by Guest » Fri Jul 12, 2019 10:08 pm
My sponsoring SF was a really poor fit for me, and I switched SFs to one that I very much enjoy working at.
When I was getting really frustrated with the initial SF, I reached out to an SES that was at one point the SMART Program Manager. He used to come on this discussion board. He basically stated that I wouldn't have a problem as long as I stayed in the DoD during the payback period. I passed my resume through a few people and a guy from my current SF called me up almost immediately. Over the phone and later on in person, we determined this new SF would be a good fit. The SF has direct hire authority, so I didn't have to compete for the position.
When things started getting more serious, I contacted my SMART liaison who said I would need buy-in from both SFs for the transfer. My previous SF didn't answer me when I asked for this buy-in to allow me to transfer gracefully, so I just left anyway. A few months in to the new job, it was time to submit my annual report and I told SMART at that point that I was working for a new SF. I didn't get any response, so a few months later I asked if they received that notification and they said I should have received a letter (I never did) which they then attached to the email. It was a "letter of reprimand" with some pretty harsh language, yet the take away for me was "you aren't allowed to do that ... please don't do it again".
Recently marked 3 years on the job at my new SF. Last year I completed Phase II of the SMART program. Aside from the nasty letter and many sleepless nights worrying about what would happen, nothing bad actually happened to me for switching SFs. I'm not sure if SMART has a policy or process for dealing with this type of transition or if they take it case by case, but for me it worked out. In my mind, the situation benefits the Government: I'm happy at my new SF and highly likely to stay here a lot longer
My sponsoring SF was a really poor fit for me, and I switched SFs to one that I very much enjoy working at.
When I was getting really frustrated with the initial SF, I reached out to an SES that was at one point the SMART Program Manager. He used to come on this discussion board. He basically stated that I wouldn't have a problem as long as I stayed in the DoD during the payback period. I passed my resume through a few people and a guy from my current SF called me up almost immediately. Over the phone and later on in person, we determined this new SF would be a good fit. The SF has direct hire authority, so I didn't have to compete for the position.
When things started getting more serious, I contacted my SMART liaison who said I would need buy-in from both SFs for the transfer. My previous SF didn't answer me when I asked for this buy-in to allow me to transfer gracefully, so I just left anyway. A few months in to the new job, it was time to submit my annual report and I told SMART at that point that I was working for a new SF. I didn't get any response, so a few months later I asked if they received that notification and they said I should have received a letter (I never did) which they then attached to the email. It was a "letter of reprimand" with some pretty harsh language, yet the take away for me was "you aren't allowed to do that ... please don't do it again".
Recently marked 3 years on the job at my new SF. Last year I completed Phase II of the SMART program. Aside from the nasty letter and many sleepless nights worrying about what would happen, nothing bad actually happened to me for switching SFs. I'm not sure if SMART has a policy or process for dealing with this type of transition or if they take it case by case, but for me it worked out. In my mind, the situation benefits the Government: I'm happy at my new SF and highly likely to stay here a lot longer