My
first salaried job was in the IT industry as a System Support Engineer
back in 1997 and I have since worked with quite a number of IT professionals....
but are they really legitimate IT professionals?
The
sad truth about this industry is that it consists of a large percentage
of highly unqualified people, and these people are seriously tarnishing
the image of real IT professionals with their incompetence, lack of real
knowledge and poor behavior. The problem starts with the
mentality of non-technical people in positions of influence who believe that IT professionals are people who know how to use a mouse and all IT problems can be solved with a click.
This
is a very scary definition and it has introduced two major headaches
into the current IT industry.
Problem
# 1 - Mismatched and Overworked IT Professionals
This
is a serious problem because most hiring managers and HR professionals
see no difference between a programmer and a system administrator; we
are just the people who sit in front of the computer all day pressing
a few buttons. (This leads to the common phenomena where a system
engineer is asked to do programming jobs or a web developer is forced
to maintain a network.)
However,
the worst that can really happen to any IT professional is being turned
into a "one man IT department". Imagine yourself doing everything from data-entry to end-user support, system administration, network setup, programming, web design, IT related paper work, liaison
with vendors, and not to mention meetings and sometimes electrical
appliances/equipment every single day of your working life.
And
this is indeed happening because managers have the impression that anything
related to IT can simply be solved with just a click or 2 on a computer icon. Poor chaps like these will most probably die of overwork or caffeine-poisoning. Even if they survive the abuse, they will most likely become disgruntled and in need of therapy.
To
illustrate the problem in a different manner, let's use the context of
a hospital. Imagine that there is only 1 neurosurgeon in a hospital and
this hospital performs 2 neuro-surgeries everyday (each surgery takes 4
hours). We also have 10 junior doctors who are supposed to attend to 50
cases of the flu everyday (each common flu consultation takes 10
minutes).
If
you are the CEO of this hospital, would you have the neurosurgeon handle
the flu patients every day? You'll end up having 10 idle junior
doctors, 1 extremely overworked neurosurgeon and 2 dead patients every
day.
Problem
# 2 - Devaluation of the Industry and Productivity
With
such a large number of unqualified people in the IT industry, it
is not surprising that most IT professionals view each other with skepticism.
We
tend to worry whenever a new engineer arrives because we never know if
the guy is just another joke. While it is not a crime not to know everything
under the sun (which is impossible anyway) it is a sin to act as
if you do. I have had my fair share of working with jokers as well as being
perceived as a joke. It's just a vicious cycle which only serves to
remind us that continuous learning is part of being an real IT professional.
To
better explain my point, I've classified the people dealing with computers
into a few major categories.
|
End-user
|
- The
typical "End-User" thinks that IT professionals spend their
time in university learning how to use Microsoft Office. (To
them, IT evolves around Microsoft Office)
- Insists
that rebooting a PC requires a PHD in Computer Science.
- To
them, there is no difference between a Network Engineer and
a Database Administrator. We are just the people who sit down
in front of the computer and play computer games.
|
|
Power-User
|
- Knows
how to operate the basic Windows and Microsoft Office Suite
well.
- Some
rare specimens are worthy of being of assistance to the "Freshie"
technician/programmer.
- Occasionally
suffers from mental delusions (thinks they are on par with
a Computer Science graduate) and would mislead management
into thinking that all aspects of computing involves only 3 clicks
on the mouse.
- Can
be quite irritating at times when they try to convince you
that they are professional programmers since that know how perform
basic calculations in Microsoft Excel.
|
|
Hobbyist
|
- Usually
spend their free time dabbling in certain aspects of IT (e.g.
PC assembly or home networking).
- Some
"Hobbyists" are on par with the "Freshie" from school although
their lack of knowledge on the basics can be shocking.
- The
unenlightened ones can be quite irritating with their jester-like
behavior.
- Some
real IT professionals of one discipline can be a "Hobbyist" of
another discipline. (E.g. A System Administrator can be a
hobbyist webmaster)
|
|
Freshie
/ Junior
|
- "Freshies"
are computer professionals who just graduated from a university/school.
- Usually
working at a helpdesk, junior technicians/programmers or assistant
engineers.
- Some
tend to think that they are better than their senior counterparts
since they learned the latest technology in school. (And
some of them are!)
- Technically
incompetent "Freshies" tend to evolve into the egotistical "Junior"
staff.
- "Junior"
staff can be quite irritating as they like to insist that their
methods are correct when the problem lies with their lack of
real knowledge.
|
|
Generalist
|
- Been
in the industry for a few years and usually have a diploma/degree
in Computer Science or IT.
- Some
"Generalists" have been in the industry for quite a long period
of time but chose not to specialize due to personal interest
or the lack of it.
- Usually
competent/familiar with major aspects of computing. (E.g.
System Administration, Inter-Networking, RDBMS, Web Technology,
Programming, etc.)
- Are
usually very good/fast troubleshooters as they know most aspects
of IT and how they work together.
- Can
sometime be slow or stuck when troubleshooting certain high
level problems due to lack of specialization or when dealing with a vendor's proprietary products.
|
|
Specialist
|
- Very
focused in one discipline of the industry (e.g. inter-networking)
or one section of a discipline (e.g. programming in C++)
- Some
"Specialists" of one discipline are typically also "Generalists" (E.g.
Specialist in Inter-Networking but is familiar with System Administration
and RDBMS)
- A "Specialist"
tends to work with vendor proprietary products. (E.g.
Sun Microsystems or Microsoft)
|
|
God-mode
|
- "Specialist"
in almost all aspects of computing.
- Usually
highly intelligent and very technically inclined.
- Earns
the respect and love of other IT professional. (This is very
rare)
|
|
Application
specialist
|
- Usually
"Power Users" with explicit knowledge in a certain industry.
(E.g. Accounting, Nursing)
- Functions
like an operator but are deemed as high value due to their knowledge
of a specific industry. (E.g. an accounting application specialist
needs accounting background to communicate and tech the end-users
on how to use an accounting application)
|
|
Wannabes
|
- "Wannabes"
are "End-Users" or "Power-Users" who try to enter the IT profession
by passing vendor certifications (E.g. A+ ,MCSE) with
unscrupulous methods such as memorizing books and braindumps.
- Usually
does not possess any tertiary education in IT and does not understand
how actual systems (servers, networks) function in real
production environments.
- Usually
egotistical and self-deceiving believing that they know as much
as real IT professionals or even more.
- Usually
embarrass themselves with their attempts to display their knowledge
or rather the lack of it. (Imagine dancing chimpanzees in
human clothing)
- Can
be extremely irritating as they are always clueless, yet always
trying to save their pride when facing real IT professionals.
|
|
Paper
Engineers
|
- "Wannabes"
who managed to con their way into getting a job that requires
a real IT professional.
- Usually
panics when a real problem occurs.
- Some
"Paper Engineers" eventually realize their insignificance and
evolve into IT professionals after they put in real efforts
to learn what they need to.
|
I
did not include project managers, sales personnel nor IT managers in the
list above because they are usually just "Power-Users" unless they started
out with a technical background. To
give an example, I have recently worked with an IT Project Manager who
insisted that I forsake all of my administration duties and perform some
basic typing in Microsoft Word for her (It was needed in a hurry and
her own staff were not around). In my opinion, she failed to fulfill
2 very basic requirements needed for her job as an IT project manager;
-
The skills to use basic office productivity tools.
To quote a phase from the article - Dealing With The Technophobic
"If a job involves the use of a computer, then the employee should
be required to know how to use it to a satisfactory level, whether the
use of the computer is the focus of their job or not. Many restaurants
use computers for the wait staff to enter orders into. Is it acceptable
for a waiter to not know how to use the computer because it is not the
focus of their job? Of course not! The same goes for everyone else"
I
have no idea how often she actually torments her own engineers by making
them type her reports or presentations, but how can she even fathom and
manage IT projects when she doesn't even know how to utilize basic office
productivity tools? If the company needs to pay for another full-time employee
just to makeup for her lack of computer skills, then
I doubt that she is worth her salary and job title.
- Lack
of interpersonal skills
As
a project manager, part of her role includes communicating on the behalf
of us techies. She was so blunt and tactless with her military
style of commanding, I seriously doubt her worth as a liaison. Throughout
her display of ignorance, she didn't even say the magic word - "Please".
(I don't even work for her)
Conclusion
The
only way that IT professionals can ever regain their rightful respect and
monetary value is to hope that the younger generation are tech-savvy
enough to understand the complexity of our jobs and that they are
smart enough to identify the real professionals from the quacks.
Until
such a day actually happens, we will have no choice but to endure.
By Adam Chee W.S.
http://www.adamchee.cjb.net
