Networking

Start working your network as soon as you're able to. Call your friends, call your family, join job hunting Meetup groups--find out who's hiring people with your experience. Get your resume updated on Monster, Dice, LinkedIn, and Robert Half and you will get calls and emails within hours.

If you want to stay local to Dane County, Robert Half Technologies is probably your best bet. There are quite a few tech companies in Madison that aren't Epic, but are used to hiring ex-Epic employees.

On LinkedIn, join the Epic Users One Stop Shop group and any sub-groups that you qualify for--most are based on what certifications you hold, but there's also a group for Epic Non-Compete. This is mostly inactive with few discussion threads and little user interaction, but the action that does happen is useful. The group's administrator gets tons of job postings, although you won't be eligible for any of them. Post to discussions though, and get your name out there. If you give good advice, people will start to recognize your name and you'll get a leg up on other prospective hires a year from now.

The great part is that you can do all this while you're still at Epic.

The Purpose of This Blog

This blog is intended as a resource for former- and soon-to-be-former Epic Systems Corporation employees. Having been recently fired from Epic myself, I scoured the Web, turning over every stone Google could show me in an effort to find information about what ex-Epic employees did during their non-compete year(s). I came up empty handed. In the true spirit of American Exceptionalism, I saw here an opportunity. This blog will attempt to fill the void in information and hopefully answer your questions and give you useful advice for putting your Epic skills to work in the real world.

Hopefully you'll see this blog the day you get your "It's not us, it's you" notification from your TL (team leader or boss for Non-Epic folks). Standard Epic operating procedure says that you'll have 6 weeks to complete or hand off any open projects; during this time you are free to look for your next job. Epic will probably ask you to resign. This will get listed as a "voluntary turnover" on their ledgers, which looks a lot better than involuntary turnover rates.

Every bit of advice you've probably heard up to this point in your career says that it is better to resign than to be fired. Like many things, Epic defies the norms here. Epic skills are in high demand everywhere in the country. The day you put your resume on Monster or Dice, you will get phone calls and emails asking you when your non-compete is up so someone (hospital or consulting firm) can hire you.

When your TL asks you for the your resignation, make him wait. If you find a new job within the 6 weeks, resign. If you don't, make them fire you. Every recruiting firm in the nation has dealt with Epic; they know the culture. They know that even though you were fired, it's through no fault of your own and it's just Epic's way.

First takeaway point: Don't resign. Until you have an exit strategy, don't resign. Once you have an out, by all means, get out. But if you don't find a job in the 6 week probationary period, make Epic fire you. This will come in handy later, if you need unemployment benefits, Badgercare, food stamps, etc.

That's a wrap for now. Subsequent articles will deal with maximizing your job search, spreading your network, and finding meaningful work that doesn't violate the non-compete. If I figure out how to get the non-compete overturned or voided, that information will be given to you ASAP.

If you have specific questions, leave a comment. I'll moderate them, so don't be surprised when they don't show up immediately. I'm posting as Anonymous TheAdministrator so I don't get blacklisted. I don't know for sure if Epic does that, but I'm not taking any chances. That being said, I can point you to resources on LinkedIn--just leave your name/email address in the comments (which I alone moderate) and I'll send you an invitation to join my network. Your personal info won't display anywhere on my blog. Good luck in your job search.