#PandaPounds: Reasons for leaving ecommerce jobs

In 2016, the reasons for leaving ecommerce jobs varied across our salary survey respondents. From simply wanting a change to a lack of essentials for a role, we had great insight into why people decide to move on.

Has anything changed in 2017? Using our ecommerce salary survey & insights report, we’re going to find out!

How do ecommerce professionals feel about a role after one year?

We asked our respondents to finish the sentence ‘A year in a job is…’

As we can see, 57% of our respondents feel that a year in a job isn’t a long time if there is still room to progress. Progression in ecommerce is so highly valued amongst those working in the industry, so it’s not surprising to see that people will continue in a role while progression is still available.

36% of ecommerce professionals believe that the first year in a new ecommerce job is still the beginning, while 5% believe that one year is a very long time.

While a small 2% selected ‘other’, they still had a lot to say on the matter…

• ‘Very enjoyable! I look forward to the next year.’ This respondent clearly had the best first year ever…great to see!
• ‘Long enough to know if a role is right for you.’ If you feel you accepted the wrong job offer, should you wait the year to settle in? This respondent thinks so!
• ‘Time to move on.’ It seems this respondent feels that a year in a role is enough time to begin progressing elsewhere.
• ‘Enough time to establish yourself in a company, and progress within the company.’ This respondent acknowledges that after a year within a company, you will potentially have more visibility on the dynamics of progression and promotions!

How long have our respondents been in their current ecommerce role?

To get even more insight into our respondents’ motivations and current situation, we’re now going to look at how long they have been in their current role.

• Less than one year: 41% of our respondents have been in their current role for less than one year. Most of these respondents believe that a year in a role isn’t a long time if there is room to progress – perhaps once their first year is complete they will begin to evaluate their current situation.
• One year: 21% of our respondents have completed the first year in their current job. There was quite an even split when it came to their sentiments on their first year. Approximately half believe it is just the beginning while the other half feel there is still room to progress. Only a handful feel that too long has been spent in the role already.
• 2-5 years: 31% of our respondents have been in their current role for up to 5 years. Unsurprisingly, most of these respondents feel a year in a job is just the beginning and it seems their happiness in their current role continued. Is an employee’s first year in the role vital for staff retention?
• 5-10 years / 10+ years: A small number of respondents have been in their current roles for this amount of time – 4% for 5-10 years and 3% for over ten years.

Time for a change – why do people leave ecommerce jobs?

Now we know the motivations of ecommerce professionals in the early stages of a new job, let’s look at the reasons they have when leaving an ecommerce job.

The most common reason for leaving an ecommerce job from our 2017 respondents is ‘lack of essentials as listed in question 20.’ For a bit of context, the top five essentials in a role as chosen by our respondents are:

1) Feeling valued and respected

2) Opportunity to progress

3) Salary

4) People

5) Company Culture

Other essentials respondents listed include bonus potential, management, monetary benefits and formal training. The 21% who didn’t feel like these essentials were being met simply decided to move on and find a role that appealed both professionally and personally.

Another 21% of our respondents selected ‘other’, giving them the chance to share exactly why it was time to move on from their previous role. Their reasons include:

• Moving from agency side to client side
• Redundancy
• Commutes were too long
• Lack of progression
• Unsupportive staff/management
• Got a new job offer they couldn’t refuse

Are you looking for a new ecommerce opportunity?

Here at cranberry panda, we want to help find the ecommerce job that is right for you. It’s good to chat about your previous & current roles, to determine what needs to change to make your next ecommerce job the best yet!