary cut and the benefits were going to cost me twice as much.

I'm now working for state gov't making more than I made with EDS, the benefits are unbelievably better, and I know for a fact, it will take a hell of a lot to get fired.

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: bunker

Originally posted by: BigJ
I really don't think you can beat the public sector as far as job security is concerned.

As far as software engineering goes, are you interested in possibly being a lead on a project? Or managing a bunch of software engineers?

Those are two avenues that could help lead to serious advancement.

Your kidding about that bolded part, right?

It's damn near impossible to get canned from a gov't job. I've been in the public sector working for EDS and had to find new jobs twice because the contract i was on expired. EDS a direct competitor with Lockheed and Lockheed got the last contract i was on.

Lockheed offered me my own job...at a 10% salary cut and the benefits were going to cost me twice as much.

I'm now working for state gov't making more than I made with EDS, the benefits are unbelievably better, and I know for a fact, it will take a hell of a lot to get fired.

You have the definitions of public and private sectors confused.

Public sector = government

 

[bunker]

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: bunker

Originally posted by: BigJ
I really don't think you can beat the public sector as far as job security is concerned.

As far as software engineering goes, are you interested in possibly being a lead on a project? Or managing a bunch of software engineers?

Those are two avenues that could help lead to serious advancement.

Your kidding about that bolded part, right?

It's damn near impossible to get canned from a gov't job. I've been in the public sector working for EDS and had to find new jobs twice because the contract i was on expired. EDS a direct competitor with Lockheed and Lockheed got the last contract i was on.

Lockheed offered me my own job...at a 10% salary cut and the benefits were going to cost me twice as much.

I'm now working for state gov't making more than I made with EDS, the benefits are unbelievably better, and I know for a fact, it will take a hell of a lot to get fired.

You have the definitions of public and private sectors confused.

Public sector = government

GOD DAMMIT!!!
<-- me

See, us gubment wurkers is smart.

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: bunker

Originally posted by: BigJ
I really don't think you can beat the public sector as far as job security is concerned.

As far as software engineering goes, are you interested in possibly being a lead on a project? Or managing a bunch of software engineers?

Those are two avenues that could help lead to serious advancement.

Your kidding about that bolded part, right?

It's damn near impossible to get canned from a gov't job. I've been in the public sector working for EDS and had to find new jobs twice because the contract i was on expired. EDS a direct competitor with Lockheed and Lockheed got the last contract i was on.

Lockheed offered me my own job...at a 10% salary cut and the benefits were going to cost me twice as much.

I'm now working for state gov't making more than I made with EDS, the benefits are unbelievably better, and I know for a fact, it will take a hell of a lot to get fired.

That's one ugly fact about the defense industry - your job is often only about as secure as the current contract. But as you xperienced, it's not unusual to stay at the same desk on the same project but with different companies - which plays hell with your vesting.

My advice - keep your ear to the ground, and make contacts in the company. Become known. So that when they lose the contractyou're working on, you may have options.

 

[fartbag]

Jump ship! You can always go back to the govt. Annual merit increases are ~3-5% depending on where you are in the salary band and your performance. LM tries to keep you below the midpoint of the salary band. In the .com boom raises were higher. You make the real money when you get promoted. Every promotion that I have received came with a >10% increase. Which division of LM did you get hired? I would guesss you got the offer from LM EIS, LM IS&S, or LMTO. What is the exact job title? You should get promoted to grade three based on your performance and the amount of responsibility you take on (~3 years if you kick ass). Grade 4 usually requires about 9 years of experiece. If you are a performer, you will be rewarded. Here is the key: stay in a position for one year then start applying for internal postions at the next grade level if you meet the min qualifications. You should see many open reqs in the Sunnyvale and San Jose area. If you wanna leave Cali, you will have even more opportunity. Get a security clearance if you don't already have one! There are plenty of other defense contractors in the area which require developers, so I would not worry about job security. Just keep your skills current! Good luck and congratulations on your offer!

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Soccerman06
I would seriously doubt (tho possible) that someone here actually works at Lockheed Martin. For that matter, how many people here are aerospace engineers?

Uhm ... why not? There are alot of engineers of various flavors here. I'm in Aerospace myself. Not working for Lockheed though.

 

[fartbag]

Originally posted by: Soccerman06
I would seriously doubt (tho possible) that someone here actually works at Lockheed Martin. For that matter, how many people here are aerospace engineers?

Hi2U

 

[AznMaverick]

Originally posted by: fartbag
Jump ship! You can always go back to the govt. Annual merit increases are ~3-5% depending on where you are in the salary band and your performance. LM tries to keep you below the midpoint of the salary band. In the .com boom raises were higher. You make the real money when you get promoted. Every promotion that I have received came with a >10% increase. Which division of LM did you get hired? I would guesss you got the offer from LM EIS, LM IS&S, or LMTO. What is the exact job title? You should get promoted to grade three based on your performance and the amount of responsibility you take on (~3 years if you kick ass). Grade 4 usually requires about 9 years of experiece. If you are a performer, you will be rewarded. Here is the key: stay in a position for one year then start applying for internal postions at the next grade level if you meet the min qualifications. You should see many open reqs in the Sunnyvale and San Jose area. If you wanna leave Cali, you will have even more opportunity. Get a security clearance if you don't already have one! There are plenty of other defense contractors in the area which require developers, so I would not worry about job security. Just keep your skills current! Good luck and congratulations on your offer!

Thank you for your feedback, it is what i was looking for. First, the position is for systems integration engineer and the other is for software engineer with one of their space ops companies, (they are going to send me the offer package through email tomorrow).

I'm worried because my with current govt job i am guaranteed a 24% increase in 2007, then a 8% increase the year after that, and potentially a 13% increase 2-3 years after that taking me to about $76k. If Lockheed Martin's salary doesn't at least match that, i think it wouldn't be worth the hassle of moving out of Hawaii to live in a place with a higher cost of living. oh yea...COLA is always nice too...=). Are you happy with your job? Do you like the people you work with or are they non-team players? Any way i can find sort of a pay chart and how the average engineer progresses?

man, this is a huge decision. it might define the rest of my life...

Originally posted by: Armitage


My advice - keep your ear to the ground, and make contacts in the company. Become known. So that when they lose the contractyou're working on, you may have options.

Yea, sadly these days it's about who you know.

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: AznMaverick

Originally posted by: fartbag
Jump ship! You can always go back to the govt. Annual merit increases are ~3-5% depending on where you are in the salary band and your performance. LM tries to keep you below the midpoint of the salary band. In the .com boom raises were higher. You make the real money when you get promoted. Every promotion that I have received came with a >10% increase. Which division of LM did you get hired? I would guesss you got the offer from LM EIS, LM IS&S, or LMTO. What is the exact job title? You should get promoted to grade three based on your performance and the amount of responsibility you take on (~3 years if you kick ass). Grade 4 usually requires about 9 years of experiece. If you are a performer, you will be rewarded. Here is the key: stay in a position for one year then start applying for internal postions at the next grade level if you meet the min qualifications. You should see many open reqs in the Sunnyvale and San Jose area. If you wanna leave Cali, you will have even more opportunity. Get a security clearance if you don't already have one! There are plenty of other defense contractors in the area which require developers, so I would not worry about job security. Just keep your skills current! Good luck and congratulations on your offer!

Thank you for your feedback, it is what i was looking for. First, the position is for systems integration engineer and the other is for software engineer with one of their space ops companies, (they are going to send me the offer package through email tomorrow).

I'm worried because my with current govt job i am guaranteed a 24% increase in 2007, then a 8% increase the year after that, and potentially a 13% increase 2-3 years after that taking me to about $76k. If Lockheed Martin's salary doesn't at least match that, i think it wouldn't be worth the hassle of moving out of Hawaii to live in a place with a higher cost of living. oh yea...COLA is always nice too...=)

man, this is a huge decision. it might define the rest of my life...

I see alot of government guys top out at GS13 for most of their career - dependin on the organization it can be next to impossible to get past that. Of course, you know your situation etter then I do.

Don't worry so much abut the money - what job do you *want* to do?

Originally posted by: Armitage


My advice - keep your ear to the ground, and make contacts in the company. Become known. So that when they lose the contractyou're working on, you may have options.

Yea, sadly these days it's about who you know.

It didn't mean it quite like that. Just that you have to get known outside your workgroup - get to know your organization and people outside your group. You'll hear about more opportunities earlier that way.

 

[AznMaverick]

i want to do both but for different reasons, too bad i can only pick one and if i choose the wrong one i might end up regretting it later.

i want the job at lockheed because of the challenge, experience, and opportunity of working with brilliat people on some state of the art projects.

i want to stay at my current job because it is secure, i feel comfortable there, i know that i can do the work there with no problems. with lockheed i'd be scared if i could perform up to par with all the smart stanford, carnegie mellon, , berkeley, etc people there. this is gonna be hard.

oh and yes you are right about GS13...but being a 13 isn't too shabby either at 100k at the top of the grade.

 

[KillerCharlie]

Originally posted by: Soccerman06
I would seriously doubt (tho possible) that someone here actually works at Lockheed Martin. For that matter, how many people here are aerospace engineers?

I KNOW there are people on the forums that work for LM. I am an aerospace engineer that works for Boeing. I wanted to work for LM last summer but got offered an internship from Boeing first. Of course after that I didn't want to work for anyone besides Boeing so I'm now a Boeing employee.

Anyway, Maverick, LM is a great place to work from what my friends have said. The aerospace industry is very cyclical. Right now it is on an upswing. Not only that, but the majority of workers are of retirement age and could walk off the job tomorrow. Software engineering is an area they always need people in. I would say the job would be very very secure. What happens (in the rare chance) if you get laid off? Go work at one of the other dozens LM sites.

 

[SampSon]

I used to know some guys that worked at LM in syracuse. They seemed to like it.

Yea, sadly these days it's about who you know.

What's so sad about that? People who can't network arn't worthy in the business market.

 

[BarneyFife]

Stick with the government job. Nothing can beat job security. Private corporations can slice you at any moment plus I'm willing to be that the government benefits are better than anything lm has to offer.

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: AznMaverick
i want to do both but for different reasons, too bad i can only pick one and if i choose the wrong one i might end up regretting it later.

i want the job at lockheed because of the challenge, experience, and opportunity of working with brilliat people on some state of the art projects.

i want to stay at my current job because it is secure, i feel comfortable there, i know that i can do the work there with no problems. with lockheed i'd be scared if i could perform up to par with all the smart stanford, carnegie mellon, , berkeley, etc people there. this is gonna be hard.

oh and yes you are right about GS13...but being a 13 isn't too shabby either at 100k at the top of the grade.

Wow - must be the COLA differential. I think a 13 topped out around 75 here in CO when I turned one down a few years ago.

I would go for the challenge & cool work personally.