I have really enjoyed my career at Intel and had a great desire to continue it even after moving to Colorado. When we tried previously to find work in Colorado I did look both internally and externally to Intel, but was coming up empty in both areas. I have learned that without networking contacts it is extremely difficult to even get an interview, so I knew my best bet, and in fact my desire, was to get a new position with Intel.
When we made the decision to try again, I wasn't very hopeful because the Intel's presence hasn't been very big in Colorado. When I looked previously the Colorado Springs site was being closed, the Fort Collins site didn't have positions for the kind of work I do. There was also a small site (if it could even be called a site), in Longmont Colorado where half a dozen people worked on firmware which is like what I do in that it is writing code, but it is a very different kind of code and I had no experience. I did apply when we first started looking but was quickly turned away.
Five years later I was surprised to find several software engineering positions available at the Longmont site. Apparently it had grown, however, I still wasn't very hopeful because the type of programming was still outside of my skill set. I definitely had a lot of software engineering experience, but it was in the wrong area. I decided to apply anyway, but by the time I had a resume crafted to emphasis the experience I did have along with my abilities to learn and ramp quickly, all of the positions had been removed from the internal job posting. Feeling like not all of the positions could have been filled that quickly and all at the same time I inquired about them and if there were any still available. The hiring managers informed me that there was a hiring freeze and they weren't sure how long it would last. The only disappointment I had was the amount of time I had spent on my resume which, at this point, seemed to be in vain. I knew it was a pretty long shot anyway.
Then an idea was given to me and I began to see Heavenly Father's hand opening doors and providing opportunities. The idea given to me was to take advantage of the hiring freeze. These groups in Colorado obviously had a need for additional help that there weren't going to be able to satisfy, at least right away. I needed an opportunity to learn a new skill set and prove my ability to do that within a short period of time. I communicated my desire to my manager and he fully supported me offering part of my time to the Colorado hiring managers as a temporary assignment. I would be able to use 25% of my time for 3 months to work with a team in Colorado. My manager and the hiring managers met and made the arrangements. It would be a win-win situation. The team in Colorado got at least a little extra help and I got an opportunity to prove myself and make some more networking contacts. The only party that lost was the team I was leaving, but my manager was very supportive of my direction, in part possibly because he was moving into another position as well. Again, another situation that seemed to align with the direction we were headed.
So I began to work with this new team. Everyone was excited to work with me and I began to learn a lot, though I was discouraged how much I felt like I needed to learn. It really seemed like I was working two jobs, using a lot of evenings to try and catch up with the work responsibilities I had. It was a difficult time because Annie was in school as well and had her classes at night. But I was very grateful for the opportunity and I put as much effort as I could afford into it.
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