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Today’s Communist Incursion Into the RCMP
By crooky | April 11, 2008
Today at approximately 10:10 PST, the USSR National Anthem (as performed by the Red Army Choir) was heard with resounding clarity in the RCMP’s E Division Headquarters in Vancouver. A radical shift in Federal policy? No. It was my ring tone on my new HTC Touch. This article will recount my harrowing act of political disobedience in the heart of the Federal Government’s law enforcement enclave, why I was at RCMP E Division Headquarters and what it means to my consulting business.
Exhibit A: My phone.
Yesterday, my beloved BlackBerry 7130 packed it in and I had to replace it on short notice with a new device. Before going into a test at RCMP E Division Headquarters, I was very careful to turn off my new HTC Touch (or so I thought).
Instead, as they were handing out the test booklets, my phone (which had apparently not turned off) rang out with the USSR National Anthem as sung by the Red Army Choir. It’s a beautiful piece, if you haven’t heard it…
Red Army Choir - USSR National Anthem
I was, to say the least, mortified. Not because my phone was blaring the USSR National Anthem in an RCMP division headquarters. I was embarrased because my ringer had gone off during an exam - something that I have nothing by ire for when other people do it.
I scrambled to turn off my phone and profusely appologized, much to the amusement of the other RCMP hopefuls. After the test, which I finished 70 minutes early, I was escorted out of the building with a few other applicants. One of them turned to me in the elevator and said “the Russian National Anthem? Seriously? Is that some kind of joke?”
He thought I had done it to make some kind of political statement. I had to laugh a little that someone (anyone for that matter) still thinks that the Russians are a big threat to civil policing matters in Canada.
Exhibit B: The job.
Nearly every year, my business goes through an enormous slowdown that leaves me wondering if I’ll be able to pay my mortgage and feed my kids. Most recently, the slowdown came in the last few months of 2007. At that time, I did what I always do in these circumstances - I started to apply for honest-to-goodness salaried jobs in the public sector - just in case.
I’m a parent. I have a mortgage to worry about. I’m also the sole bread-winner in my household at the moment. Stressful? Sure!
So, in early 2008, a very interesting posting for a civilian position with the RCMP crossed my desk. Criminal Intelligence Analyst! How cool is that? If you know me well, you’ll know that this isn’t the first time I’ve toyed with the idea of a career in law enforcement.
I’m more than qualified for the job and I’ve actually done some crime statistics analysis in the past (ask me about my study of beating deaths as a subset of infanticide in the US between 1987 and 1997 sometime). The pay is only slightly less than what I make from my consulting business these days and I’d have to get Top Secret clearance - which is a rare asset for many jobs and consulting gigs down the road. There is, of course, also the benefits package and the pension.
Exhibit C: My conundrum.
My conundrum, and I suspect the conundrum of many consultants, is what I will do if my business continues to do well and grow AND I get offered my deam job with the RCMP later this year.
Even though I’m now almost fully booked for the next six months, I’m still waiting for the other shoe to drop. It may never drop but if it does drop and I have another complete slowdown in my business at the end of the year, I’ll be glad to be most of the way through the recruiting process for a sweet job.
As a consultant working from home, I enjoy many tax deductions and benefits that I would have to forgo as a salaried employee of the Federal government. I would also have to wake up at a decent hour and I’d probably miss having dinner with my kids most nights. I’d end up in a higher tax bracket to boot.
Why am I even considering the job? Steady pay is attractive. I’d be learning new skills and padding up my resume. I would be getting pension and benefits. It’s wildly interesting work that has a high degree of social value.
Can you see the conundrum I’m having? Chances are, I won’t get offered the job at the RCMP and the decision will be made for me. I’m okay with that but I wanted to share the dillema with you because I suspect that many consultants look back longingly at a desk job from time to time.
I’d love your thoughts and feelings on this condundrum of mine.
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Aaron “Crooky” Cruikshank is the Principal and Founder of Friuch Consulting. He has written professionally about science and technology for ten years.
Topics: Business of Consulting |
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July 12th, 2008 at 1:35 pm
What was the test like?
July 13th, 2008 at 11:13 am
It was really easy. It’s not even as hard as the Border Services Officer test. Mostly spelling and logic problems with one essay question.