Junior - Middleweight
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- TOMMYxGUNN0
I'm going to speak to the boss soon, if you don't ask, you don't get eh?
- do you sit near him? play a little footsyhitsuji
- Not bad...TOMMYxGUNN
- mistermik0
just call yourself an art director.
- TOMMYxGUNN0
I suppose if Rybo can call himself an Art Director...
- hahahaha, but no, seriously.
He can't.Nairn - Rockstar Designer? Is that the right term?TOMMYxGUNN
- das is der KORREKTEN.Nairn
- hahahaha, but no, seriously.
- coolhipNgroovy0
TOMMYxGUNN just recently I realised that I am in the same predicament, I thought I was working hard, gaining experience and I thought that no one in the studio saw me as 'the junior', until Monday when the Boss was moaning about people spending too much time making tea rounds, he pointed at me and said 'get the junior to do it'
Nice :/
- Sounds like a bit of a prick actually.shitehawke
- 4 years in the industry, won a couple of competitions for him and he makes daft comments like that, sends me straight to the job websites that does...coolhipNgroovy
- ...job websites.coolhipNgroovy
- TOMMYxGUNN0
Ooooooh that's got to hurt. They're not like that at my place (yet). How long you been a junior?
- spot130
- lol, thanks for the valuable advice!coolhipNgroovy
- seriously though, if you don't tell your boss what you want, they'll pay you as little as possible.spot13
- coolhipNgroovy0
Nearly 4 years, 1st company just over a year, 2nd company 1.5 year and this company 2 years in May.
Have you got any juniors below you?
- fodcj0
Half the time I feel they just don't promote as then they don't have to raise your salary... from my experience both go hand-in-hand.
- TOMMYxGUNN0
That's pretty much the same as me. There are two other juniors. One came straight out of college and has been here for 2.5 yrs (1year longer than me), the other came straight out of college and has been here for 6 months. One of them said to me the other day they don't see me as a junior, which was nice to hear!
Think spot13's got it right. I see myself as a graphic designer, not a junior graphic designer. And also, they're not going to rush to promote you are they, when they can get the same for less.
- Not_Just_Another0
I think the whole Junior/Mid/Senior thing is a bit misleading. If you excel at what you do and begin to warrant taking on additional responsibility you'll soon start creeping up the ladder as it were. Just bear in mind that the more money you expect or get paid, the more responsibility will sit on your shoulders.
The last place I worked at we didn't have job titles in the typical sense, it was more a definition of what you did, so that could be Artworker, Creative, Interactive Designer, Producer etc... that way the only way people could judge your talent was by the work you produced, not by your job title.
- Nice idea. What did you put on your CV/Resume though when you left?fodcj
- I left as an 'Interactive Designer'. I think it's important to be honest with the kind of work you do. Otherwise people may get the impression that you're pigeon-holing yourself even before you've started.Not_Just_Another
- impression that you're pigeon-holing yourself even before you've started.Not_Just_Another
- coolhipNgroovy0
I see myself as a designer too, the harsh comment on Monday made me realise what the Boss actually thinks of me. Which cheeses me right off, he doesn't work with us in the studio so I should take any notice of his comments, he's jsut getting narky because of the credit crunch. Nit picking about making tea rounds? Come on!
I have not juniors below me, which is probably why I'm always lumped into the junior category.
So, er... any jobs going at your place TommyxGunn????!
- Things are rocky here too! Lost all the freelancers, and a few seniors have left that arn't to be replacedTOMMYxGUNN
- joeth0
Sounds like you should be past the junior level. Aside from salary and responsibility, losing the Junior in your title does a lot for your dignity and getting the respect you deserve.
Talk to your boss. Ask for a promotion. Even if they say no to a raise, see if you can lose the Jnr.
- spot130
Fist step, find a way to show your boss your value. Learn something that nobody else in the company knows much about and demonstrate it. Second, show that you have options, be confident and get yourself exposure with a good portfolio and network exposure (join industry groups). Finally, don't be shy and ask to move up, ask to meet with your boss to discuss your future with the company, keep it positive (no ultimatums) and find out where your boss sees you in the company over the next year - five years. Find out what skills you could expand on to get there faster.
- In the current climate, that's some great advice. Always try to be as useful as possible.Not_Just_Another
- hitsuji0
I think from where I worked last that you kind of need to ask to be in a more senior role. One guy at my last place was literally the glue behind the company. Anything good that the company produced was done by him, I was amazed with how good he was. But he was just a normal designer and worked under other guys that were nowhere near his level of ability, but what was nice was, they respected that, they knew he was the best and he got the praise he deserved. I think he just doesn't want the responsibility of a senior role.
- stem0
Like your salary/wages, take what you think you are and what your boss/employer thinks you are, go for somewhere in the middle and you are about there.
- TOMMYxGUNN0
I think that the better the place your at, the longer the process takes to move up. The worse the place your at, the faster you move up.
Massive generalisation?
- ask yourself, if you were in your bosses shoes, what would be the benefit of promoting you?spot13
- coolhipNgroovy0
Is that because all the people that were above you, have now gone to work for that better company which takes ages to move up??!
- Someone I know at my previous job went to work inhouse for a publishers doing catalogues, they lost their jnr statusTOMMYxGUNN
- and are now middleweight. But the main bulk of their work is catalogues and advert mailers.TOMMYxGUNN
- spot130
better place = more competition, so generally speaking your right
- hitsuji0
plus the standards are higher. but a boss at a small shitty company will be a tight arse so will try not to promote if possible i reckon.
- Not_Just_Another0
But at a better place you're more likely to pick up new skills/traits and that'll help push you further.