We ask our woman in the spotlight to pick any topic that's on her mind. Here's what Nikki had to say ...
Relocation, Relocation, Relocation.
You know what they say in real estate – location, location, location. In my career there’s been a similar saying - relocation, relocation, relocation. In the past 10 years I’ve relocated three times – all with the same employer. Here’s my story.
Relocation #1 - Salt Lake City, Utah to St. Paul, Minnesota.
I was in my late 20s when my employer first asked if I’d be willing to relocate. It was a relatively easy decision for me. I was young, without kids, and I had a spouse that was willing to support a move to another state. I felt stagnate in my current position with the company and welcomed the chance to take on greater responsibilities. Relocating at the time was exciting and certainly let my company know that I was flexible and willing to do what was necessary to advance and grow. The relocation was associated with a promotion and provided me with new challenges, a higher salary, and additional experiences. Everything about it was positive.
Relocation #2 - St. Paul back to Utah
The second time I relocated was something I initiated and it was for personal, family reasons. We had just had our first daughter and my husband wanted to move back to his home state of Utah to be closer to his family. Though I loved my job, I wanted to support my spouse as he had supported me during our first relocation. When I told my company that I would be moving, I assumed I was also resigning since I never imagined my company would support my voluntary relocation. Luckily for me, I was incredibly fortunate to have a boss and mentor that wanted to see me continue my career with the company. My job was transferred back to Utah and I was able to support my husband’s desire to be closer to his family without negatively impacting my career.
Relocation #3 – Utah back to St. Paul (again!)
My third relocation was associated with my current position as Vice President of Test Development for Prometric. In order to secure the promotion I was required to relocate once again back to St. Paul. Relocation at this time in my life was far more complicated than it had been before. I now had three children to move and a husband who was unsure about job prospects in a new city. In addition, we would be moving back to a state in which we had no family. My husband and I had quite a few people tell us that we were crazy for relocating again. What if we hated it? What if we lost our jobs while in the relocated state? How would we handle being without any family? After some family discussion we decided that relocation was really the only option for us. We both wanted to have careers that inspired us and offered us opportunities for growth. Refusing this promotion and avoiding relocation would have essentially stunted if not ended my growth within the company and (even though no one would say it specifically) would certainly remove me from the list of internal candidates for future key positions.
