Voice of the DBA

Tag: career

  • Have You Been Hacked?

    I am glad that I don’t work in the retail industry as a DBA. It seems that I read about a new security breach every few weeks from some company. Home Depot, Target, Staples, the list goes on and on, and includes more and more businesses that at least some of us use regularly. It’s gotten to the point where I expect that I’ll need to replace at least one of my cards every year because of some data loss issue.

    However it’s not just retail companies that are getting attacked. According to the Q3 Dambella report, companies are having dozens of devices infected daily and seeing increasing numbers of point-of-sale (POS) attacks all the time. Even those companies that don’t deal directly with credit cards and consumers are finding that they are targets of network attacks more and more. Some of these are merely vandalism, but many are intended as some sort of industrial espionage or data breach that can be used for profit.

    This is the other edge of the data professional’s sword. We have low unemployment and high salaries, but we are also becoming responsible and the target of blame when data is stolen. I really believe that theft detection is becoming more important for data professionals. We won’t be able to prevent attacks, but we surely need to know when they have occurred and be prepared to respond.

    I don’t know how our profession will move forward in the future to meet these needs. Perhaps we’ll become bonded like locksmiths. Perhaps we’ll be bound by insurance requirements to adhere to best practices. I’m not sure any of that will help increase security, but it might help reduce the liability that we may face.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcast

    Listen to the MP3 Audio ( 2.3MB) podcast or subscribe to the feed at iTunes and LibSyn.

  • Triple Digits

    The salary surveys for 2015 look good for data professionals. The Robert Half results that appear in this piece show lots of salaries creeping well into the triple digits for annual salary in the US. Not only are the upper bounds over $100k for many data professional areas, but so are many starting salaries.

    The values show a good increase from 2014, so if you aren’t thrilled with your job and are thinking of changing positions, you might land yourself a nice raise. I wouldn’t encourage anyone to change jobs for just money, and certainly the problems at your employer might be worse at others, but if you have other reasons for leaving, certainly look for a raise if you can.

    I’m also pleased to see a wider variety of positions appearing in the survey results. To me that points to a maturing of our industry and the recognition that we do a variety of jobs, all of which are different. And based on the salary responses, all of these are also important to companies. I’m have confidence that as the data we manage becomes more important, and many of us continue to work on improving your skills, we’ll continue to see greater rises in salaries in the future.

    The one thing in the piece that caught my eye was the “add 7% to salaries for Oracle database skills.” I get that Oracle costs more, but do we think Oracle data professionals are worth more for that reason? Or because Oracle is a bigger pain in the rear to deal with?

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcast

    Listen to the MP3 Audio ( 2.0MB) podcast or subscribe to the feed at iTunes and LibSyn.

  • When Work Gets in the Way of Work

    It seems I find myself in this situation more and more. I’ve got work to do at SQLServerCentral. There’s a constant stream of articles to edit, content to review and schedule, questions to build, and of course, writing these pieces on data related topics. That goes on 220+ days a year, as we keep the site going and send a newsletter every weekday of the year.

    However the last few years I find myself crunched to get work done in my work week with the addition of other tasks to my routine. I’ve moved from 2-3 events and 5-6 presentations to 20+ events and closer to 40 talks a year that I deliver. Not only is there a high frequency of events, but there’s also a number of new presentations to build. It seems I have 3-4 (at least) new talks to assemble, which can be quite time consuming. That’s in addition to keeping SQLServerCentral moving.

    This isn’t different than many of the jobs I’ve had in the past. Often I’ve had a set of tasks that I need to work through regularly. Whether these were admin tasks, or development projects, I usually have found that I can develop a routine throughout most weeks. However things crop up. Bug fixes are reported, or hardware fails, or some other project takes some priority, but I need to somehow fit this into my week, along with everything I normally do.

    It’s tough, and I think far too many people with salaried jobs try to just work harder and longer to complete their work. That makes some sense for a short period of time (2-4 weeks), but after that it’s a mistake. Productivity declines and people burn out. They become cranky, and more importantly, they lose a substantial portion of their life over time.

    I’ve learned to push back when things become too busy, and while I’ve had managers that weren’t thrilled, even angry, almost all of them understood the problem and worked with me and others to change things.These days that means I cancel or skip events. More often I decline to accept engagements in the future to bring balance into life. 

    This month is tough, with a lot of commitments made months ago, and flying to the UK this week doesn’t help. However I’ve learned a few things about scheduling my time this year and hopefully I’ll do a better job next year.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcast

    Listen to the MP3 Audio ( 3.0MB) podcast or subscribe to the feed at iTunes and LibSyn.

  • Learning Options in Seattle Next Month

    The 2014 PASS Summit takes place next month. Actually a few weeks, on Nov 3-7, 2014 in Seattle. While many people attend the conference, there are some additional options for learning that you might think about in addition to the conference itself. While the conference is great, getting deeper dives on topics that last more than an hour is something you may consider.

    Make SQL Server Go Faster – A two day class, Monday Nov 3 and Tuesday Nov 4, from Brent Ozar Unlimited. You’ll get two days in depth training on practical tips for improving SQL Server performance. $695, but worth it.

    SQL in the City 2014 – Seattle – From Red Gate, my employer. We’ll have the hour long sessions, but we’ve split things into two tracks and have linked sessions. Our development track, focusing on Continuous Delivery, is really 3 hours of content that has breaks. Lots of admin stuff, and the chance to see how Red Gate tools make your job easier and faster, but we cover concepts that can be applied to other tools, or your own processes.

    Pre-Conference Sessions – Each year there are two days of pre-conference, all day sessions. We’ve had post-conference sessions as well, but not for a few years. This year there are lots of choices, and a couple I struggled to choose between. I decided on Allan Hirt’s pre-con as I could use some HA skills beefing and as a former sysadmin, I find it interesting. If you can swing the $495, it’s a good investment.

    SQL Saturday #337 – Oregon – The Saturday before, if you’re in the area early, Portland is a short drive/train/flight away from Seattle. A free, full day of SQL to get you warmed up for the Summit.

    Also, don’t forget about our Monday Networking Dinner as well. Come join us. It’s free, and you get to meet other SQL Server pros.