Planning Ahead. HP/HPE Alumni

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Planning ahead. For current employees of HP or HPE (or any company.)

Information and advice for current employees from HP alumni. (Updated Dec 18, 2021)

Join HPAlumni If you were formerly a regular, direct U.S. employee of HP or HPE -- or are in the process of leaving. Benefits and Finance Groups, Job Posts, Alumni News. No charge, thanks to HPAA's Supporting Members.

Comments: info@hpalumni.org

Actions you can take

Evaluate your career situation. Use the HPAA's Career Checkup -- hard-earned advice from members on evaluating your career situation -- wherever you work.

Diversify. Don't let the company make you an expert in just one thing (unless it is what you really want, you are really sure it is something that will always be in demand, and you are willing to change companies to follow it.)

Establish your personal network. Powerful while at your current company -- and you may need it later:

- Connect -- inside your current company and outside. Maintain your relationships and track the career changes of your former co-workers. "I became an internal-only resource." Participate in a professional association, an open-source project, a church, or a community activity. "I realized that I only knew HP people." "My friends and acquaintances were about my age and worked in similar jobs. When things changed for me, most of my friends were in no position to help, because they were in the same boat."

Update and strengthen your LinkedIn profile. Even if not currently looking, you need a strong, credible profile on LinkedIn. People check you out before working with you. Recruiters run searches for particular skills and background. In addition, LinkedIn helps you reconnect with people who know you and your work.

Check your profile. LinkedIn has been standardizing company names, with odd results. Recruiters view illogical entries -- such as HPE positions before 2015 -- as fake. (HPE changed many decades-old HP positions to display the HPE name and logo.) Watch for typos, like "principle engineer." You may wish to emphasize (or de-emphasize) some of your experience and background.

Tricks and traps: hpalumni.org/LinkedIn

Job posts on LinkedIn. To see job openings shared by other HP alumni -- and post opportunities at your current employer: Join the "HP Connections" group on LinkedIn (Operated by HPAA, but HPAA membership not required.)

Move from company to personal PC and email. For privacy reasons now -- and impossible to do quickly if you retire or leave.

- Quietly untangle your personal business from your employer's systems. No matter where you work, what your job situation, or how innocent your activities -- there are legal and privacy issues with using your employer's IT facilities for your personal business. How and why based on personal experiences reported by HPAA members.

- How to set up professional email. Advice from HPAA members on getting a private email account on Outlook, Gmail, or Yahoo Mail -- and choosing a professional email username.

Plan for transition when you retire, get WFRed, or leave:

- ASAP Checklist. What you need to do before losing access to internal systems and in the following few weeks.

- Questions to ask if you are offered the "Golden Boot" Pragmatic advice from Jane Bryant Quinn.

- "What I wish I had known before I left"

- Advice from HPAA members on job hunting -- inside or outside HP.

- How much notice to give on retirement -- at any company. Advice from HPAA members.

- Advice and info on returning to HPInc, HPE, DXC, or Micro Focus -- including informal and formal restrictions.

- Time to untangle your stock! Depending on when and how you acquired HP or HPE stock, you may now have stock in up to six completely separate HP-related companies in various accounts -- or have missed cash payouts. How many shares of which HP-related companies should I have? How much cash should I have received? hpalumni.org/stock

- How to Choose a Financial Advisor. Member advice on sorting out the different types of financial salespeople and advisors.

References recommended by HP alumni:

- "Think you might lose your income? Four money moves to make now" by Michelle Singletary. Washington Post (Several free articles per month.)

- "Making the Most of Your Money Now" by Jane Bryant Quinn. Explains how financial things really work -- especially good for analytic folks. ISBN-10: 0743269969

- "Get a Life" by Ralph Warner. "How to beat the anxiety surrounding retirement, and to develop a plan to make your golden years the best of your life." ISBN-10: 1413300847

- Social Security. Member advice from an ex-HP/HPE perspective.

- "You're no longer nailed to your job in order to get health insurance" [AARP membership not required.]

Related Companies. Member advice for people from acquired or spinoff companies: Agilent Autonomy Compaq DEC DXC EDS Keysight Micro Focus Perspecta Tandem Other acquisitions and spinoffs

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If formerly a regular, direct U.S. employee of HP or HPE -- or are in the process of leaving -- join the HP Alumni Association. No charge, thanks to HPAA's Supporting Members.