It's a simple question really. Assuming you EVER really "liked" working in IT, or even if not in a formal IT environment, that you ever liked working with computers and related "technology". Do you still? On average (not just today or yesterday), do you still enjoy working in the field of technology as much now as you ever did in the past?
Me? Not so much.
Why? In the 1990's, the party-time of IT, things were driven by the technology itself. The features, the capabilities, the new places to explore and improve upon, those were everywhere. It was almost a free-for-all as far as finding problems and working out solutions with the tools at hand. It felt like building a house or rebuilding an old car. It was yours to conquer.
Today, it's mostly about cost cutting. The projects aren't really driven by IT people anymore either. They're being driven by bean-counters. People in suits, with MBA's and PMP certifications. People who can spew ITIL, SOX, SOA, and SDLC mantra all day, but can't write a single line of code or install a software product of any real meaning (server-based is what I'm talking about).
In the late 90's and early 2000's, if you asked most IT SysAdmins "is this product/technology something YOU would have chosen?" they would have said "Yes. I chose it." Today, most that I have talked with say "No. It was chosen by someone else and I don't like it.". Many feel that the technology they are supporting is outdated or inefficient, but they don't have the authority or backing to pursue an alternative. Even when a proof of concept shows enough promise towards saving time and effort, most SysAdmins don't have time (or sufficient skill) at presenting an MBA-oriented business case to get it over the hump. To us, the features save time, do more, and free us to do other things. To the financial departments it's only a matter of how much it will cost to implement (including training and support), and what will it provide in savings and over how long. The old ROI issue. However, today it's less about the "R" (return) and more about the up-front cost.
Do you still go into work (or work from home) on weekends or late weeknights? Is it by your own choosing because you LIKE what you're doing? Or is it because you HAVE to do it? Or do you even work into your personal hours? Are you as driven by the fascination of what you're working with now as you were five or ten years ago? Or are you driven more by staying employed and getting a paycheck? If you could choose the technologies you work with, would they be the same as you are already using?
7 comments:
Do You Still Like Working in IT? No. I LOVE it, and I'll tell you why.
I believe I was born to do this. The rest of my family are in trades, mechanic, pipe fitter, construction, welding, painting. All honorable, tough, difficult jobs. However, everyone of them absolutely HATES their job. I mean they get fulfillment, like anyone else who does a job well done, but they are not passionate about it. Do they study on the weekends to improve their welding or painting technique? They wouldn't even dream of it.
I have meshed processes into my life to stay up on technology, partially to maintain my competitive edge in the professional world, but also because I thoroughly ENJOY it.
I think you might be getting your question confused with Corporate politics and red tape. If you take away all of the crap IT people have to deal with and just look at the IT work, I can absolutely say that I couldn't imagine myself doing anything else. The politics are challenging and often frustrating but they are the realities of the world we live in.
Do you still go into work (or work from home) on weekends or late weeknights? When necessary.
Is it by your own choosing because you LIKE what you're doing? Not often but I do study new technology and techniques from home on my free time.
Or is it because you HAVE to do it? If I go in on the weekend it's either a need by my boss, to help a friend, or because of something hot I'm working on for me.
Or do you even work into your personal hours? Absolutely.
Are you as driven by the fascination of what you're working with now as you were five or ten years ago? Family demands more of my time than previously but yes, I am still fascinated and intrigued by new technologies
Or are you driven more by staying employed and getting a paycheck? For me the paycheck is definitely necessary but not why I do the job, I love to solve problems and IT gives me my fix.
If you could choose the technologies you work with, would they be the same as you are already using? Great Question, not really. I would prefer more virtualization, system monitoring, and automation.
Do You Still Like Working in IT? No. I LOVE it, and I'll tell you why.
I believe I was born to do this. The rest of my family are in trades, mechanic, pipe fitter, construction, welding, painting. All honorable, tough, difficult jobs. However, everyone of them absolutely HATES their job. I mean they get fulfillment, like anyone else who does a job well done, but they are not passionate about it. Do they study on the weekends to improve their welding or painting technique? They wouldn't even dream of it.
I have meshed processes into my life to stay up on technology, partially to maintain my competitive edge in the professional world, but also because I thoroughly ENJOY it.
I think you might be getting your question confused with Corporate politics and red tape. If you take away all of the crap IT people have to deal with and just look at the IT work, I can absolutely say that I couldn't imagine myself doing anything else. The politics are challenging and often frustrating but they are the realities of the world we live in.
Do you still go into work (or work from home) on weekends or late weeknights? When necessary.
Is it by your own choosing because you LIKE what you're doing? Not often but I do study new technology and techniques from home on my free time.
Or is it because you HAVE to do it? If I go in on the weekend it's either a need by my boss, to help a friend, or because of something hot I'm working on for me.
Or do you even work into your personal hours? Absolutely.
Are you as driven by the fascination of what you're working with now as you were five or ten years ago? Family demands more of my time than previously but yes, I am still fascinated and intrigued by new technologies
Or are you driven more by staying employed and getting a paycheck? For me the paycheck is definitely necessary but not why I do the job, I love to solve problems and IT gives me my fix.
If you could choose the technologies you work with, would they be the same as you are already using? Great Question, not really. I would prefer more virtualization, system monitoring, and automation.
I too am fascinated with new technology, even technology that's been around for awhile. But my thoughts were aimed mostly at the reality of here and now. I mean, the difference between what "can" be done, as opposed to what "is" being done. And it just feels (to me and many others I know) that non-technical people are holding more control over technical decisions than they used to. Instead of just deciding on budgets, they're meddling in the choice of tools, how they're implemented and used, and even who gets to use them.
I'm talking about the "MBA folks" that do not have a technical background. They've never written a complete software application, rebuilt a server or configured a router, etc. Yet they insist on telling you product A is what you're going to use when your case justifies product B.
I'm guessing I worded my questions a bit too vague. This grew from a lengthy beer chat with some close friends over the weekend. More gut feeling than factual argument. I hope I'm making sense?
Do I still like working in IT?
Do birds chirp? Do Commodore Floppy Drives sing? Is Steve Ballmer passionate about his job?
Hell yes!
Every job (I mean EVERY JOB) has it's bad days. You can't ignore that. But as an IT Professional I get to leverage the suite of skills that are completely unique to me, mesh with others with similiar (and yet completely unique talents) to produce solutions none of us could ever foresee.
Sure, you bang your head on the desk on some of the monotony (Little Johnny locked himself out for the 965th time) but you also get the absolute untouchable elation when you solve the unsolvable. You change the day.
Sometimes it's as simple as helping somebody see that one solution that was JUST out of their reach, and you see the look of "WOW! I didn't KNOW you could do that!" and a huge smile breaks across their face.
I cannot picture myself in any other job. I love the challenges, I hate the bad days, love the good days.
I live for the chance to be your hero on some level great or small.
After poking (Pardon the Commodore pun) and prodding at computers for most of my life, I wouldn't look back ever on my career choice.
My name is Sean, The Energized Tech.
... and I absolutely still love working in IT.
Damn Sean! Poster child for 5-hour Energy Drink? LOL! I can relate to that.
The basis of this trainwreck of thought was a discussion amongst other aging geeks. Most of them seem to feel that things since 1996 have "matured" to the point of being a "cost center" rather than an "innovation center" of business. Everyone realizes that this is an over-generalization. Bright spots exist, like yours, and a lot of it is obviously individual perspective.
I enjoy technology. It's amazing and the creative ways it can be assembled and customized to solve unique problems is fascinating. I think a lot of the second-thinking comes from the current economic situation and how staff levels are being squeezed and more work is being piled on with no increase in budgets. When the markets take off again, someday, most IT folks will have a more optimistic view I'm sure.
I'm probably something of an exception here, as I have never loved -working- in IT. In all seriousness, I don't -love- working for anyone, save for myself. I work in IT because I am reasonably good at it, advancement in the field is pretty much self-controlled (you get the right certs and show competence you can find a better position,) and because let's be honest... there are few jobs that you can self-train at that leave you in the AC for most of the day that pay as well as IT work.
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