A Fork in the Road

Back on October 21 I got some big news at work. Merck is closing the Rosetta Inpharmatics site by the end of 2009 as part of a global reorganization. There was a week of shock and confusion, after which we knew that of the 300 people at Rosetta 50 (including myself) would be offered transfers to the Merck Research Labs facility in Boston.

Carol and I were really depressed at first. I often comment on this blog about how content we have been. We love so much about our life in Seattle. And we loved my job situation, which is fulfilling but doesn't demand extra time so I get plenty of time with my family.

Our first reaction to a Boston relocation was "Hell No!" But we've kept an open mind and talked to our families about it and Carol and I have played a lot of "what if" games. We took a trip to Boston last week for four days to check it out. We had researched real estate online and were able to confirm that neighborhoods we identified as affordable for us are indeed places we could envision living. We've talked to our parents about the logistics of the girls seeing their grandparents as much as possible and it seems like that could work.

If I don't accept the transfer, I will be laid off sometime in 2009 with a fairly generous severance package. The actual date I'd be laid off is completely unknown, which makes it very difficult to either look for a job immediately (and give up the severance) or predict what the job market might look like when I do get laid off. The relocation package is very generous. It would be very hard for us to find a way to lose money on the move. The company will even buy our house if we can't sell it in 60 days.

We have until December 15 to decide whether to accept the transfer offer. There are so many things to consider. Here are a few:

Pros:

• The "bird in the hand" aspect. This is not a cost-cutting move on Merck's part – it is an effort to streamline drug research and put my group closer to the scientists we support. They will spend a small fortune to relocate us to Boston and I doubt they would invest that amount only to lay me off within the next 12-18 months. The job market in Seattle is already bad and getting worse. If I were to find a new job here, I'd be the newest employee and first to go if the economy continues to worsen.
• I actually like my job. I've been in the software business for 25 years now. I've burned out a few times. The last few job changes I was happy to find a job I could tolerate, but in this job I came across work I actually love. That is completely because of the science I am surrounded by at work. I have to work 20 more years, and it sure would be nice to do that in a job and field that stimulates me. I'm looking around, but I think I'm very unlikely to find a similar job in Seattle.
• The group I am part of is essentially being promoted en masse. We thought we'd be safe in the reorganization because we are a core part of the strategy. It turns out that's exactly why they want to move us to a central research location. Our group will grow substantially after the move and there is huge opportunity for me to take on more responsibility.
• I'm approaching the end of my Masters degree in Bioinformatics (expected next August). Staying in this group gives me a transition path toward contributing more from a scientific point of view than a software one. Other companies aren't going to hire me for that new skill set because I don't have any real experience in it yet.
• The adventure of living in a different place. Carol and I have had a dream of living in a European city for a couple of years sometime while the girls are growing up. This isn't quite Europe but has the same effect of exposing them to a slightly different culture and environment.
• Along those lines, Boston is very convenient to the rest of the East Coast. We can easily take vacations to Maine and eastern Canada (Montreal, for example), New York, Philadelphia, Washington D.C. etc.

Cons:

• Family. All of our girls' grandparents, aunts, and uncles are here in Seattle. We love the fact that our kids get to see their extended family frequently.
• Carol's support network. Carol has a good network of friends here that help her keep her sanity being a stay-at-home mom.
• Our house. We love it, and we love the garage and studio we built and the back yard we finally assembled this year.
• Seattle! All of you who live here know what we mean. It's such a wonderful place to live.
• All of our friends, of course.
• Even though I think a job in Boston would be secure for a while, no job is secure in the long term any more. We could end up going through another transition in a year or two – and considering moving back to Seattle at our expense.

As you can see, most of the pros have to do with me and my job and the cons involve ripping up some pretty deep roots in Seattle. Is it worth it to do that for a job? In our parents' generation that was routine and unquestioned. These days it seems like a strange thing to even consider. But considering it we are. It occupies our thoughts most of the time, including many midnight hours when we wake up and can't go back to sleep because we're turning it over in our minds. It's one of those very big decisions one has to make in life.

Wish us luck!