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Do Companies Understand Our Worth ?

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by mjervis 2 views

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You know I have seen it time and time again in tech magazines and in tech articles where a lot of system administrators complain about what they earn. I myself probably don't make what I'm worth however I do make what my company can afford. I also go the extra mile for them because of that. What do I get in return? Well I get extra perks that nobody thinks about like: taking off an extra day when my kids are sick. and They still pay me for it.
I hear system admins all the time trying to tell me they are worth 100K plus a year, yet I see they are also not willing to expand thier knowledge to other operating systems. Is this good for a mid size or larger company? NO. Most mid to larger size companies have more than one operating system that runs thier IT department.
Before running out the door of your company take a good hard look at your current position. Are you as good as they need in that position? If so are they willing to give you extra's because maybe they can't afford a longterm commitment for a higher wage? Do they take care of you when problems arise? Do they try and get you extra help for problems you don't understand? With the onslaught of easier to use programs and system administrator tools how long is the systemadministrators jobs of today safe?
As an MIS Manager these are the thoughts that run through my mind when I'm interviewing new techs and admins. I'm looking for sys admin feedback on these thoughts. I need to know if my thought process is going in the right direction or if I'm crazy to be staying with a company just because they appreciate me.

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by epepke

However, I did much the same thing for a number of years, and I found that it hurt me when I finally needed to look for a new job.

1) I found that many employers ruled me out because I had made "too little money" at my previous position.

2) I found that being out of the multi-job loop for a number of years made me less attractive.

3) Between jobs I went through a time of rather extreme poverty, one of the side-effects of which was that my wife left me.

This was all extremely unpleasant. I eventually solved the problem by working through a consulting agency.

My current thinking is that perks last only as long as the current employment lasts, which in this day and age, is short. A dollar lasts a lot longer.

by generalist

Being ruled out of a job because you made too little money and/or because you weren't a job hopper seems a little counter productive at first glance. But if you assume that competent IT employees are NOT loyal employees, the picture becomes clearer.

An even harsher point is the fact that loyalty to an employer can conflict with keeping up your technical skills. Your employer may not be able to support bleeding edge technology so you fall behind on the experience side the longer you stay. While you may study to keep your tech skills up, you can't get the experience you need without going outside the company. And if you go outside the company, you might be considered 'unloyal'.

Then you top all this off with the fact that many employers want loyalty in their new employees but may be selecting against that attribute.

I sometimes wonder if IT employees at a certain level should have a part time IT job where they keep their experience and skills current. This job might even be one where they trade time for experience in a non-profit environment.

Any thoughts on these or other 'New Rules'?

by epepke

Well, yes, actually I am.

The fact that employers select against qualities they want sort of reminds me of everything every human being on the planet does every day.

The basic problem is that cognitive psychology has shown that the rational parts of the brain work by resolving cognitive dissonance. The scary thing about this is that cognitive dissonance doesn't go in any particular direction, and whatever is cognitively easier will get picked. A friend of mine in retail put it like this: "You sell a dress for $100, and people will buy it, no question. You sell the exact same dress for $50, and people will take it back, point out all the flaws, and argue for an even lower price."

I don't think that it's terribly difficult to keep one's skills current, or even advanced. What is difficult is to give the impression of having kept one's skills current, especially to someone who isn't current but who is reading them off a bullet chart.

by epepke

With respect to loyalty toward employers, it is wise to remember the immortal words of the late Frank Zappa: "There's a big difference between kneeling down and bending over."

by larry23

Keeping up on skills is vital... and a part time job to help you do it would be ideal. Now if only we could change days from 24 to 36 hours.

If there were 36 hours in a day, I could continue to start work at 8a, pick up the kids from daycare by 6p, go home to battle with them to do their home work, eat, play match box cars with them, get them to bed, say hello and goodnight to my wife, and then I would still have plenty of time to go to my part time job where I could work for experience - coherently - and learn new technologies.

A few years back, that?s exactly what I did ? only in 24 hours. I gained the knowledge from reading and by taking classes, the experience was on the job. By day I was a full time systems admin, by night I worked part time with a consulting firm (which did wonders for my IT career - I highly recommend it).

I am two years removed from that situation ? both job wise and financially I?m much better off. Now I find it funny that the cycle is starting over again ? I just finished another class? It?s a battle to stay on top, but if that?s where you want to be ? it?s what you have to do!

Now if only I could get my kids to do their homework!

by sbworks

Another way to boost income and experience is convincing you current employer that *responsible* moonlighting is ok.

My employer specifically allows moonlighting with the understanding that you won't use company time or company materials. Architecture has a tradition of moonlighting (heck Frank Lloyd Wright was fired once for moonlighting) so it's not that much of a stretch.

I've started a comfortable 20 hours a month consulting company doing small networks and I'm paying for my own W2K MCSE testing out of my consulting company. I get the cash, they get an administrator who's "going around the block" on someone else's dollar. I'm going to do the SBS4.5 to SBS2000 upgrade twice before touching my employer's network - quite an advantage.

I can do it because I don't have kids, though. There's a lot less demand for my time. I have to do my own paperwork but I'm married to someone studying for her CPA. Heck, my bosses even give me advice on lawyers, insurance, and have even referred a couple of network administration clients.

If anyone's really curious, I'll send you the paragraph out the employee manual permitting moonlighting.

by rob_mancini

I've done a lot of part time and pro bono work (in schools, churches, small local businesses) in my off hours to make extra money, to help others, and to build on existing skills (in a few cases). The best admins I know do exactly what Generalist said to do--work part-time elsewhere in addition to full-time.

Many times these part-time gigs are things that don't expand one's technical skills. Sometimes they do, but by and large, they don't offer a lot of expansion of skills very often.

For example, Orgs that only want someone's help part time are usually ones that are less innovative and less likely to offer an experienced admin a chance to broaden their horizons. There are exceptions of course.

Some cases though, like the Dotcom mania of 2000, offered experienced pros a chance to help startups to write the technology peices for business plans, design their infrastructures and networks... etc...

THAT soft of work was fun!

RM

by shanghai sam

That Dotcom setup sounds like a good idea if it can support part timers. In fact, given the way dotcoms have been dropping, part timers with 'real' jobs to pay the bills might help prevent crashes by saving the dot coms money. Heck, they might even be able to get a dotcom started and 'business ready' just on stock options and contributions from all members.

I'm speaking from semi-ignorance though. My best source is a local group, www.efgn.org, that has been putting on seminars on entrepreneurial startups. From what I've seen, some of the groups risk everything in getting started. At the same time, the same groups do outsource some of their work.

Could part timing for a dotcom work for someone wanting to upgrade their skills without too much risk?

(Okay, call me chicken. Or call me somebody who prefers a belts-and-suspenders approach to keeping the monetary life support functional.)

by generalist

That Dotcom setup sounds like a good idea if it can support part timers. In fact, given the way dotcoms have been dropping, part timers with 'real' jobs to pay the bills might help prevent crashes by saving the dot coms money. Heck, they might even be able to get a dotcom started and 'business ready' just on stock options and contributions from all members.

I'm speaking from semi-ignorance though. My best source is a local group, www.efgn.org, that has been putting on seminars on entrepreneurial startups. From what I've seen, some of the groups risk everything in getting started. At the same time, the same groups do outsource some of their work.

Could part timing for a dotcom work for someone wanting to upgrade their skills without too much risk?

(Okay, call me chicken. Or call me somebody who prefers a belts-and-suspenders approach to keeping the monetary life support functional.)

by generalist

Okay, I'll admit that I was looking at the problem from a slightly cynical point of view. Of course, that viewpoint might stem from a nine month bout of unemployment following a layoff. (20% of workforce laid off, no severence pay, marginal local market for skill set, newly purchased house, a desire to stay where I am, wife, kids, large family library...)

Your comments on cognitive dissonance do give me an idea though. If you're going to sell your skills, do so with style. The retail example is a good one. I've read others in salesmanship books.

One advantage of the layoff is that I realized that my official technical skills needed upgraded and recognized. So I enrolled in a vocational tech school and took web page design and technical support.
(I had already been playing around with both for a while, but not at any high level of expertise.)

I think my improved knowledge of web page design helped me get my current job. I know that my improved knowledge of tech supportis helping, even if the class isn't finished yet.

The next phase is making sure that I can give the impression of keeping my skills current.

Marketing. Hmmm. How can one market oneself internally and externally without giving the impression that one is disloyal to the employer?

by johnricarte

I have been with my company for about 9 years and even though i don't make enough money as compared to other IT professionals, I still go the extra mile for them coz they have done so much for me and my career. I started as a computer operator and slowly but surely moved up to my present position as Jr. LAN ADMIN, they have given me the opportunity to move up, they have sent me to school and given other perks like time off when it is really needed,the company is very family oriented which makes it very favorable for people who have families.
Would I move to another place offering the same perks and benefits? probably... but one thing i don't like is starting all over and money ain't everything in the IT profession (it does help,though). Here, I am given every opportunity to advance in my career, whether in the same field or any other field that i choose. Sometimes being loyal does pay off and it did for me...

by vicon

I work for a very large company and sometimes I wonder am I making what I am worth. I also receive some extra perks and I do go out of my way to help in any way I can. Then I stop and take a step back to review what the company pays me and what I amworth. The way I look at it is my company reimburses me for my schooling as long as I pull the grade and at the same time I gain the well needed experience that potential new employers are looking for.
This goes along with certification Vs experience which is better. I might not be making a lot of money now but with what this company has done for me I know that some day I will. At this point in time I like my job and am improving my skill set in several areas, because of this I know that some day working for less money will eventually pay off.

David

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