IT Careers
I just returned from a Labor Day weekend backpacking trip in the Olympic Mountains. As is typical of all packing trips, it was refreshing with plenty of time to reflect and enjoy the unspoiled scenery the high back country offers.
Attending the journey was my long time hiking friends and colleagues most who were met close to two decades ago when we all worked at Accenture. Although intricate IT discussions were not on the daily docket we did have time to catch up on where our careers had recently taken us. Our starting points were all similar – programming on big boxes in that business friendly language. Yet I was struck by the diversity of our current career activities:
- company owner specializing in retail ERP systems,
- consulting company director and large project manager,
- IT consulting company owner and president, and
- Executive at international manufacturer devising mechanisms for an IT program management office.
The common thread was that their IT careers had allowed them to grow in their skills, be challenged in their work, and enjoy life while providing for their families.
Essentially, a career in IT has been good for this group. Maybe it’s time we should (once again) encourage our youth / kids to consider careers in IT? Although job security may not be what it was in the heady days of 2000, by most measures IT job statistics are strongly positive. The US economy added 93,000 IT jobs last year. And the Bureau of Labor Statistics suggests that the IT job market is indeed very healthy: unemployment rate of 2.0%, and total IT employment of 3.58 million which is the highest level since 2000.
I welcome your comments.
Mike Brannan