Giving Notice

I gave 1 month when I left my job to stay home with my kids. It worked out wonderfully for all involved.

It is the proper thing to do the two weeks but it would be better if you can give more.

I have to agree with what LeeLee stated. I have a co-worker who has just given her two week's notice and she is acting as if she has "left the building:" In fact she is carrying on as if she is doing her other outside interests inside the company and it is annoying to others.

You will be remembered one for giving your bosses extra time to find a replacement that you can help train.

Good luck on your transition.

The other S.

Two weeks is the amount of time that employers required to find a new female secretary and train her in the 1950s. That's where the "two weeks" rule came from. It certainly takes more than two weeks to hire a new employee in the corporate world, much less train them. If you have a good relationship with your bosses, tell them now so they can start looking for a replacement in time for you to train him/her. When I left my last job I gave three months notice because that's when I decided to leave. It was great because I was able to spend my last few months documenting things and gradually transitioning work to other staff, rather than rushing around in a frenzy in the last week trying to get everything done.

I think the two week rule of thumb is MINIMAL notice.
If you have a good relationship with them, I would absolutely give them a heads up sooner than later. Just let them know that this is the right step for you and your family, but that you respect both them and your company enough to make sure you don't leave them stranded. I cannot imagine them being anything less than appreciative of the length of time you are going to give them in finding a suitable replacement.

Hm. I gave a month's notice when I left my last position (a school) and it was a painful month. All the questions about how I could do this, why would I leave, etc... Normally I'd say 2 weeks is enough. Are you planning on going back to that same job after some time or are you leaving like quitting? Whatever you do, don't burn any bridges. It's hard to get back into Corp America after being out and you may need all your contacts to get back in. Best of luck! And enjoy being at home with the kiddies!
www.educationmom.com

You know best how the bosses would operate.... so do you think they would let you go sooner than you are ready to leave? If not, go ahead and give them a heads up. Dont worry about what others say... some companies might do that, but probably only if the boss is a jerk and/or the person does not have a good performance history, or is leaving to work for a competitor or something like that. If you think they might let you go faster than you would be ready, only give 1 month. They probably can't replace you within a month. If you have a good relationship with them, dont burn the bridge.... 2 weeks is acceptable, but 1 month is good form in a professional setting, especially when you aren't dealing with a deadline from a new employer. They might even ask you to help train a replacement if they have time to hire before you leave. Good luck to you and congrats on getting to spend more time with your kids!!!

Both times I’ve had to give notice I did it 6 weeks before leaving; I’ve always had a great relationship with my bosses and co-workers and have been fortunate in how I’ve been treated so I felt they really deserved it.
The 1st time it was a small department so it was mainly my boss and me and he was getting married so I didn’t want to tell him last minute and have him try to figure out what to do while on his honey moon or wedding preparation.
The 2nd time I was working for a small company that was not very comfortable with hiring just anyone, so I thought that after the way they had treated me for so long, specially letting me work from home during the last days of my pregnancy and ½ time after my son was born, I had to let them know with enough time for them to figure it out and for me to train the replacement.
It worked so well that although I don’t live in that same town anymore, I still work remotely for them after my replacement didn’t work out for them.
So my advice would be to give them enough notice and let them know that you have been so happy working there that you didn’t want to let them stranded without enough time to find a suitable replacement for you and you being able to possible train replacement. Don’t burn any bridges.
Good luck to you and congratulations on being able to take a sabatical, I know I wish I coudl!

I would let them know I was planning on leaving some time in June. They can't do anything harsh or rude. But it would be so much easier for them to start adapting their thinking to your leaving.

If you guys are like family then it would not be nice to just spring it on them.

If you have been there a long time and have a great relationship - then I would consider 4-8 weeks notice. When I did this, I gave my boss 12 weeks notice and told him that I would assist as much as possible in training and transition. I ended up working almost another 6 months more but only 12 weeks in the office - the rest was at home and then around my new schedule.

Consider whether you want to give them the option of you working a different schedule or telecommuting - if that is something that can be done in your profession.

C.

2 weeks is fine, but don't count out telecommuting. I don't know what you do, but my specifc job was not particularly suited to telecommunitng either. However, when they found out I was not coming back there was a spot for me on a special project where I could telecommute.

That was 4 years ago. Since then I was moved to another part of my department where all I do is work on "special projects" all of which I can do from my dining room table.

So - I guess what I am saying make sure you keep the lines of communication open, becuase you never know what opportunites may be out there that you are unaware of...

Good luck! And have fun being a SAHM!

As long as you don't have a certain date you need to leave by, why not just have a conversation with them and say, "I need to be full time with my family. I want to make this transition in whatever way is easiest for you. How long do we need for this transition?"

They may get mad or feel hurt and tell you to leave right then, but they may (hopefully) work out a one-two-or three-month transition plan that will allow you to close out your work and train a new person. Or you could come up with the options that you've thought of for transitioning out. But give them some control of the situation.

Be sure to let them know how much you appreciate them. You will likely need them again sometime for a recommendation!

If it were me, in your situation, since you're not in a hurry to leave, I would talk to my boss and ask her what she thought a suitable time frame was. I would tell her what my goal is, but that I'm not in a huge hurry, that I would like to be gone by this date if possible, and your boss can give you feedback on what is needed from their end (to find a replacement, to tie up loose ends on your assignments/projects, etc., and to train someone if necessary). This also communicates to them that you are and always will be a loyal and dedicated employee.

I was in a similar position and gave almost 3 months notice. I quit to go back to school, had a great relationship with my boss (we both cried when I let her know, being happy-sad about it) and I liked my job. I wanted to give them time to find a replacement for me and even helped train him before I left.

I felt good about my decision, it was the right thing to do.
I still visit my old workplace every now and then and say hello to my boss - and I know she will give me a GREAT reference when I am ready to return to the workforce.

Good luck.

It's always nice to give as long of a notice as possible. If you have a great relationship w/ your company/bosses, then why not?

I did work for someone a long time ago that as soon as you gave a notice, he told you pack your stuff up on the spot. When I asked him why, he said that he felt that employees started slacking off during those last two weeks and he didn't want to pay for it and he also felt like there was a greater incidence of employee theft during those two weeks. I always thought that was an interesting comment. Doesn't apply to you, but I've always remembered it.

Give enough notice that they can hire and train someone for your position.

It really depends on the people involved.
I've seen long notices work out (like when people retire), and I've seen things get ugly when there's too much advance notice given.
Too much notice and they'll expect you to train your replacement.
This could be good or bad.
I've seen people leave, then come back and work on an as needed contractor basis.
2 weeks is what is usually required.
4 weeks is very generous.
More than that might be a bit excessive.

Why in the world not give as much notice as possible? Typically people have another job they're going to and the new employer won't wait a month or something like that. When I leave my job, I'll give them a very open ended range. So long as it doesn't go too long and so long as they don't tell me to leave that day and I"m not ready to do that, it just seems like the nice thing to do. If I were a boss and knew you COULD give more notice but just didn't feel like it, I'd be a bit po'd and it would sour the once good relationship. I can't imagine going in and telling my boss - who I love- I'm done in 2 weeks and him not feeling betrayed if I could give him more than that but was just choosing not to.

I think you need to keep in mind, how long will it take to train someone to fill your position. Is there a colleague that could easily assume a majority of your duties or would they need to hire and train someone immediately.

In general, I would recommend 30 days notice.

Wellllll if it were me & I liked the job & just needed to wk part time, I would ask for part time if you haven't already. If they just cannot compromise on the part time, then give them the 2 week notice & if they ask why, just explain that while you're very happy working w/the company, you're simply needing to lessen your hours or find part time work elsewhere or you can just mention instead that you're really needing to spend all of your time at home w/your family at this time...I'm sure either scenario would work. Hope this helps, best of luck!!

30 days for sure. Any more and it could feel uncomfortable. I recently did this and it was a great month!

Your family's advice was appropriate 2-3 decades ago, but it its not that way everywhere today. I'd give as much notice as possible, especially if you are in a role that is hard to fill or in a corporation where you have to jump through hoops to replace someone. Start talking to your bosses about it now, and give your formal letter of resignation at least 30 days in advance. The easier you make your transition on your bosses, the more likely you can be rehired later if you want or can be considered for a role as a consultant or for project work if you are ever interested.

Backfilling a job shakes things up, and how you handle the transition effects your professional reputation. At my job, it can easily be a 6 monthh process...2-3 months is an expedited timeline. On top of that, hiring freezes tend to be put in place like clockwork on July 1st, so your boss may really need a letter of resignation before then to get a replacement in the works. At my job, the hiring manager has to work with HR to get a job description posted internally for a minimum of 2 weeks, then it can be posted externally. From the resumes, the talent manager sends a variety of resumes to the hiring manager with recommendations on who to interview. The hiring manager reviews that, sets the interviews, then has to conduct the interviews (which involve a panel of at least 3 managers listening), then provide their preference to the talent manager, and then HR will tell the hiring manager who they are to hire. THEN, the offer has to be made and accepted, then a full background check (which can take 1-4 weeks) and then whoever accepts the job has to give notice at their job. After all that, we can get an untrained person on board. The process takes months! My boss has told us before that she would ideally like 60 days notice but a minimum of 30 days AND a transition plan submitted with resignation. She considers 2 weeks notice to be a slap in the face, and she will never give a recommendation for anyone who gave her only 2 weeks notice.

I would give them notice so that you can train the person they need to hire to replace you. Especially since this will be a shock to them AND you have a great relationship with them - they will most likely want your input on who they hire and let you train them.

Congrats!!! Being a SAH Parent isn't easy. It takes a while to adjust and get into a routine. The money will be different as well. For the next 6 to 8 weeks - DO NOT TOUCH your paycheck - just put it directly into savings to be sure you can live off one paycheck and still be able to afford everything.

Yes. There will be ways for you to cut back and save more money. Clipping coupons, making menus, checking your cell phone plan and coverage to see if you can cut back...sorry - I digressed - but I know how some people get shocked at the change and for some - the routine is VERY hard to get into!!! YOU CAN DO IT MAMA!!!