Possible new Job

[Louwai]

I've just been contacted by a "head Hunter" & received a job offer for a position with BHP. Quite Snr position, based in Santiago, Chile.
The package offered is AU$150k /yr more than I get now....

VERY tempting.

Would be a fantastic opportunity & great experience.
But I'm not sure it would be the right thing to do just at the moment.

Is a total life change worth $150k / yr ????



This forum is a great help. While typing this I've decided to decline the position.
An extra $150k / yr is not worth losing contact with the family over.........

[JethroB76]

Awww, I was just about to tell you to do it:lol:

[el_draco]

Depends on whether you increase the dividend on my BHP shares mate, otherwise it's not nearly enough :D:rofl:

[OzRob]

Sounds like your mind is set so I will not bother giving my opinion...:D

[Louwai]

Chile is one of BHP's biggest mining operations. A few yrs back they built a 4000 bed camp up in the mountains to build 1 mine.
An average camp in Oz is around 700 beds.

I'm 100% positive that I'd add to the share price by saving them money. ;)
The position was a very Snr mgmt spot in the Project Estimating area.
I'm currently in a Snr postion in Estimating for a US Engineering company. (in Brissy)
Many Engineering firms have Engineers doing their propsals. Most of whom have never set foot outside the office or even SEEN a consruction site. That's why they get it soooo wrong & lose money.
(I'm not an Engineer, Never been to Uni)

Where I am now I regularly work on project proposals with a project value of between US$1b & US$10b
Also do plenty that are only a few hunded million as well.

[starlooker]

I think you made a fine choice. :)

EDIT: Re-read your first post again...you'd be making 150K on top of what you are currently making?!

I still think you made a fine choice. Family is priceless. :)

[CometGuy]

What sort of mines do you estimate for?

I've been out of engineering for over a decade, but when I worked in that field my employee had very specialised knowledge in coal preparation plants that enabled them to do accurate estimates at least 80% of the time. Most of their engineers spent a lot of time at site. Even then they got it badly wrong sometimes, although luckily for them not on the bigger scale projects. Usually the bad projects were the result of unreasonable timelines...

I got out of engineering into IT because of the stress of being away from familiy and friends all the time - quality of life. In the end I really started hating it to tell you the truth! You've problably made a good decision, but it must be a real morale boost to know your in such demand :)

Terry

[GrahamL]

Byran .. are there still issues in Chiles biggest copper mines
(12/09) or so regarding wages and conditions that surfaced late last year that havn't been resovled yet.?

Head hunters = bottom feeders Imo...Do you think you could sought this
mess out ?.. You would need a personal assistant or two to deal with that high desert no rain climate to :D

[Louwai]

Yes I know where you're coming from. Got my current position the same way. The company was seriously under quoting & losing money. The GM's comment to me during the initial interview was "I'm sick of Engineer's estimates"


Lots Terry, Coal, Copper, Gold, Iron Ore. You name it. + all the infrastructure to go with it as well as plenty of other stuff.


Yeah sometimes money just doesn't cut it. I had a good think & then compared current salary & lifestyle to proposed salary & researched a bit of Santiago lifestyle.
I gota admit that the money I get now is VERY good for your basic 37.5hrs / wk. In an office of 600 people, most of whom have WAY higher quals than I do, I'm the only one who can do what I do (accuratly).

[Wavytone]

Glad you turned it down.

You'd spend the bulk of the extra cash paying bribes... nothing gets done over there unless you grease peoples palms liberally, at every level.

[Starkler]

Sounds like the kind of job you could do for a few years and then retire or semi retire with security.

[Louwai]

Yes true Geoff. I was sorta thinking along those lines. But I think I've done my time away from the family. Up until 2001 I had spent something like 15yrs working remote sites on a Fly-in, Fly-out basis.

My (ex) wife really put up with a lot. Most yrs I was only home for a total of around 2mths a yr. Money was good, but I missed a lot of the kids growing up.

Now I'm single again & could easily afford the time to take this job, but I think I'll stay here at least until the youngest one (9yo) is old enough to fly international by herself. Then I'll look into something like this more seriously.

As well as my Australian Passport, I also have a British one, so I can live & work in any EU country. So lots of choice for the future.