>>I just got a job offer this morning. I have been getting really sick of the Dilbert-ness of my current job. I have talked to my manager and my manager's manager about it, so I have tried to address the issues.
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>>The new place is a small local manufacturing facility. They have a 7-8 developer shop. I would be coming in as a Developer 1 for about 8% less than I am making now. They said after 6 months if I meet performance expectations (which I am confident I can) they would promote me to a Developer 2, and my salary would increase to about what I make now. I think I would fit in better at the new place because I have always really enjoyed manufacturing, and it seems like a somewhat laid back place. I interviewed with half the department and they seem like geeks, instead of the business stiffs I work for now. All of their systems are written in .NET, so I wouldn't have to struggle with the integrations between subpar vendored systems.
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>>The benefits wouldn't be as good as my current job, but not by much. I think there would be a lot more potential at the new place. I am about ready to friggin lose my mind at my current place. Once jagoff told me I should start to learn Java and I was ready to fight him (not literally, but in my mind I had him up in a helicopter whirl).
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>>What say you? I'm having a hard time getting around the money thing for the first few months. Even if it were just a miniscule amount more than I make now it would have given me a warm fuzzy that at least I am headed in the right direction money wise. However, I really do think that in 2-3 years I would be making more there than I would be here. They are a C# and Oracle shop, and I am a VB and SQL Server guy, but I'm fairly confident I can make the switch without too much trouble.
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>>Anyway, I should probably just be happy that I have a job because I know some folks on here aren't as lucky.
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>I'd say, if you're comfortable slagging your current employer on a public message board, you've already made up your mind to take the new offer. As others have already said, get critical promises in writing and unambiguous. Don't be afraid to buy an hour of a lawyer's time for a second opinion.
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>In a perfect world, everyone would love their work. I think people should at least try to and/or not settle - Steve Jobs speaks well about this at his Stanford convocation speech, you can check it out on YouTube.
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>If your current work environment is Dilbertesque, that probably means there's a lack of trust - you don't trust them, and they don't trust you. Often there is also a mismatch between responsibility and authority - they may saddle you with responsibilities but don't give you enough authority to be able to execute. That sort of culture is poisonous, and encourages "quit and stay" behaviour amongst employees. It can be hard to change - you have to identify the manager or executive ultimately responsible, who could be affecting a branch or department, or the whole company if the root problem is the CEO.
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>When you have another job offer in hand, it's your best chance to change your situation at your current employer. As long as you can make a good business case, and show how you add value, you can think big. Ask for a promotion, a transfer to another department with better culture or ???
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>If you do decide to take the new job, maybe you just want to wash your hands of the old one. But, if you care at all about the welfare of your colleagues, or the poor slob/slobette who will replace you, you can request an exit interview. Try to pick a senior manager or executive with whom you feel comfortable (even the CEO in a small outfit); HR will probably want to be in on it as well. In an exit interview, you are no longer an employee of the company - you are an outsider who happens to have detailed information. You can tell them like it is. It's not an excuse to vent - if you stay calm and rational, and stick to facts where possible, you can do some real good. Any good manager is receptive to exit interviews; sometimes they feel isolated, out-of-touch or that they otherwise can't get good feedback.
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>I see this myself at some of my small business clients with whom I've worked for years, and know well. Sometimes the owner will ask my opinion about some aspect of their business *completely* unrelated to IT, because they feel a need for an outsider's take.
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>One thing I'd be wary of is labeling people "business stiffs" and "geeks". Fellow geeks are fun to work with, but you've got to keep touch with how you add value, and fundamentally you can only do that by working with the business people. It pays to be the "big-picture" guy in a group of geeks.
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>SET PREACH OFF :-\

Al,
You really hit the nail on the head with the description of the job. It really is a trust issue - I have told them several times that I don't feel like they trust me to provide a solution, even though they say that's not the case. Even if they really didn't trust me (even if it was justified), at least I gave them an opportunity to come clean and give me an explanation.