CAREERS MEDIA: A checklist to help you determine when it's time to move on

How do you know when it's time to look for a new job? Apart from the obvious - such as when you're called in by your boss, who tells you to clear your desk before 5pm - the signs are not always obvious. Too many people hang around in dead-end jobs, convincing themselves that things will get better and those magical prospects for promotion and pay increases will suddenly materialise. However, for the benefit of those who are less keen to let time slip by, newly-appointed publisher of Hong Kong daily newspaper iMail Nigel Oakins, has offered "career guidance" in the form of a checklist, which he titled "How To Know When It's Time To Look For A New Job". - Do an annual audit of yourself: are you more valuable in yourself and your company than you were a year ago? Have you learned new skills? Are you more likely to be poached? Have you had payrises or bonuses as a result of your efforts? - Do you report to older people? Companies have to realise that young people need to have management responsibilities, and that it was demoralising for young staff to realise that promotions and responsibilities are only going to be handed out on the basis of age, seniority and experience, rather than ability and new ideas. - Is risk-taking encouraged? If you don't challenge your client's thinking, how can you challenge your own? "That will lead to certain brain-death", Mr Oakins quipped. - Look at your colleagues and assess their abilities: "If you're surrounded by deadbeats and losers, it is unlikely that you are the exception," he said. - If you like the company you work for, but you are in a dead-end position, look to move internally. It makes your CV more impressive, and it is better off than moving into "the great unknown". - Make mistakes, but learn from them. Do things your own way. - Make sure you are given the resources to do your job properly, and that you receive training where you need it. - Insist on good working conditions. Do not put up with second-rate conditions. "Staff do more than just make up the numbers," Mr Oakins said. - Make sure you have ownership in the company, in the form of stock options, profit-sharing, bonuses and so on. - Work for a company that treats you as an individual, that takes you seriously, that addresses your concerns. All this advice can be turned around and used by employers in the battle to keep staff from defecting, Mr Oakins said. And advice for human resources directors, employers and head-hunters who somtimes lack vision when it comes to spotting potential and attitude in someone who might otherwise seem totally unsuitable: keep an open mind to all possibilities.

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