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Using a throwaway as my real account has my real name.

I’m a dev who got declined for a promotion on Friday from intermediate to senior and got the standard “try again in 3 months” Everyone basically knows that I didn’t get it as another colleague got his and everyone knows we both applied.

I’m the kind of person to apply to everyone when I want a promotion, not just my own company. I got another offer from a different tech company for the promotion and they want to know how soon I can start. At this point, I don’t give a crap about my current company anymore and am somewhat embarrassed to be seen there.

I don’t have anything at my desk of significant value, don’t care anymore if the sprint is blown, etc. I already remoted in to delete any sensitive files and passwords from the browser.

Other than blowing up a managerial reference, is there any consequence to just never being heard from again? I can get a good reference from a co-worker who left a month ago. Happy to move on immediately.

The other main long term consequence I can see is that I have never been promoted internally (I’ve never applied for a promotion internally without applying elsewhere and “elsewhere” is less cautious). I’m not sure if this is ever detected by recruiters. I spend 1-3 years in most places, so the tenures aren’t bad, but at this moment I don’t care. The new company wants me. The old one doesn’t.

It is Tuesday not Monday as we have flex days.

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  • 14
    Is the law in your country okay with that? The contract you signed once also? Always be honest and honor your obligations
    – guest
    Feb 23 '20 at 19:19
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    Did the new potential employer give you an actual contract? What does your contract say about notice? If your current employer doesn't want you to give your notice period, would you go to the new employer, or would you take a 2 week vacation?
    – Stephan Branczyk
    Feb 23 '20 at 19:23
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    Please add a country tag as in some contries this is break of labour law. Not only you can get sued. Companies will know about it from goverment.
    – SZCZERZO KŁY
    Feb 24 '20 at 12:30
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    How about seriously contemplating the why behind "...I have never been promoted internally..." before you take the nuclear option again?
    – Julia Hayward
    Feb 24 '20 at 16:30
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    Why burn bridges? Its so much easier to take the other offer and give a standard 2 weeks notice. The new company will 100% understand and the old company (Unless you have a contract) cannot really do anything about it. Even then it depends.
    – Sierra Mountain Tech
    Feb 24 '20 at 17:17
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Other than blowing up a managerial reference, is there any consequence to just never being heard from again?

Your professional reputation will be damaged in the eyes of anyone who knows what you did.

In my part of the world, in my work domain, it can be a "small world". Word gets around. Others learn what kind of professional you are.

I value my reputation above almost everything else, professionally. As such, I take a lot of care to be above board and professional in everything I do. The short term pleasure you might gain from never showing up again is far outweighed by the damage to your reputation, IMHO.

If you were part of my family, or a friend, I'd advise you to suck it up, give the normal notice for your locale and work domain, work hard during your notice period, and leave on as good terms as possible. Long term I believe that is always best for a career.

The other main long term consequence I can see is that I have never been promoted internally (I’ve never applied for a promotion internally without applying elsewhere and “elsewhere” is less cautious). I’m not sure if this is ever detected by recruiters.

I can't speak for recruiters. But I can tell you from personal experience that hiring managers notice these things.

It may not matter, depending on your desired career path.

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    +1 for mentioning the "small world" effect. How you treat your current colleagues controls whether it will be a positive or a negative for you.
    – Patricia Shanahan
    Feb 23 '20 at 21:05
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    One addition - term is almost always negotiable, so if op is that unhappy can likely get it substantially shortened, without taking a big hit to rep. I think that's a good middle ground
    – Tymoteusz Paul
    Feb 23 '20 at 21:38
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    +1. Anything you do to your last company, you'll do to your next. You can resign ethically and with honor, or you can throw your toys out of the pram; your choice.
    – PeteCon
    Feb 24 '20 at 16:32
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    +1. "I don’t care." "...but you should."
    – OnoSendai
    Feb 24 '20 at 19:44
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    Small world aside managerial references: one of your current co-workers could get hired and tell your new managers how "it's that person that left in the middle of our project out of the blue, be careful". Then you're grilled.
    – Non-formatted Date User
    Feb 26 '20 at 15:11
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Well, the obvious (to me) answer is: You're proving that they were right not to promote you. You will have shown that you were not dependable.

Call the company that made you the offer first thing Tuesday, get everything set and SIGNED, then put in your two weeks. That's not such a high price to maintain your reputation.

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You are burning bridges, but you are burning bridges for no good reason whatsoever and with really bad timing.

Don’t act until you have a signed, legally binding contract with another company, and then you give your notice. It’s just about possible that the new company won’t want you anymore when they hear how you left. Or that someone really wants you to join the new company but isn’t really in a position to decide. A totally unnecessary risk. Plus of course you are not going to get paid.

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  • Exactly this. A former coworker of mine would have called this "throwing a tanty" OP should work the work while looking onwards for the next opportunity.
    – Criggie
    Jan 2 at 21:50
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First. Never ghost your employer like this. It will end up haunting you in the end. (See what I did there :D)

But joking aside you really do not want to hit the self destruct button on this one. Seeing that you already have an offer I would simply accept that offer and give your 2 weeks. Do not slack off or refuse to perform during those 2 weeks and simply leave on good terms.

The company who is offering the new job will in almost all cases understand a 2 weeks notices. The company you are leaving will also understand a 2 weeks notice.

This way you wont tarnish your reputation and you will give the new company piece of mind you are willing to at least give a two weeks notice before leaving. You would be surprised on how fast word gets around and depending on your line of work it can be very likely for someone you knew in your current job to find you at your new job they may know someone there already. You would be surprised what a small world it can be.

Think about it. If you just ghost you current employer and the new employer finds out they might not think you are a safe employee to have around. I mean you could just vanish at any moment right?

You seam rather upset about not getting the promotion and that can be for many reason. Who knows without knowing your work but based on what you are asking to do you don't appear to have a strong work ethic.

Do yourself a favor and accept the offer (be sure to get something in writing and singed, IE JOB OFFER LETTER) then give a 2 weeks notice. Do your job those 2 weeks and move on.

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Being passed on a promotion then never showing up to work looks a bit childish, in my opinion. It also damages your reputation, as others said, but on top of that you risk losing both jobs because you don't have a written offer in hand. I understand that you are upset about being passed on a promotion, and I don't think anyone would disagree that you have a right to feel frustrated and angry. However, it's moments like this that test your true character. You need to maintain composure and make decisions that will be be helpful to yourself. I think the best course of action right now is to proceed with the other job offer for senior position and making sure you have a written offer in hand before turning in your notice. I also want to stress that job titles differ from companies. While "senior" might mean you take responsibilities above others within, they can differ greatly from each company. So you need to make sure you're not going from a bad job to a really bad job. It's times like this that make you jump ship and a lot of folks end up being even more unhappy because they just want a title.

My thought: get a offer for the higher position, then turn in your two weeks and leave on good terms. They would know why you left but really can't do anything about it.

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Do what's true to yourself.

If you don't want to work for a company, don't, no one can force you to do it not even a notice period in a contract.

It's courteous to tell your company that you'd like to leave, but the consequences of not doing it are the contract termination.

If you're good work wont dry, your life will continue.

Good luck.

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    However if you want to regard yourself as a professional, behave professionally
    – Dave Gremlin
    Feb 24 '20 at 16:18
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    There may be contractual consequences beyond contact termination of said contract, for explore damages. It is rarely used, but someone going dark is a prime candidate.
    – Tymoteusz Paul
    Feb 24 '20 at 16:40
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    "True to yourself" has always been a fool's excuse to be an asshole.
    – Koenigsberg
    Feb 24 '20 at 17:13
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    The OP is thinking about rage-quitting the company because they were denied a promotion. That's not being true to themselves, that's being impulsive.
    – EJoshuaS - Reinstate Monica
    Feb 24 '20 at 17:14
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    @DrDread - The OP asked for the consequences of not showing up at work because they are sulking after being passed over. One of the consequences is that they will have behaved unprofessionally. There may or may not be direct repercussions but they will have to live with knowing they did it. It's fine if that's not a problem for them, it would not be fine for most of us
    – Dave Gremlin
    Feb 25 '20 at 10:58

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