I think compensation can be a major player when it comes to job or life changes. Recently, a manager at Target where I work, decided to quit due to getting a job an assistant manager job at Kohl’s(a competitor). His choice to leave Target felt rather abrupt because he had been so vocal for the previous year and a half about his aspirations to be promoted up to an executive leader and how great a company Target is. He was previously my manager and mentor, and was one of the major reasons I am in the management position I am today. In addition to his career goals at Target, he was also a father and a husband. I also knew that his family had been looking at houses and saving up for one. After hearing the news, I asked him about it and he said it would be a $23,000 pay raise and it was a no-brainer. He also shared with me that he hadn’t actively been applying anywhere but Kohls reached out based on an application he has submitted two years prior. Although I was surprised to see him leave Target, I could totally understand. He had personal goals and career goals and this position would seem like a step in the right direction to achieve those.
In addition to this, I think the timeline at Target to become an executive leader may have played a role. Target encourages their employees to remain in their position 12-18 months before making a move either laterally or vertically. He had been in his new position about four months before quitting. Becoming an executive leader at Target would have also given him almost the same starting pay his position at Kohl’s offered him, but it would have taken longer to get there. For this reason, I think compensation played a huge role in him switching companies.
