[justsomebody]

Please no flames, Im not critisizing, just my $0.02

was bored and this kinda passed my mind recently

I started working in IT 10 years ago in the United States, hell I dropped out of medical school because of it, back then a MCSE meant squat, I've seen MCSE holders walk up to a broken NT server and did'nt know what to do with it. Textbook vs real life scenarios are two very different ballgames , If you knew how to implement/troubleshoot lan/wan, server, users.. (well you cant really implement or troubleshoot users though I wish you could, I've seen some pretty retarded users in my days) You can make a decent salary.

All was good in the IT sector for about 3-4 years, then suddenly everyone and thier mother was either investing in a .com or doing some sort of buymycrap.com web page. It was a huge cash cow thats well, pretty much dead now or what's left of it is being force fed and kept alive by some of the major players. (poor cow)

It seems there are too many CNE, MCSE, MCE, CCNE, BNE? "insert any abbreviated certification here that most people dont know what the hell it is anyways", there are so many people with computer engineering/science degrees all with the know hows of computer hardware and networking to a certain degree.

This is all fine and gravy, I understand time does not stand still and cant expect everyone to be staying behind, time moves forward and so does technology, it's a competitive world, computer technology is where it is at, everything is computer this, computer that, bill gates this, microsoft that, your refridgerator can automatically shop and replace your groceries.. (ok well maybe in another 10 years but who knows, at this rate, maybe in 5 and it'll probably be made by Microsoft. I can picture Microsoft making refridgerators in 10 years with built in Windows 2020)

The kicker is half (probably more) of these people with these degrees and certifications probably have no interest in computers. Ten years ago if you asked a computer technician about computers, he/she will go into a 20 minute ramble with geekish computer terms that you or anyone else that's not a computer nerd would understand. It was back in the days when you met a MCSE holder, he really had a passion for how computer works, he would know in detail everything about a workstation, the lan cable to the switch, the switch to the backbone, the servers connected, etc.. he would probably even have a small network setup at home.

The sad truth is most people use IT as a stepping stone to move onto other bigger better things, either consulting, banking, research, or some other path. I just feel the quality of the so called Computer Technicians now a days lack a passion for the "Personal Computer", most friends I know that work with the so called "Information Technology" department dont want or even have a computer at home. In the end, the quality has really suffered. The demand, since there are so many certified technicians and graduates pouring out of technical colleges around the world every year, the salary now for a typical sytem administrator really has'nt changed from 10 years ago. This is bad, because you would think after a decade, you should be making more because everything else around you, the economy, rent, food, the bus, everything surely cost more then it did 10 years ago.

So maybe it's time I changed my profession

ok Imma stop rambling

[KnowItAll]

Your question is the same as the one we discussed a few weeks ago...

How many chefs go from making pizzas in the mall to turning into Gordon Ramsey like super stars.

[leonardo]

It seems there is no such thing as career path anymore. Your next employer will appreciate if you've been promoting yourself by changing 3-4 jobs in the last 5 to 6 years.

The more you change, the more you learn, huh?

[KnowItAll]

I do think change is essential. I used to be in IT sales and often dealt with very senior managers who had been with the same company for 20 years (guess thats what you'd call a career path) -- tell you what, they were often a nightmare to deal with.

I read an interesting snippet the other day... "employees don't leave companies... they leave their bosses".

[TwistedFates]

Originally Posted by KnowItAll

I read an interesting snippet the other day... "employees don't leave companies... they leave their bosses".

That is fact, truth, and everything in between.

[hk.com]

I think the IT industry lacks recognition for being a proffession. We don't have the qualification nor different ranking methods that say the medical and legal industry has.

In a way the playing field is flat. You have totally clueless who are viewed at the same level as the guy next to him. Your social skills and how well you get on with people is what really determines how far you got in the IT industry.

Most of those professional qualifications are something you have to just avoid and also avoid the people have that them. As a rule I never hire anyone with an MCSE. I find those guys that have several of these are just good at passing exams but not at doing the stuff. Only a CCIEs, is worth the paper is printed on.

My advice is to anyone wanting to go somewhere in IT, is just invest in yourself. Invest time to study every day, train yourself, experiment and if you have the cash get an MSc. At the end of the day no one gives a rats ass where you learned what matters is you can do it and do it right.

[jimbo]

Yup the I.T market is pretty much dead on its feet, The boom years are long gone.

I'm getting out of the industry after 6 years, No longer the same as it was with most of the roles getting outsourced to India/China etc.

Too many people chasing the very few golden opportunities out there nowadays. And salarywise the moneys dropped like a stone too due to fresh grads etc willing to work for peanuts.

[Pekkerhead]

I agree with Jimbo. I worked in IT for 11 years back in the UK and just was so fed up with seeing work being outsourced to low cost centres, then having it sent back to fix for them because they were crap (my company outsourced to Thailand).

My advice to anyone is to do 2 years techy stuff then get out of the tech world a.s.a.p and move into more transferrable skills such as project management or business analysis. The tech side of things is so competitive now and as Jimbo says there are always people willing to take a very low salary just to get their foot in the door. I am too old to compete (and I am only mid 30's).

I have no intention of going back into IT here or in the UK. Time to move on.

[discobay]

Originally Posted by Pekkerhead

I am too old to compete (and I am only mid 30's).

That's it - I'm retiring.

[Katanga]

Yet there are people who are in very unique spots with serious technical knowledge and in niche areas that are making a packet and will never have their jobs outsourced.

Otherwise I do agree with Peckerhead on being safer with Biz Analyst/Project Management type of roles. These are quite unique in HK where BA skills are hard to find.