LayoffsFeb 15, 2023
Novartisgenacc

Please review and advise of course corrections or value adds

I am 45, married with a spouse who just started earning and two kids 9 and 5. I am a Program Manager with double digit work experience working with a large Pharma organization. Before this I have worked in Financial services. I live in a HCOL area. My company has announced that 85pct of the staff will be cut and I am expected to be impacted in second half of 2023. I currently make $196k on base plus about a $100k in bonus and my spouse makes about $40k. All figures are annual. On being separated I will get 20 weeks of severance pay plus a prorating on all stock options not vested. My current situation is as follows: 1. No debt 2. Paid off home worth $750k 3. 6 months emergency funds 4. Almost $1M in retirement assets 5. 4 months ahead on budget (on YNAB) and trying to get to 6 months I am looking for input on the following and would be grateful for any suggestions: 1. I have started looking for roles. However I am not getting any calls back and infact am only getting automatic rejections without even an interview. I am a Program Manager with an MBA and double digit work experiene. I am a PMI certified PMP and Scaled Agile certified with hands on experience in these areas running large programs and projects. However I am not a TPM although my projects are within IT. TPM seems to be a construct / role fairly prevalent in High tech and mostly I have worked in Life sciences or Financial services where this is not quite common. The last few years have been in data management projects. I am starting to do additional Coursera courses including AWS cloud practitioner but are there other courses you may be able to suggest to gain an edge? Are there other certs needed or anything specialized that has to be done if I want to apply to TPM roles and should I apply to TPM roles? Before getting into Program management I spent the first four years of my career as a software developer out of Engineering school. Can you recommend any firms that may be looking for the kinds of skills I bring to the table in the current layoff environment? I am a US citizen with no visa restrictions and I have no fear of learning anything new if skills have to be upgraded. 2. My 6 months Emergency savings plus 5 months severance plus 6 months ahead on current average spending of $8825 per month gets me to 17 months. By cutting out everything except what I absolutely need, I can bring this to $4300 a month. Should I be desperately looking for a position now or relax and take time to look after being let go? 3. What can I do if I cannot find a role paying same as what I make? Should I take contract roles and wait for right opportunity or ride the severance and other expenses out until I find something suitable? 4. I have asked my wife to see whether her employer offers insurance (it's a small company). What are my health insurance options (is marketplace cheaper) when I lose my job? Cobra seems very expensive I know these are lot of questions and I am not expecting anyone would have an answer to all but if you do have some advise for me kindly feel free to post.

ADT The🥜Man Feb 15, 2023

Yeah... I think you'll be okay dude.

Oracle crudeoill Feb 15, 2023

At surface level, it looks like you can afford to relax for a month or two and spend time with your family. I suggest you change your title from program manager to technical program manager in your resume. It will increase the callbacks. If your calculations of runway don’t include cost of health insurance then, redo them and see where you stand. If you decide to spend time with your family, make sure you give your kids some great memories that they’ll look back and think this is exactly I want to act in adversity. Don’t over encroach because you have time on your hand. My dad was invisible till he was working. He took early retirement and suddenly loomed large over my life with very little context. I hated him for a while, it’s better now that I understand him more. But far from great example. Hope this helps.

Novartis genacc OP Feb 15, 2023

In order to put myself as TPM can you recommend what additionally I need to do?

Novartis genacc OP Feb 15, 2023

Messaged you

Workday bklshb Feb 15, 2023

TPM here. It’s a very tough market right now. My Tpm from google are not getting calls right now

Okta OMLk23 Feb 15, 2023

Umm… Pick up a phone, call fellow MBA and land equally cushy position? I thought MBA is all about connections.

Novartis genacc OP Feb 15, 2023

Not when it's more than 10 years old and everyone has gone in different directions and you did not graduate from a top 10. Usually people go to top 10 for connections.

Salesforce pathann Feb 15, 2023

TPM unfortunately is worst role to be in in this market .

Novartis genacc OP Feb 15, 2023

I am not a TPM if you define it the way tech companies do. I am just trying to find out if I should reposition myself.

Juniper pban6 Feb 16, 2023

@Salesforce OP, why is TPM the worst role to be in?