One thing I hear candidates saying far too often is “That was a bad career move”. This is obviously when it is too late and obviously, with the benefit of hindsight. I hope this discussion helps give pointers so you make the right decision in your next career move.
What is a bad career move varies from person to person due to individual interests and preferences but here are my 4 most common reasons:
- Misrepresented role by either recruiter or employer.
- Joining companies that don’t value IT department or its employees.
- Unfriendly work environments / poor management.
- Working with a technology that isn’t future proof or being pigeon holed. Read more…
In the office my colleagues call me the Christmas Grinch, Bah Humbug and The Scrooge so to make sure I live up to my reputation I will not mention a thing about that C word!
The Year 2010 in Review
January 2010 – This was a crazy period of time for me, recruiting in the infrastructure space during January was like opening the flood gates. Budget had finally been allocated for extra head count after the GFC and managers didn’t hold back. They wanted to make sure they gave some relief to their teams before upper management changed their minds. This is traditionally the quietest month of recruitment in the year but definitely not for me in 2010. This was a good sign of things to come for 2010.
February > May 2010 – Things incrementally picked up from here as more and more uncertainty was waivered and good financial results gave companies across various sectors more budget for both permanent and contract positions. Although there were additional requirements and companies were performing well there was still the hangover of the recent GFC on everyone’s minds and threats of a double dip recession kept salaries and over hiring down. Overall, steady increases in hiring and vacancies for Infrastructure professionals continued throughout the first two quarters of 2010.
June > August 2010 – The Infrastructure recruitment market plateau happened during these months but projects started to kickoff and the business information team were very busy throughout these months employing PM’s, Business Analysts and various project leads / designers. This would impact the infrastructure market later on down the track in 2010 and 2011. Throughout the year to date companies had been cautious not over doing salary increases and were being very selective with who they brought on board to their teams. With the steady increases in staff hires throughout the year the first signs of real skilled staff shortages started to peep through the cracks and recruiters were starting to find it harder to deliver on client requirements. Honest and Smart Recruitment Consultants indicated these changes in the job market and set realistic expectations with their clients. Read more…
After many years of experience and listening to people’s reasons for looking for work and why they became successful or unsuccessful in their job applications, I have formed a good understanding of job security in the IT industry.
Speaking with one of my clients a few days ago, he mentioned he is ‘open to opportunities’. When I asked why he was looking for work when he was relatively new in his role and working in a fairly stable company that had a great reputation, he responded in a way I have never heard before but on reflection which I absolutely agree with. He said; “Companies have no loyalty to the employee unless you the employee are delivering what they need right now. No matter what you have done in the past for them they wouldn’t hesitate to let you go if it was going to benefit the company now. The only job security in the IT industry is being employable not employed.”
I believe job security in the IT industry is more volatile than other industries due to a number of factors including;
• Changing project requirements.
• Sitting as a cost centre rather than a revenue generator.
• High levels off shoring, outsourcing & cost reduction strategies.
• Rapid growth of new and evolving technologies/methodologies.
• Technical skills rapidly becoming obsolete. Read more…
Take a look at any Service Desk vacancy and there it is, the ubiquitous phrase “must have outstanding customer service skills”.
So what does this really mean? As a recruiter specialising in this area, I strongly believe that the Service Desk is the face of IT to the rest of the business. The way it presents itself has a huge impact on the way the technology team is viewed within the business and can set the tone for the amount or lack of trust that exists.
Remember that the business needs technology to work for it in a seamless way which is neither clunky nor obtrusive to their day to day tasks. When a customer requires assistance, the most important issue to address first is the one which prevents them from doing their job. Tackle this first and foremost with clear acknowledgment that you understand the significance of the problem; then explain clearly in non-technical terms what you intend to do and the time frame for likely resolution. To take your service to the next level, think about what the best and worst case scenarios are and if possible plan contingency solutions for your customer.
Outstanding customer service is about good customer experiences – smile, be responsive and productive and remember that you are pivotal in driving the success of the business.
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