Im gona go with the other side of the opinion here.
I dont think you should change roles. Shadow, do a couple day secondment. Sure.
This is how I see it.
When I was managing a few of my family business a few years ago, things go to shit sometimes. Im not concerned about fluff. I need shit fixed as things cost me money and that has a massive knock on effect in terms of customers, stock, wages etc. I need the right guy that I can turn to and know things will get done.
You are incident management. Lets cut the bullshit. When things go Pete Tong. You get shit done and you get it done good.
I hate to say this, but there are not many people that can keep their cool and do that. Let me tell you. That person is soo fucking hard to find.
Regarding the new role. Sales is sales regardless how it is garnished.
In my previous roles(sales and non sales) they banked a lot on my non sales experience/knowledge. I had practical applied knowledge of figuring out shit when things fucked up. When things went bad, I was the guy they turned to (sometimes it was because it was really my fuckup, they just did not know that). Then I was applying this knowledge so things did not go bad again. Overtime that frame of reference/knowledge base gets bigger. You have a bigger dataset to pull from when things go to shit. You get really good at it.
This knowledge can be applied to sales, marking whatever bollocks you want to call it. Why keep it this when you can use this knowledge to fix other peoples shit?
Hence the sales marketing aspect comes in. They are using you ability to fix shit and apply it to fixing other peoples shit. More moola can be made. Cha ching $$$
Just as I said above sales is sales. The principles are the same. My old manager did the same thing. Twinkle in his eye, picked me up in his sports car, fed me lunch etc to convince me to come on board.
Before you know it im fixing peoples shit in desperate times. Overtime you can look at other people shit.. hell you can smell it a mile away and already know the solution. Thats a hard skill to find. I tried to find a replacement for myself, Where the hell do you begin? So be wary of that song and dance. Ive turned down 4 job offers.
I just started a job that is related to a job I did back in 2007. Its taken me 12 years to start again. 12 fucking years in lost career progression, money and shit I will never get back.
Ive taken a paycut for this role, my new manger and new senior manager were surprised. Let me tell you I am not moving. I have missed out on so many life events due to work not being stable. Hell I posted another thread on flight tickets. I could not book a early flight to see my parents because of job unstability. Now im paying double for it.
It sounds so simple but that boring go to work job that is stable is hard to find. Ive been fighting 12 years just to get back there.
One last story. I had a client back in 2013. He had a boring stable job at the U of C. He was the guy in IT people turned too. Pay was decent.
People gave him the twinkle in the eye look and convinced him to come in oil and gas. More pay and his skills could be 'developed'. I advised against it.
He now was working over 12 hours a day. He tried to bring change and expand his skills in his new role. They told him to shut up and thats not what he was there for.
He came into the branch after three months on the job and his face was red and had a long look in his eyes. Grass was not greener.
Boring job stability is so underated and unappreciated. That shit is gold.
You are also getting older. You body will not function the same in terms of health. I am feeing it as well. My health suffered because of these stupid job roles.
A large number of people are out of work. Shit is bad out there. Like really bad.
You are in a postion where you are very valuable to the company(and Beyond.ca in helping peasants like me move shit). Don't get ahead of yourself.
Go to work and come home. Spend time with Baygirl. Life is good.
Other people (many of my clients) would kill to be in your current position.
Fuck. I need to go to bed.