I’m still trying to figure out what to do: marketing or OB/HR? I know I don’t have to know tomorrow, but since when do I care about such things. I want to know yesterday. So I talked to someone in marketing at HP today. It was not the most uplifting conversation, but it was definitely helpful.
The bottom line is that I probably don’t have enough experience to get the type of marketing jobs I would want out of school. The I was talking to a girl in my class who has a background in the tech industry and she made the comment, “just knowing you the little I do, I think you’d be great in OB/HR”. As much as I appreciate that, it was a little discouraging if, in fact I do decide to do marketing.
Here are my big hangups with OB/HR. First of all it has a stigma. Now, that’s kind of a ridiculous reason to not do something, but it’s there. It exists. I must face that. Next, it’s not as “sexy” as marketing and I’d like to do something “sexy”. Third, I kind of feel like it’s not actually doing anything, just facilitating others to do things. And while facilitating is important, if these teams could just get their crap together then it’s possible that it would become obsolete.
And the pushes toward OB/HR. For one, I have no idea how long I will have a career in the traditional sense. The skills I will learn in OB/HR are totally transferable, whether I’m volunteering for a non-profit, holding a church calling, running the PTA (and I cannot believe I just said that), and even beyond this life. I don’t want to plan my life around what ifs, but I think it’s important to think about transferability.
Next is the fact that, with marketing, I can only see myself really passionate about a few types of products. Because OB/HR deals in people, I am less concerned about the types of products a company makes than I am about the culture of that company and how they view OB/HR. I think this will open many more doors to me in the future.
Third is my own experience and what I bring to the table. The fact of the matter is that I have almost no marketing experience. If we are talking about the traditional sense, then I really have none. I want to get a job, and I’d like it to be a good one. If going into OB/HR means that I can do that, while still doing something I enjoy, I think that’s an important piece to consider. Along those same lines is feeling confident about my abilities throughout the interview process and into the work itself. As much as I might like it to be otherwise, the bottom line is that I am confident in my abilities in OB/HR thus far.
Oh, another negative is that it is an area dominated by women. I was hoping to get away from that on some level. But whatever.
Anyway, I think that’s enough on that subject for now, other than the fact that I spoke with Alex Johnson today (it was a great chat about Cisco) and he mentioned that Megan Hundley, the Cisco rep that was at the OB/HR rafting trip, commented that I would be someone she would like to see interview with Cisco (or something to that effect). That made me feel really good, but I definitely don’t want to become overly confident in my abilities or my desirability.
So much to think about. So much to consider.
In other news, my team is doing well so far. It’s not the team I would have chosen AT ALL, but I think we’ll work well together. I do have some concerns about Wagner Dias in that I think he is one who has to get every thought he has out there and, frankly there’s just not time for that. Okay, I have more than one concern, but for now, I think focusing on how I can best contribute rather than my concerns about others is going to be the most beneficial way to go. Not only that, but I feel like it’s too early in the game to really freak out.
I think I’ve pretty well decided on OB/HR, but for some reason I don’t want that to be the answer. Is it because I’m stubborn, or because I’m overlooking something???
existential dilemmas 