Topics about Your Career in IT

1. IT Career Field News Clippings: Topics about Your Career in IT

Assuming that you have decided to go into IT as your chosen career field, you have to pick what aspect of IT you want to work in. Just looking at the range of NVCC Associate degree specializations and certificate programs gives you a "menu" of choices. But what are the real world conditions of any of these specialties like? You might ask, "Do I belong in ________ (fill in the blank)?" Justin James, who writes a softwware developer's blog for Tech Republic, gives you some very focused points of analysis from a real-world programmer/analyst/developer/manager's perspective on whether you are "cut out" to be a software developer. He gives it to you in reverse - 10 signs that you aren't cut out to be a developer. Good questions all on "Do I have what it takes to be a software developer?".
Since American employers claim that IT skills are in such short supply, a new Senate amendment to a spending bill will mandate that those who apply for H-1B visas to import foreign workers will pay more in fees. Employers will now find increased fees from $1500 to $5000 for each worker needed to perform work in the US. Most of the fees will go to establish scholarships for students to pursue associates, bachelors, or graduate degrees in high technology fields. Read the details.
The IT Departments of many organizations have a bad reputation for numerous reasons - some that are their fault, some that are the fault of the organization (and its leadership), as well as others caused by outside factors such as impracticality, unreadiness of supporting technology. etc. This article provides some thoughtful analysis of the problems and some directions for improvement in the 21st century.

A first followup (with many thoughtful reader insights) lists eight key problems in the IT profession. One that particularly hit home was the discussion of the problems of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) - it sure did sound like the years of living with the VCCS experiment with PeopleSoft, a definite "square peg in a round hole." Since PeopleSoft (now owned by Oracle) was originally designed to be a personnel-management software platform, it was not well-fitted to become the platform for managing all college/university academic record-keeping. After several years, colleges all over the country who use the product changed their business processes to fit into the PeopleSoft paradigm so that it "works" - now do you understand why you as a student have an EmplID (employee ID) when you are not an employee? Once again, the necessity of all IT people understanding the nature of the business emerges as the key to success in the IT profession. You should find this article timely for thinking through how you can prepare yourself to help the IT profession grow and succeed in the future - that is a bigger part of your education than just learning technical skills that may be "obsolete in five years," the usual complaint about the inadequacy of college-educated students who enter the marketplace.

Is "off-shoring" (overseas outsourcing) still a threat - Yes or No? It seems like the realistic answer is somewhere between yes and no. Off-shoring is still a business reality that can save money for some businesses in some circumstances, but many companies are finding that it is not the great panacea that they anticipated. This article has some key take-away advice for now and future thinking:

"... Keep your skills up-to-date and move up the skills ladder into these higher-end IT jobs because it cannot be denied that there are places in the world where the other work costs a lot less"
"... Position [yourself] in roles that will be hard to recreate elsewhere because they include significant business-specific knowledge" especially be aware "jobs that are more client-facing will be far less likely to move offshore."

"Am I a Bad Parent? Society needs teens such as my math-whiz son to become IT pros and scientists. Am I wrong to encourage him to pursue his dream of becoming a music composer?" What would you advise this Dad to tell his son?
Many pundits have noted that young women have not been coming into computer and information systems careers in the recent years; in fact, the number of women in Computer Science and Information Technology programs has been declining since 2001. Yet, another Grace Murray Hopper has emerged as a role model, a champion for young women in (computer) science, by becoming one of the 'Net's most powerful women. Leslie Daigle has been named the first chief Internet technology officer at the Internet Society.
Just how big is Microsoft and its "ecosystem" in the US and the world's commerce as well as US IT employment -- 10%, $2 Trillion? Guess again!!
Is there an IT worker shortage? How bad is it? Should we allow or increase all of the special-purpose academic and employment visas (H1Bs, etc)? Where do younger workers fit into the field? What are the conditions for mid-career workers? What are the requirements and issues for Baby Boomers and other older workers? Do companies and non-IT executives really care to address the issues? Learn what conclusions and manipulation can be worked from creative uses of statistics. This article and the lengthy comments that follow provide lots of perspective for thought.
Go West, Young Man/Young Woman for the gold rush (something like what Horace Greeley once said)!! The future in IT jobs is continuing to look upward, especially in Western states. In a Robert Half Technology survey of CIOs (referenced in Baseline Magazine) on their intended hiring for the fourth quarter of this year, about seven times as many said they would be hiring more than the number of those laying off IT workers (14% vs. 2%). And the leading skills in demand include network administrators, especially with Windows Server 2000/2003 backgrounds. They noted a solid good reason for more hiring an-- corporate growth. "CIOs said they were adding I.T. workers [to support corporate growth], followed by a need to boost end user support and the deployment of new enterprise software applications."
Go West - because the #1 High -Tech Region in the US is, of course, Silicon Valley. But if you don't want to go West, where is #2? You might just be surprised - read on ....
Go East, Young Woman - as it turns out, women working in IT today are not in Silicon Valley, but rather they are going east to numerous Eastern cities, some that you might not even suspect.
But what about unemployed students with liberal arts degrees - is there any future in IT for them? Guess what -- CIOs are looking for smart, hard-working liberal arts grads. There are some good possibilities for programming, software development, project/program management, systems analysis. Sometimes liberal arts majors have a better business sense (customer service, strategic vision, organizational dynamics, the flow of business processes) and don't get lost in technical details. What do you think?
Are Certifications Important for Career Enhancement? Pros (Yes) & Cons (No)
Are the stories about low salaries and burn-out overwork really true? This article asks the question about the last detail - "Do Computer Pros Work Less Than Others?" Salaries in the Field. Trends
As the number of IT jobs is continuing to increase (from 3, 410, 000 in 2000 to 3,470, 000 in 2006 - that's 60,000 more IT jobs last year - and still rising - over the 2000 peak of the dot.com boom) , yet the number of women going into the tech world is declining. WHY? A second look at "Where the Girls Aren't"
Are "women the canaries in the coal mine." - Some thoughts on changing faces of computer science and geekdom.
Some more information about "hot" certs and skills. One thing to note especially here is the reminder that what is "hot" constantly changes, and so you must plan to adapt in today's IT world.
The Dice.com Tech Salary Survey Results: it shows that the average salaries for technology professionals increased 5.2 Percent in 2006! The reference link shows the statistics by expereince level, geographical area (metro areas and regions, salary satisfaction, gender, industries, job titles, employments type (company employee vs consultant), and company size.
The more that IT changes, the more that IT (and all technologies, in general) stays the same. For some profound thoughts about the underlying principles that govern how the IT field works, this article will knock your socks off!
Practicing drive and initiative now in College correlates with drive, initiative, and success later in the "Real World" of IT - Maintaining skills top priority for IT pros
I shouldn't let you peek into the crystal ball and see the path from 2007 to 2012 in IT, but ....
Some thoughts on the value of Information Security as a future field - degrees vs certs, etc.
Where is the IT field going in terms of its people and your future? Find out what the CIOs are saying, in what ways are they bullish on the field, what they think about retaining staff members now, especially their valued people, what they are doing about entry level staff hiring.
Are Network/Telecommunications and Information Security worth considering for a career? Read this before you decide!
In this superb article there are many nuggets of job-placement and job-advancement wisdom. Some key take-aways:

A "... degree can show the applicant can stick to a task, certifications show a willingness to expand one's skill set." [Which is best? Are you allowed to get both?]
"For IT professionals under the age of 32, degrees and certifications play a larger role. But as experience mounts, documented work experience on specific projects overrides the need for certification."
"Besides computer science and information technology degrees, many businesses prize an MBA, believing that applicants have the ability to better understand technology as it relates to the company's core business."
[Many companies] "... view certifications as "dessert" and a degree as the "meat and potatoes" of an applicant's résumé. "We consider a degree higher than certifications; if a certification matches the skill set we're looking for, then that's a bonus."
... high in importance are such soft skills as character, communication, time management, change management and whether the applicant is a team player.
[plus] the small details, such as how a résumé is organized and writing a coherent cover letter - "Many [resumes] are not very professional, and some people seem to have forgotten those standards like how to organize a résumé or write a cover letter; like most people, I'm pressed for time, and those go to the bottom of the pile."

The world of Business & IT as seen from the eyes of consultants who "worked in the trenches long and hard - before they were gurus."
In addition to off-shoring software and services, especially helpdesk services, to India, China, and Russia, you might also add the Czech Republic and Ireland to the mix of skilled workers as Cisco has just identified.
2006: the Year for Living Globally?
Globalization, Internationalization, Off-shore Outsourcing and E-Commerce - what do they all mean for your employment future in a global economy? Read the article and better yet, view the slide show with its excellent pictures and stories.
Does Age and Technology Matter in the IT Culture?
Although some analysts think that older IT folks don't understand technology the way the younger
generation does, is that so? Is it age-discriminatory? An older IT executive told searchCIO: "To say that the 'qualities' of our grandchildren are something that must be accommodated by technology and in the workplace is one of the more abominable crocks of excrement that is currently being foisted on the American public." Another was more to the point: "It's lame, really, really lame." Make sure to read the above article and form your own opinion.
The Geekiest License Plates -- Check these out!
Ten Thankful Things in IT for 2006 A perspective of some good things that happened in the world of technology over this past year. Do you recognize them all?
U.S. Tech Czar Says We're Short-handed When It Comes to IT People
Although the U.S. government doesn't seem to have any real long-term strategy for making sure that we have enough IT talent on hand, it's nice to see that at least somebody in government now recognizes that this is becoming a major strategic issue.
The 30 Most Important IT Trends for 2007

Summary of 30 Most Important IT Trends shows that "it looks like 2007 is finally going to be the year that IT gets down to business, according to a survey of CIO Insight readers. Helping their companies become more efficient by leveraging technology to create new ways of doing business is now the No. 1 priority of CIOs" --> Businesess Process Managment (BPM) is the #1 Priority

Some Additional 2007 Predictions are "shown" in these 2007 Vital Signs, from Computerworld
Another A1 Source for Job Trends and Information - Robert Half and Associates

The Hottest Skills for 2007 - You're not surprised about security, but what about programming and business analysis and managment (business knowledge in depth and thinking skills); of course, help desk is always an entry card - this really good read from Computerworld gives you some focused job insights.
IT Worker Shortage --> Job Survival and Advancement ?
Jobs will be more readily available now and in the foreseeable future as the IT business market expands and as "BabyBoom" employees retire.
Finding a job in IT demands that you are aware of the problems of the marketplace in general. The article referenced ("IT Turkeys: Technology Issues That We Don't Give Thanks For") has a theme of Thanksgiving - or its negative - but there are several issues raised that are especially relevant: the resume, Indian offshoring, outsourcing, and finally, IT and the recession. Even though the subject matter is addressed to corporate CIOs, the ideas presented are meaningful to all of us if we are thinking about the job market both now and later.

[For many of the websites (above) you can make a good clean copy for saving/printing by clicking on their "print this" or the equivalent.]