Resignation Question:

I’ve talked to job seekers who were unexpectedly unemployed after spending 10 or 20 years at the same job with the same company. They were worried about whether it would impact their chances of getting hired, and it could.

There’s a fine line between establishing tenure at a company to show that you’re not a job hopper and staying so long that employers are hesitant to hire you. For many jobs, employers seek both some tenure and career progression, so it can be a balancing act to decide when you need to move on. For example, some companies are now posting tenure requirements in job ads:

Good tenure with no more than two jobs in five years unless progressive growth in the same company.
Must have 5 years tenure at each of two prior companies.

However, there is such a thing as too much tenure. If you work at the same job for too long, future employers may assume that you are not motivated or driven to achieve. Other employers might think that you are most comfortable with the familiar and would have difficulty adapting to a new job, leadership style or corporate culture.

In addition, if you remain in the same job for too long employers might think you have a less diverse and evolved set of skills than a candidate that has mastered a broader range of jobs.