Chooseing between two very good, very close job offers..

March 6, 2013 7:29 PM

Chooseing between two very good, very close job offers..

I have two job offers, and I have to decide.. like a final decision within the next 6 hours and I'm terribly stressed out about it.

Company 1.

Same money I'm currently making but with slight bump up once I hit 1 yr mark
Ability to remote work every other month - can start remote work right away.
When in town, working from home 1 day / week
Over-time pay
Commission based pay on company-related projects I decide to do on my own time

NOTE:
This company has never had a remote worker before...
This company is allot "bigger" and more well-known in the community
I have physically worked for them for a year.


Company 2.

Slightly more money with salary review every 6 months
Ability to remote work every other month - but first two have to be in office
when in town, working from home 2 days / week
Over-time pay
Commission based on if I bring new clients in (not very likely)

NOTE:
This is a small company run out of a house.
I remote worked for them for a year.


IDK who to choose, the management and people are pretty much the same in-terms of like-ability and trustability.

Is there any further questions I can ask to help make a decision?
Or who would you choose and why?

My biggest thing right now is the ability to work remote and job security.

posted by audio to Work & Money (10 answers total)

Bigger companies usually offer more job security, and it sounds like it they're offering you better 'remote work' options, so there's you two top priorities right there. There's usually more advancement opportunities at big companies too - or at least, it gives you the crediblity to advance when you leave to go elsewhere.

I'd call up Option 1, say "i have this other job offer, and they are offering me X salary, can you match it?" and then go there. (If it's a slight bump, they'll probably match it. You're a known quantity to them, and as such are a low risk hire who is probably worth a slightly larger expenditure.)
posted by Kololo at 7:34 PM on March 6, 2013 [2 favorites]

Company 1, working remotely, better established (less likely to fold), what sounds like more opportunities for advancement/better pay
posted by arnicae at 7:35 PM on March 6, 2013

So it sounds like job #1 is going to be better for job security and not as good at remote working.

And it sounds like job #2 is going to be better at remote working, but could collapse at any time if the owner goes bust/is hit by a bus/retires/has a change of heart about running a business/decides they don't like you/etc.

Yeah, another vote for #1. And might as well ask them to match salary from #2. Theres no way it would hurt.
posted by fontophilic at 7:41 PM on March 6, 2013

Who has the better health insurance? I encountered a similar situation a few years ago. Two very good, similar job offers. I ended up going with the one with better health coverage. This subsequently kept me from going bankrupt a few years later.
posted by kimdog at 7:45 PM on March 6, 2013 [2 favorites]

Seconding Kololo. You are in an excellent negotiating position. Tactfully, let one of them know that you have another very similar offer, and see what they can offer to sweeten the deal. If they hold firm, ask the other company the same question.

You can also try a trick: Flip a coin with pre-assigned rules ("heads" = company 1). When you see the result you'll either want to go with it or will want to flip the coin again.

A silly method but might work.
posted by Idle Curiosity at 8:15 PM on March 6, 2013

Have you tried negotiating for more remote days when in town (say, 2 days/week) with Company 1? I think that would seal the deal for me.

If they balk, you could suggest upping the remote-when-in-town-days after a trial period to gain their confidence, since you are their first experience with a remote worker.

Even if not, Company 1 still sounds more plummy. Keep in good terms with Company 2 just in case.
posted by nacho fries at 8:16 PM on March 6, 2013 [1 favorite]

Echoing what others have said that Company 1 satisfies your job stability criteria.

It's not entirely clear from your question whether you're currently physically working for Company 1. You mention that Company 1 has never had a remote worker before, but that you'll want to start working remotely as soon as you can. If you're currently in a position at Company 1 to gracefully transition from on-site work to remote work, that'll make things easier because you'll already have relationships established. If you're returning to Company 1 after an absence and starting with a unique work arrangement that they haven't had before, it'll be a tougher process to get going.

Good luck!
posted by FreelanceBureaucrat at 9:45 PM on March 6, 2013

I suspect things will not go well being the first and only remote worker at a company with more than a handful of employees. Remote working requires a culture used to it -- otherwise you'll fade into being 'that guy we never see' or whatnot. YMMV.
posted by wrok at 6:03 AM on March 7, 2013 [1 favorite]

Good news! If you're having trouble making a Big Life Decision and you're contemplating two options, both of which look very good to you, you're probably going to be very happy with either of them (to the extent that we're good at predicting our own happiness).
posted by craven_morhead at 7:51 AM on March 7, 2013

Response by poster: I decided on the smaller company because I didn't want to risk being "the guy thats never here" thing. I also managed to workout a commission-based thing with company 1 I can do in my spare time to "keep on their good side and make some extra cash". I think its the best of both worlds :).
posted by audio at 12:10 PM on March 7, 2013