Great Exepectations

I never expected that I'd be thinking about moving again so soon. Nothing is solid yet at all, but I put in an application this weekend to work as an audio engineer for Rosetta Stone, which, if you haven't followed the link yet, is located in the western portion of the state of Virginia. Paul Heitsch, an ex-coworker of mine from PIL, recently signed on as the audio director there and has said that he is willing to go as far as he can go without circumventing their HR department to offer me the position. From my position, if they make an offer that's attractive enough for me to uproot and move again, I'll do it. From what Paul tells me, I could be earning more compared to my current position. And in a smaller town like Harrisonburg, the bang for my buck will be greater in terms of the cost of living.

But let me make it clear. I like working here at PIL well enough, but it's no secret that they don't pay their creative employees what they're worth. The initial offer they made me was actually a little offensive. But, when given the choice between the potential to earn the money they were offering versus nothing per year, who wouldn't turn them down? I believe that their methodology (in general) is to hire nothing but new graduates, people who are desperate to get a job, pay them as little as possible, then let them go in a couple of years when the new grad finally has some experience to find a better job.

In their defense, it seems that if you show that you're committed to the company by hanging around for a while, I think they'll eventually give you enough in annual salary increases to make up the discrepency between their initial offer and industry averages. But, from my estimates based on my own salary, that would take a decade or more, which from where I stand, seems like too much time because between now and then, I'm not earning anywhere near industry averages. And anyway, those "catch-up" raises are not guaranteed. It could be nothing but a carrot on a stick.

Basically, if Rosetta Stone makes me an attractive offer, I will give PIL a chance to keep me if they want to do so. All I have to do is present the offer in writing. But if they don't feel that they need me, I'm more than happy to bail on them. I would miss some of my coworkers. They are fun people. I like the fact that I can get together with my boss and hang out now and again. But, unfortunately, I have to grab the golden ring when I can, and I'm not talking about Sonic.