I’m looking for ideas of what I should call myself.
I work for small (approx 100 employees) but global company. When I joined the company, I was recruited to work as a Systems Analyst, this work was completed faster than expected and I was re-assigned a position in the much more exciting Diversification Team.
My role on this team is now my full time primary role in the company, there are 3 other team members 2 marketing guys and a mechanical engineer.
My job description is short and sweet. “Develop new and innovative products through the advancement of technology”.
I have a free rein to research any area that interests me as long as I have a product in mind that will be “exciting” enough for the CEO.
I have a background in Artificial Intelligence which the CEO finds very exciting, so some of the projects I have been working on are concepts for innovative robotic products with some rough algorithms drawn together to give the project some substance.
Other projects include designing and prototyping shape memory alloy actuators, and finding applications for these. Robotic limb and joint design and prototyping. Electric motor optimization. And AI simulations for machine learning.
My business card says Research & Development Engineer, however when I look at other job descriptions for R&D Engineers they don’t seem to do the same as me.
The only uses for your job title are looking good on your resume and establishing your place in the precking order if the company expands or gets taken over.
Definitely include ‘senior’, try to work in ‘manager’ or ‘VP’. I have seen numerous instances of people who were manifestly underqualified getting nice jobs and bags of cash due to misunderstandings over titles. 2 examples:
In the energy business there is a class of engineer known as an ‘asset manager’. These guys are not managers in the conventional sense of managing people or a department, in fact new hire kids right out of school receive this title. When they move on to other industries, like engineering consulting firms it is not uncommon for them to be considered for management positions because of clueless gatekeepers.
We have here a VP whose previous title was also VP at a much smaller company. He used to manage about 5 employees and maybe 5-10 simultaneous projects. Now, he has more than 60 people under him and is responsible for at least 100 simultaneous projects. Several much more qualified people with were passed over, internally, because their job titles were ‘manager’ not ‘VP’.
Lets see, your job involves memory alloy actuators, AI, and robotics. Hmmm, what kind of work could possibly combine all those things into one neat little package?
Its on the tip of my tongue.
Don’t tell me, I’ll think of it in a sec.
Ah! Here!
So, with the real nature of your work established, lets think of a good job title for you. How about one of these:
