Should I take a new job with lower title but higher pay?
For context, I have 5 YOE with: 1 YOE as an accounting FA at my first company, 2 YOE FP&A SFA current company, 2 YOE FP&A Manager with 1 direct report.
My company gives very low internal promotion raises (I got 8%) and they pay lower in general compared to the market so I already started relatively lower as a SFA. So I am very much making market level SFA pay as a Manager. My current team and department has always been rough (lots of turnover) but it’s been really bad for the last year especially due to the industry declining. My bosses really like me and make it very clear it won’t be long until I likely get a Senior Manager position but I really don’t think I want that for the stress and another low internal raise.
Been applying for jobs but the FP&A market isn’t great and I’m trying to avoid companies that I know will be very stressful and long hours. But a lot of companies I’m interested in tend to just promote internally as it’s cheaper. So the manager jobs on the market tend to be the more demanding ones. I saw some higher paying SFA jobs and decided to take a shot. Today got a SFA offer for a company that’s mid size and smaller than my current one and the pay is 13% higher than my current base with a similar bonus percentage. The job is only one day in office compared to my current four days. In general, the company has a good reputation and everyone I interviewed was very nice and pleasant. I have an old coworker who works in the same department and he can vouch that it’s a good environment.
Looking to get opinions if this is a good move to make. I feel like I would personally be ok with it since I’m relatively still young in my career and became a manager quite early. I actually like doing analyst work (I do a lot anyways in my current role while on top of being a people manager). My old coworker emphasized that there is definitely room to grow and this isn’t a company where often you find someone getting stuck as a SFA (unless they want to).
Some people tell me this doesn’t make sense and that it would hurt my career progression but honestly I’m not trying to climb the corporate ladder like crazy. Based off some Directors I know, I wouldn’t want that lifestyle as they always need to be available and barely take any time off. I think ideally I want a comfortable paying manager or senior manager role as my goal.