Voice of the DBA

Tag: career2

  • Ridiculous

     

    respect
    We should all remember to respect others in our community, especially at professional events.

    An excellent post from Bruce Schneier, based ona post by Valerie Aurora. Valerie’s post just pisses me off. She should never have had to write it. Bruce’s is a good reminder that we should recognize the value of a diverse group in our industry. I’vewritten about this before, and unfortunately, I’m not surprised I need to write about it again. This is a male dominated industry, for now, but that doesn’t excuse behavior like that talked about at DevCon.

    I haven’t seen that level of disrespect at any of the SQL conferences and I hope I never do. I have seen women placed in uncomfortable situations, which isn’t any better. We are all human, and some of us are attracted to others, which is natural. However in a professional environment, even at a social gathering in the evening, I think that as a man I should be very respectful of the fact that many of the women attending are doing so as colleagues and not anything else.

    It’s a challenge for women in this industry, and probably for many minority groups. That’s one reason I support the Women in Technology events and discussions. Education, understanding, and knowledge of problems is the best way to combat the issues, and ensure you don’t make the same mistakes twice. We all know this helps us when working with SQL Server. We should know this will help us in our interpersonal communications as well.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

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

  • Watch Your Mouth

    It’s one way to control what you say

    I give a talk on branding and resumes that has been well received over the last few years. In it I cover the ways in which you can use networking, blogging, and other ways to improve the chances that employers will want to hire you. There are lots of jobs available, and lots of candidates, but finding a good fit is hard. I would argue that disclosing more about yourself, and your interests, is a good way to help find a good fit with an organization.

    One of the cautions I raise in my presentation is that you should be aware of how you present yourself, and the impressions you make. There are no right or wrong ways to do this, but there are ways that reflect differently on you to different people. As such, I do urge you to think about the implications of your actions, your posts, and the way in which you communicate with others. If you are looking for a job, it doesn’t make sense to unnecessarily restrict your options because of the things you say or write.

    I ran across this slide show on profanity and cursing at work. I’m not offended by off color language, but some people are, and they often won’t let you know that you’ve created a poor impression. If the data is accurate, the majority of people think regular cursing creates a negative impression. Whether you think it’s a lack of control, unprofessional, or anything else, it still is a negative impression. It’s also one of the things that caused some HR groups to eliminate candidates.

    These days there is competition for jobs, and if you find the job you really like, do you want to diminish your chances because of a few colorful words? You have the freedom in the US to say what you want, and I support that, but you also get the responsibility of handling the consequences. I’d argue a few colorful words aren’t worth giving someone a reason to choose another equally qualified candidate over you?

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

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

  • Big Data Jobs

    big data
    Big Data opportunities are growing.

    If I asked you to give me five industries where Big Data jobs are likely to be growing, what would you say? Everyone’s data is growing, but a few places may grow faster than others. One survey lists banking, retail, pharmaceuticals, government, and insurance as the top growth areas, which makes sense. Despite the slowdowns in the worldwide economies, retailers and banks have improved their systems to gather more and more data. There’s no shortage of government growth with regards to the data being collected, and the drug companies see more data analysis as the way to reduce the costs of introducing new drugs.

    What if I asked you to pick the places in North America where there will be lots of new Big Data jobs? According to the same report these cities lead the way with job openings: San Francisco, CA, Maclean, VA, Boston, MA, St Louis, MO, and Toronto in Canada. These are all areas with large concentrations of organizations from the industries with the most Big Data jobs.

    I’m not surprised at the list, though there are plenty of other places that are likely just below these five in terms of jobs. I wouldn’t look to move to any of these places just for the Big Data job, but if you are looking to work in this field, you might think about checking out various recruiters and contracting companies’ sites to see where there are lots of jobs.

    As slow as the worldwide economies seem to be moving these days, our fields of technology and data seem to be growing, with plenty of companies looking to improve their systems and tackle new initiatives that might improve their ability to take advantage of the all the data they store. There are lots of jobs out there, and with some work you might find one is a great fit for you.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

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

  • Time Off

    snowboarding
    I am looking forward to some time off this winter on the slopes.

    As a US citizen, I’m lucky to work for a UK company. I get a generous allotment of vacation, and desperately try to use it all each year. I haven’t been successful yet, but I’m getting closer. If we could only get a little more snow at the beginning and end of the season…..

    Last year a friend told me that they lost 6 days of vacation. Over a few years this person had accumulated extra vacation by basically working too hard and when the year ended, some of their vacation was lost because of carryover limits. This person vowed to change this year and use all their vacation, but with a busy job at a small company I’m not sure that will come true. Unfortunately, I’ve all too often seen this same behavior from many people in IT.

    This piece shows that all too often people are not taking their vacation, or they’re not taking it as a complete break from work. I’ve been in both situations, and over time I’ve learned that I’m not being more productive in either case. I’m unbalanced, and over time I become less productive. That’s especially true if I’m doing creative work, like writing, or developing code.

    There’s no shortage of poor managers out there, and there are plenty of them that will work you as hard as you allow. I don’t have any great solutions for dealing with them other than scheduling vacation every year, insisting you get to take it, limiting contact with work, and if all else fails, looking for another job.

    Life is short, too short to spend more of it as work than you have to. Take advantage of your vacation to relax and recharge, even if it’s a stay-cation at home. Getting away from work is not only important, it’s something you owe to yourself and your family.

    Steve Jones

    The Voice of the DBA Podcasts

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