Voice of the DBA

Tag: career

  • Bring Solutions

    Solutions are the most important thing you can develop at your job.
    Solutions are the most important thing you can develop at your job.

    What’s your job? Most of you will answer “DBA”, or “developer”, or “manager”, or something that corresponds to your title. That’s partially true, but for the most part if you are in Information Technology, I think your job is to solve problems. You should ensure that your systems, or your code, or whatever you work on, is running smoothly for the people that use them.

    That isn’t always possible. There will be times that things break, that bugs crop up or systems fail. When that happens, people don’t want to hear about the inherent problems, or even what went wrong. They might ask, and they might be curious, but really what they want to know is when will the system be fixed and what will it cost.

    I’ve never had a manager that was really interested in the problems that caused a failure when systems were down. I’ve rarely had managers interested in potential problems I’ve noticed in our organization. Managers might be curious about the issues, but they don’t want you to bring them problems. They want you to bring them solutions when you see a problem, multiple choices to fix things, and a recommendation for the option you feel is best. They want a solution that works well, doesn’t cost a lot, and can be implemented quickly.

    Competition for jobs gets more intense all the time and the employees that look for problems and provide solutions without being asked will be the most valuable. They will stand out from their peers and are more likely to not only keep their jobs during down times, but will get asked to solve the interesting and challenging problems.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

    We publish three versions of the podcast each day for you to enjoy.

  • Data Journalism

    Using data to tell a story is something that more database professionals should consider.
    Using data to tell a story is something that more database professionals should consider.

    The open data movement in goverment has produced some amazing data analysis from many sources. Many people are taking freely available data sets and producing a visualization, or an analysis of a problem, or even an application that is useful to the public. It’s one of the ways that technology and data analysis has really changed the world in a way that wouldn’t have been possible before powerful computers and mobile devices.

    I ran across a piece on data journalism that talks about a few projects around the world. This is the idea of adding a story, along with context and clarity, to facts. That is what many people are showing in the various projects in the O’Reilly piece, and it got me thinking. Perhaps this isn’t just something that can be done with open data and public services. Perhaps this is something we could be doing more of within all our organizations.

    Journalists learn to inform people in a compelling way. Data journalism is based more around large sets of data. Most of the people I know working with SQL Server often understand the data much better than the business analysts. These technologists, usually those performing some type of development tasks, learn how the data is structured and stored, and might notice the patterns and anomalies in ways that business users ignore.

    As the future of databases and database workers evolves, I suspect that those people who can learn to tell a compelling story about the data, that can present facts to clients and customers in a captivating manner will be in demand by many employers.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

    We publish three versions of the podcast each day for you to enjoy.

  • Dealing with Supervision

    Micro-managers can be hard to deal with.
    Micro-managers can be hard to deal with. You need a few techniques handy if you want to enjoy your employment.

    I’ve been working at home for a decade, first for my own company and now for Red Gate Software. In that time, I’ve learned to manage myself, motivate myself, find work to do, and meet deadlines, all of which I’ve done without having anyone manage me. Over the last five years I’ve worked at Red Gate, I’d like to think that I was one of the easier people to manage since I work well on my own. I’m not sure if my various managers would agree, since I know that I can be particular about how I work and not necessarily work closely with others, but at least I haven’t required much of their time.

    A short while back I was talking with a friend that was under pressure to complete a deployment that was proceeding poorly and their manager stood next to their desk, watching, commenting, and asking how long each process would take. I’ve had to deal with that situation in the past, and it was  maddening to me. It’s hard enough to focus and work on a task when there are problems with the technology. Having someone that can’t contribute but is in a supervisory role nearby usually makes things worse.

    Ultimately I think micro-management says more about the manager than the employee. There are trust issues or control issues, or perhaps pressure from the manager’s boss. It can be hard to deal with micro-management, but if you plan to continue your employment, you need to find some way to deal with it.

    There is no shortage of ideas. You can search for “dealing with micro-management” and you will get a wide variety of advice. I’ve tried different techniques in the past and some have worked, some haven’t. The best way to handle micro-management seems to vary with the situation, but it’s good to have a few things to try.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

    We publish three versions of the podcast each day for you to enjoy.

  • LinkedIn and Connections

    I don’t use LinkedIn a lot,  but I do try to go over there once every week or two and update my status, add a link, and accept connections.

    I have a simple philosophy on connections: I accept them all. I don’t worry if I know the person or not, if they’re a recruiter or fellow technical pro, I just accept them.

    My thoughts are that the more people I can touch if I need help, the better off I am. It doesn’t matter where they are, or how I know them. A broadcast for network help is a broadcast that I want to reach everywhere.

    If the person is someone I know well, I do take a moment and move them into my A or B networks.

    I feel differently on Facebook, which is for real friends and family and I rarely accept friends there.