Voice of the DBA

Tag: career2

  • Open Source the MCM

    It’s over. There’s no more MCM program or certification from Microsoft. The last MCM test was given last year and no upgrades are planned for SQL Server 2012 or SQL Server 2014. That’s a little sad, though there are quite a few of our SQL Server professionals that can still proudly wear the MCM title for the rest of their careers.

    The MCM tests were designed differently than all the other MCP type tests, requiring more thought and deduction, as well as practical skills. The lab in particular was daunting to many of the MCMs, most of whom would tell you about the difficulties in getting through the scenarios in the limited time alloted. All of the people I’ve talked to found the challenge refreshing and also informative, enabling them to learn a few things about their knowledge, even from the problems they didn’t complete.

    Since that chapter in Microsoft Learning is complete, and the tasks likely out of date, I’d ask that Microsoft Learning release the questions and scenarios to the world as an open source project. Unlike the other certifications and exams, these questions aren’t going to be re-used anytime soon and the knowledge could help many people learn to build better solutions.

    This would be a great move, allowing many DBAs to challenge themselves with the questions and scenarios in practice labs. The types of scenarios could be used in interviews for new employees, either as they are written or modified for a particular environment. Professionals using the SQL Server platform would get an idea of not only the broad level of knowledge that MCMs have, but they’d also have a way to test themselves and direct their own learning to become better rounded SQL Server developers and administrators.

    I doubt it would happen, but I’d think Microsoft could help the community, generate some goodwill, and help improve the overall quality of people working on their platform.

    Update: I have opened a Connect item for this. Please vote

    Podcast: http://traffic.libsyn.com/voiceofthedba/mcmoss_58_v1063.mp3

  • The Powershell Challenge Update

    I’ve fallen down on my challenge over the last month. It’s been a content time, with me working more towards presentations and writing most of Mar and April to meet deadlines and commitments. I also let my calendar reminder die in Feb and didn’t renew it.

    As a result, here I am, 6 months in and only done with 19 chapters. That’s a good way in, but it’s not complete. With some downtime coming, I’m looking to get back into this and using it a bit more.

  • Due Diligence

    I often talk with people about building their brands and finding a way to ensure they are a highly desirable employee. One of the ways that I think people can do this is with a technical blog about their career. Having a technical blog allows someone to show off their skills in a particular area. The blog doesn’t have to be ground breaking work or extremely innovative solutions to complex problems. While employers need those people, they also need people that do solid work every day on regular problems.

    An interview isn’t a great way to find good employees. Many of us have had experience with either (or both) sides of the interview table and realize that interviews aren’t necessarily that helpful. If we bothered to track the impressions we make of candidates and compare that to the actual work they accomplish over the first year or two, I suspect we’d find that we have no evidence that were making great decisions. The success of employees seems to be a bit hit and miss.

    A blog, however, provides the employer with a bit more confidence that a person can handle the job they are hired for. A blog takes time, and across months (or years), it can show quite a bit about a person’s knowledge and skills. It allows hiring managers, and co-workers that may interview a person, the ability to perform a bit more due diligence and investigation into someone’s skills than an interview provides. It’s much more of a representative look at a person than what they say or write on a resume.

    I know that it isn’t a perfect solution. People plagiarize posts and copy from Books Online and more, but the Internet helps here. Search a few of their paragraphs and you might catch plagiarizers easily. After all, someone that wants to copy posts to avoid work, probably has a few other tricks in their bag to avoid doing other work for you.

    Think about starting a blog today and giving potential employers a way to learn more about you.

    Podcast: http://traffic.libsyn.com/voiceofthedba/duediligence_57_v1062.mp3

  • Advice for Newcomers

    A friend recently was asked to give a presentation on their career to a group of 12 year olds. It was a challenge to engage the students, and my friend was surprised that very few of the kids were interested in technology. I was disappointed as well since I think this is a great career choice, and worth a little investigation, especially at that age.

    It’s hard to convince people to enter this business if they don’t have any interest, but if they do, I’m wondering what you might tell them. Today I’d like you to think about your words of wisdom to someone interested in your job.

    What would you tell someone that you wish you knew early on in your career?

    You might impart some hints about how to approach technology. You might give them ideas on how to build skills faster or better? However for me, I’d tell them two things.

    First, you can’t underestimate the value of networking, no matter what field you enter. Whether that’s technology, medicine, law, or anything else, networking will help you. Learn to make contacts and interact with people.

    Second, learn what you don’t like to do. Experiment with the technologies, practice the jobs, and understand what you don’t like. You might not find something you have a passion for, but I’d certainly encourage you not to enter a field that you just don’t enjoy.

    Steve Jones