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Newsletter – September 10, 2009 – Are ALL Jobs IT jobs?
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Hi,
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Are ALL jobs IT jobs?
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On the face of it, it seems a daft question doesn’t it?
I am sure you can think of all sorts of jobs that have nothing whatsoever to do
with IT. Some spring to mind immediately: bus drivers, doctors, nurses, plumbers
– the list must be endless.
Although I can’t think of any reason why a bus driver would need computer
skills, it’s not so clear with those other jobs.
Doctors and nurses use a formidable amount of computing power in today’s
medicine. You have to know your way around complex machines (x-rays, MRI
scanners, monitors etc), all of which are computer driven.
You have to be able to read hospital and practice notes which are usually in
patient administration systems, and record your updates. Without IT skills you
would find the job much more difficult.
My plumber certainly doesn’t use too many computer skills when on the job, but
guess what. He handles much of his communication with customers via email and he
manages the administration of his business with a financial management program
on his PC.
These thoughts were prompted by a recent statement on TV by Gordon Frazer, head
of Microsoft in the UK, that “77% of jobs in the UK require some sort of IT
skills”. The comment was made as part of the “Britain Works” initiative.
This is a message that we at Jack’s Guides have been promoting for almost two
years. It’s nice to find the British Government and Microsoft agreeing with us.
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So what do we mean by IT Jobs?
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Many people think that IT workers are geeks or techies or have deep skills in
some very odd areas of technology.
This isn’t always true – in fact it’s mostly not true.
The reputation probably goes back to the early days of IT, in the 1960s and
1970s, when being in IT meant being a “computer operator” or a “computer
programmer”.
In fact today the job of Computer Operator has all but disappeared and
programmers, while still very necessary, are in a minority.
In a recent global survey of IT industry jobs only 29% were for programmers.
Putting it another way, that means that 71% of all jobs on offer were NOT for
programmers. So what has happened?
Actually the IT industry has matured and with that has come a whole variety of
new jobs. Many people don’t know what these jobs are and hardly know that they
exist. In our Jack’s Guides we have used the terms “Generalist” and “Specialist”
in an attempt to cast some light on a very complex sector of the economy.
There are basically two kinds of jobs in the
IT / Business world, generalists and specialists. The specialist jobs are mostly
(but not always) the more technical jobs or those involving deep knowledge of
business products or complex business procedures.
Typical specialist jobs are:
Typical generalist jobs are:
These divisions are not hard and fast. Many
specialist jobs require some level of knowledge of other areas, and many
generalist jobs require some deeper level of knowledge in a given field.
The difference is more one of degree;
specialist jobs, on the whole, require more training and a higher level of
specialisation.
So what’s the
difference in practical terms?
There are a few differences which are quite
significant. Specialist jobs tend to be harder to get into – and also harder to
get out of. Let me explain. Assume you are a C++ ace programmer.
You got there either because you studied the
subject in depth at a training school or university, or someone was prepared to
train you. You have also put in the hard months and years to master it – to
master C++ is not a trivial exercise.
So you are an expert in a specialist field,
which probably means you are well paid – right? So is there a down side – it all
sounds great?
Well yes. Assume the demand for your
particular skills in C++ were to decline, or assume you have just had enough and
fancy a change. What do you do? If you wanted another programming job in a
different language, say VB.Net, you could just apply for a job as a VB.Net
programmer. After all programming is programming regardless of what language you
use – isn’t it?
As an ex-programmer myself I would agree that
a good C++ programmer would have little difficulty in mastering VB.Net. The
problem is, when you apply for a job you are up against programmers who have
already used VB.Net, so your chances of beating them are very slim.
So, you say, I’ll apply for a job as a project
manager – after all I have worked in projects for years and know what goes on.
However, you run up against the same problem; you are up against people with
specific project management experience, and most employers would be reluctant to
take a risk and cross train you.
So this type of job is harder to get into and harder to get out of than the
Generalist jobs. We’ll discuss getting into these jobs in future newsletters.
For now just accept the fact that the chances are you are working in the IT
industry, probably in the “Generalist” category, even if you think you are doing
something else. Have a look at what components of the job you have (or the one
you want) are really IT components.
IT skills are a passport to rewarding and well
paid jobs right across the spectrum.
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Many IT topics are discussed at length in our e-books. “Jack’s Guide to Lots
More Money”, available at
http://www.jacksguides.com/itjobs.html ,talks about how to really get into
the IT industry, and once you are in, to progress to the best paid jobs.
And don’t forget our special offer. For a short time we have slashed the price
of this e-book. You can get the book now at only $16 – less than half price. You
can even get the extra value pack for only $24 – a massive saving. Get yours now
by following this link.
http://www.jacksguides.com/orderlmm.html
It won’t be around long at this price.
If you are ready to make the leap into a much
better paid job or contract, and be perfectly positioned as the recession eases,
see our website at www.jacksguides.com
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Previous newsletters.
In response to several requests, we have published many of our older
newsletters. You can find them at
http://www.jacksguides.com/news.html
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This newsletter is published by Kevin Ramsey for Jack's Guides.
Copyright (c) 2001 - 2009, all rights reserved.
No portion of this publication may be reproduced
or transmitted without the express written consent
of the publisher or contributing editors and or writers.
DISCLAIMER: We disclaim any liability for the use of
Any contributed information contained herein.
I hope you've enjoyed this issue of our newsletter.
Please let me know if you have any questions, suggestions or requests.
Enjoy and prosper in your chosen career.
Till the next issue.
Kevin Ramsey
Founder of Jack's Guides