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Field to office transition

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(@surveylife)
Posts: 16
Member
Topic starter
 

I am at the point in my career where I am transitioning to the office. I have mixed feelings about this because on the one hand, it signifies growth and success in my career, on the other hand staring at a computer for 8-10 hours a day is not what drew me to surveying in the first place.

Obviously I can ask to get out in the field more or seek a new job with more of a field role but I am curious to hear your opinions and experiences regarding this transition.

 
Posted : October 20, 2024 2:00 am
(@silver_surveyor)
Posts: 4
Member
 

Hello surveylife.

Was this transition imposed on you? Or did you sort of get the ball rolling to get to this point?

Depending on your age (and attitude), you may embrace the new scenery or regret it. I have known surveyors that transitioned rather smoothly. Personally, I prefer not to be inside. However, my age sort of forced the issue.

I would think that your current employer may go for the option of splitting field and office time. Assuming they don't want to lose you to a competitor. I will leave it at that for now.

 
Posted : October 20, 2024 2:24 am
(@chris-bouffard)
Posts: 1455
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I transitioned to the office when I got licensed back in 1993 and never regretted it. I've always been more interested in working with the data that I was in collecting it.

Working in the field has its rewards but so does working in the office solving complex puzzles.

 
Posted : October 20, 2024 3:45 am
(@chris-bouffard)
Posts: 1455
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Not everybody is built for the office. I was a Survey PM for a large engineering firm and we ran 8 crews out of our corporate office alone. Four of the Crew Chiefs were licensed and had absolutely no desire to move into the office as they enjoyed the freedom of working in the field. As far as I know, all of them have retired by now.

 
Posted : October 20, 2024 5:24 am
(@surveylife)
Posts: 16
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Topic starter
 

I should add that add do enjoy aspects of working in the office, particularly drafting my own fieldwork and boundary research. It is definitely fulfilling to take a project from fieldwork to finished deliverable. I also advocate for our field staff to get office time because I think it is critical to be a well rounded field surveyor. But I have to admit, by my third straight office day I am about ready to lose my mind. Maybe with time that will change.

 
Posted : October 20, 2024 5:50 am

(@chris-bouffard)
Posts: 1455
Member
 

I'm sure that you will acclimate to the changing environment. I don't take my drawings to the finished product; I know just enough about CAD to be dangerous. LOL!

I do my linework on the color scheme that I choose and name the layers accordingly and the drafting staff cleans it up and applies the drafting standards.

 
Posted : October 20, 2024 7:04 am
(@bstrand)
Posts: 2359
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I've went from field to office back to field and back to office and I'm still not 100% happy doing one of them 100% of the time. No place I've worked has been willing to pay me PLS money if I did any tech work which is kind of annoying, so I think the only real solution for someone like me is to be self employed.

Anyway, I'd say tough it out for 6 months or a year and see if it grows on you and if not then maybe make a change.

 
Posted : October 20, 2024 11:49 pm
thebionicman
(@thebionicman)
Posts: 4466
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I've had stretches of years with all field or all office. Most of these were not by choice. If this is your career find peace with both. Life will put you in one or the other at different times so find a way to make it fun. It works out best if you also make money.

I am primarily in the office (for now). I break up my time reading and researching questions relevant to the jobs I'm doing. Some days it's case law, others it's relearning math that has leaked out. It breaks the monotony and increases my productivity. That's easier to sell when you're the old guy in the room, but a smart boss will support you.

 
Posted : October 21, 2024 12:39 am
john-putnam
(@john-putnam)
Posts: 2201
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I was fortunate enough to have been hire by a visionary when I first got out of university. He hired two freshly graduated LSITs with the idea to train us in both field and office operations. The plan was that we rotate from field to office on a 6-month schedule. It worked out well until my counterpart got pregnant and I ended up in the field for an extended period. During my time in the field, I worked with the most experienced, all be it most crotchety, PC in the company. For some reason Norm liked me and was a great mentor. I think the cross training made me a better surveyor. Even as I moved back into the office and up the chain of command I still managed to get out in the field whenever possible. Flash forward to when I started out on my own and brought on employees. I found that I got the most bang for my buck by having project surveyors work on all aspects of a given project.

 
Posted : October 21, 2024 12:44 am
(@dmyhill)
Posts: 3082
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The office work is a necessary phase for becoming a fully rounded surveyor. That said, I know plenty of PLS's that end up back in the field full time.

Unless you are managing people a great party chief is worth every penny as a project surveyor. The transition of worth is when you are managing/developing business/etc.

But, IMHO, time in the office is critical to the education of a PLS.

Warnings:

Transitioning to the office can be difficult. I found that the lack of being under the sky 8 hours a day made a difference in my mood. Sunlight is a big time anti-depressant, even if it is coming though rain clouds.

Exercise. Being in the field keeps the weight off. Sitting in a desk brings the pounds on.

 
Posted : October 21, 2024 4:02 am
1

(@murphy)
Posts: 806
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It's good that you're uncomfortable. Seeking comfort is the surest path to dissatisfaction. You have a lot to learn about office dynamics, time management, and how to help your team without micromanaging them. Until you start receiving indicators that you're good in the office, assume you suck and could do a lot better and that your office work is much more valuable than swinging a hammer or a machete. Recall all the things that annoyed you with the office folk while you worked in the field, and try to do something different or better. Ask questions, start assembling templates so you can duplicate reports efficiently. Identify your most productive time, covet it and use it to bust things out.

 
Posted : October 21, 2024 4:04 am
(@dmyhill)
Posts: 3082
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One other thing, people often become office hobbits by habit. When a crew guy is out sick, do you volunteer. Are your boots and vest there ready to go? Are you looking for opportunities to get into the field?

 
Posted : October 21, 2024 4:04 am
(@dmyhill)
Posts: 3082
Supporter
 

It’s good that you’re uncomfortable. Seeking comfort is the surest path to dissatisfaction.

Started a new challenge after 20 years in one place, and I had forgotten how wonderful that feeling of a new challenge is. The fear/excitement/curiosity is something we need to experience every so often.

 
Posted : October 21, 2024 7:32 am
(@chris-bouffard)
Posts: 1455
Member
 

I've had the experience of working for several different firms when I transitioned to the office and the experience to see how others are doing the same things in different ways. That gives you the opportunity to learn what does or does not work, as well as learning different management approaches. I think these are important things as on the management end, I've seen the good, bad and ugly. Experiencing these things are what make you well rounded in the end.

 
Posted : October 21, 2024 9:53 am
(@paul-landau)
Posts: 217
Member
 

I was ready for a change when I went in to the office. I felt rejuvenated like starting a new career. Learning to run a computer and processing data from the field was very rewarding to me . It could be that there were a number of staff that had made the same transition, that made mine easy and enjoyable.

 
Posted : October 24, 2024 3:12 am

(@chadillac)
Posts: 7
Member
 

One thing I can say is that you will probably need to lean on someone to help teach you some of the office tasks like drafting, processing and other things that field personnel might not be accustomed to. The type of people in the office will make a big difference in how you grow. If you have good people that are willing to teach then you will most likely flourish but if you bad people, jealous, insecure or competitive then you have a problem. If you are surrounded with those bad types then get the experience you need and get out of there. No reason to waste your time, life is too short. Good luck!

 
Posted : October 24, 2024 3:19 am
MightyMoe
(@mightymoe)
Posts: 9988
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I spent three days in the field the last two weeks. If I could do it I'd make it ten in two weeks.

The old adage of everyday in the field is better than any day in the office still holds.

Unless you're construction staking. There's always an exception that proves the rule.

 
Posted : October 24, 2024 5:00 am
OleManRiver
(@olemanriver)
Posts: 2539
Member
 

I think you will be great in the office. One you have field experience and yes getting over the hurdle of software in an office setting is not fun at times but your ability to understand what you are needing and looking at will give you a better perspective to help those coming in to explain to them the WHY they need to be asking why when collecting data. You will see dots on the screen and have to make assumptions as often the field guys sometimes do the same like the office will fix that. That’s good enough. Why a sketch of manhole dips and a north arrow and or a point number make things easier in office. All those little things that you have been taught you can now teach the others and when the phone rings and a crew is struggling you will know the right questions to ask in order to direct them to the correct approach. I love the outdoors and find nothing more rewarding than surveying outside and solving problems. The problem is age my body. I am good for a hard few days then I can barely move. I can do more if I take my time and go slow but I am not built that way so it is difficult for me not to go all out when I am out in the field. I went this past week for an emergency job. Hiked in 1500 feet through cut over timber and hills to get to a swamp to find some back pins and such. Then back out . I left the office chair at 1130 drove an hour did the work tied it to the fronts and back by 530. The next morning I could barely get my legs and knees moving. No helper just me now pre USMC that would be a cake walk now that hurts lol. But hey I was following old chopped lines on nice hardwoods and softwood along with monuments. Loved that. Get the office side down and it will make you better in the field. You can always go back to the field. The office side will gain you even more perspective. Good luck.

 
Posted : October 25, 2024 11:21 am
(@minbarwinkle)
Posts: 73
Member
 

This very question is why I think eventually I will have to start my own company because I don't think anyone is going to pay me a manager's salary for me to dash out into the field and solve problems myself whenever I feel it's warranted.

I go through stints of 3-4 days in the office then a week in the field and so on. I remember working for some companies where very good surveyors hadn't touched an instrument in decades. I honestly think I would miss it. Once you get good at using any kind of tool or instrument, it almost becomes an extension of yourself and when you're forced to give it up, it's like cutting off a limb.

As others have already pointed out, being stuck in a office, away from the fresh air, sun and insect bites, will dampen your mood. Maybe it gets easier as you get older and going up and down steep inclines feels like your soul is being sucked out of you. There are days when I wish I was in the office full time and there are days when the office feels like a box.

 
Posted : October 27, 2024 6:46 pm