You Can’t Job Switch Forever

This video segment explores job switching as a strategy to increase compensation, acknowledging its significant financial benefits while outlining important limitations. It offers a balanced view of when and how to leverage this option effectively within a career in tech.

• Job switching can deliver major pay increases, especially when moving from lower-paying companies to top-tier tech firms like Facebook, Google, or Airbnb. Offers from these companies often represent a different compensation tier altogether.
• The current tech market is highly competitive, driven by remote work and talent shortages, which makes switching jobs particularly lucrative for engineers not already paid at “top of market” rates.
• However, job switching comes with diminishing returns. Frequent transitions (e.g., every 6–12 months) can raise red flags for recruiters due to high costs of hiring and onboarding, making a two-year tenure the informal minimum standard.
• Banding limits how much pay can increase through switching if already working at top-tier firms. For example, a mid-level engineer will only be offered a similarly banded role and compensation elsewhere.
• Job switching doesn’t contribute to actual growth as an engineer. Preparing for interviews (e.g., Leetcode) is time-consuming and doesn’t improve the long-term skills needed to succeed or progress to leadership roles like principal engineer.