[TorqueyTechie]

Folks, I am at a juncture in my career where I have to decide upon being in technical side or move to managerial role and need the opinions/suggestions of experts.

Little bit about myself. I have almost 9 years of experience in IT field and working on the technical side till now. I would have to decide upon what stream of work I would be looking for shortly. I am very keen on being on the technical side and looking at doing TOGAF certifications. I would like to know what is the growth and different career options available if I continue to be on technical side against moving to managerial path?

[Mr. Nobody]

Is a 3 month gap between jobs bad for future ? i left a company in feb this year but i'm not at all happy where i'm currently working. should i try and switch asap or toil away atleast 1 more year here. im 25 and its my third job here. if i switch i wont show the 3 months i've worked here in resume.

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by Mr. Nobody

Is a 3 month gap between jobs bad for future ? i left a company in feb this year but i'm not at all happy where i'm currently working. should i try and switch asap or toil away atleast 1 more year here. im 25 and its my third job here. if i switch i wont show the 3 months i've worked here in resume.

A short sabbatical/gap isn't necessarily a bad thing as long as you can provide a plausible reason for it.

Frequent job changes do look bad on a resume. Not only does it portray the candidate as unstable/unreliable for long(er) term consideration, but also paints a negative picture w.r.t. your decision-making capabilities.

If you're intent on switching, doing it now showing a few months' gap would be better than putting another hop on your resume a year down the line. Please do ensure you research your next job thoroughly before accepting it to avoid a similar situation.

Long-term view, frequent hops (anything less than 2-3 years) can seriously harm your progression prospects, even if it gives you instant financial and other gains in the short/medium term.


Ref: Personal experience with recruitment.

[vinit.merchant]

Originally Posted by Mr. Nobody

Is a 3 month gap between jobs bad for future ? i left a company in feb this year but i'm not at all happy where i'm currently working. should i try and switch asap or toil away atleast 1 more year here. im 25 and its my third job here. if i switch i wont show the 3 months i've worked here in resume.

A 3 month gap is very difficult to explain & convince. It is almost always looked at and asked in an interview. I had a break of roughly 3-4 months on similar grounds but faced difficulties in getting another job due to this job break.

Also, it is not that you get a job immediately. it takes roughly 2-3 months more to land a job. so the total break would pile up to 5-6 months and you will need to have very strong reasons for such a long break in your career. Also, the Salary negotiations are non-existent and the employers who may decide on finalising you will squeeze everything on the CTC front and you wont have much say on it. More often than not, you will have to settle for something lower than your current CTC which you wont be disclosing on your CV.

My advice, stick to your job. You have already changed a few. Maybe try and get a change of role/process. Something. But stick to your job.

EDIT: What I meant was do not quit beforehand and then start searching for a job if you so decide to show a gap. Quit only when you land another job.

[bluevolt]

Any Siebel or CRM related experts/professionals out there? What is the scope of Siebel in future? And since salesforce/fusion etc are gaining market attention in coming times; how good are the chances for a person working on seibel platform to get jobs in CRM field after 2 years experience?

[DCEite]

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

Folks, I am at a juncture in my career where I have to decide upon being in technical side or move to managerial role and need the opinions/suggestions of experts.

Little bit about myself. I have almost 9 years of experience in IT field and working on the technical side till now. I would have to decide upon what stream of work I would be looking for shortly. I am very keen on being on the technical side and looking at doing TOGAF certifications. I would like to know what is the growth and different career options available if I continue to be on technical side against moving to managerial path?

7-8 years ago, the answer to your question would have been - to move to managerial level.

But in today's scenario with a struggling IT sector, the most in demand virtue is Technical skill.

There are 10's of people like you in your group who would like to become manager and manage people - they don't have any special skill and there are abundent middle managers in IT companies anyway that higher management is looking with evil eyes because of cost cutting.

What matters today is your technical knowhow. I would say the technical ladder would give more impetus to your career and that is the way to go, and not only that, in today's scenario its important to keep ungrading your technical skills as per the current trends and indemand skills.

[sukhoi]

Originally Posted by TorqueyTechie

Folks, I am at a juncture in my career where I have to decide upon being in technical side or move to managerial role and need the opinions/suggestions of experts.

I would like to know what is the growth and different career options available if I continue to be on technical side against moving to managerial path?

@TorqueyTechie - I was in a similar boat some time ago when I had just become a manager but was more inclined towards technology. Decided to move to technology and do not regret that decision till date.

Not sure what is the exact structure that your organization would follow but eventually at some point of time, if you continue in the technology field you would become an architect/consultant. There would be levels across (architect / senior architect / lead architect etc.) but broadly this is what it would translate to.

Growth is good in this field and architects are always in demand IMHO. Also as you become senior in the organization, if you are interested in travelling abroad for assignments, the opportunities are more on technical side than on managerial side based on what I have seen so far.

Originally Posted by DCEite

7-8 years ago, the answer to your question would have been - to move to managerial level.

But in today's scenario with a struggling IT sector, the most in demand virtue is Technical skill.

What matters today is your technical knowhow. I would say the technical ladder would give more impetus to your career and that is the way to go, and not only that, in today's scenario its important to keep ungrading your technical skills as per the current trends and indemand skills.

+1 to what @DCEite has said. A lot of organizations are asking middle level managers to be technically competent also and be able to contribute on technology front as well.

Hope this helps you take a decision. Let us know if you need more inputs or have specific questions.

Cheers,
S

[TorqueyTechie]

Originally Posted by DCEite

What matters today is your technical knowhow. I would say the technical ladder would give more impetus to your career and that is the way to go, and not only that, in today's scenario its important to keep ungrading your technical skills as per the current trends and indemand skills.

Originally Posted by sukhoi

Not sure what is the exact structure that your organization would follow but eventually at some point of time, if you continue in the technology field you would become an architect/consultant. There would be levels across (architect / senior architect / lead architect etc.) but broadly this is what it would translate to.

Growth is good in this field and architects are always in demand IMHO. Also as you become senior in the organization, if you are interested in travelling abroad for assignments, the opportunities are more on technical side than on managerial side based on what I have seen so far.

Cheers,
S

Thanks DCEIte and Sukhoi. I had almost made up my mind on being on the technical side and your comments does reinforce it. I will stay on the technical side.Sukhoi, our organization does follow similar ladder but never know when I may switch.

Once again thanks guys for your pointers.

[mohammedismail]

I have heard about Hadoop and sort of keen to learn. But I have quite a few questions, hopefully someone will be able to answer these.

1. What is the demand like for Hadoop in the Market ?

2. Is Java knowledge required to learn Hadoop ?

3. Who can learn Hadoop ? Say for example I come from non IT background but I know SQL and VBA.. Will it be easy to learn Hadoop ?

4. Best institutes in Bangalore to learn Hadoop ? I have come across couple of websites which conduct Live Virtual training but I'm really not sure about them

Any other thoughts or tips are welcome!

[adithya.kp]

1. Demand is very good
2. Yes. But if one is good in some other language, shouldn't be a problem
3. If you are looking at hadoop cluster administration, then yes. Otherwise i woudnt recommend it for someone from no IT background
4. No idea.
Some general thoughts. these days things like hadoop, machine learning, big data, analytics are buzzwords. But dont chase them ( or use them) just for the sake of it. For ex a lot of people try to use hadoop even though there is no need for it. ( data set is small). I would rather look at solving a problem instead of thinking about the scaling the app.

[SS8939]

Hello Bhpians,

I'm at an important part of my education and absolutely any advice from all of you will be highly appreciated.

First, an intro: I'm 19, in my second year of college, doing my B.com. I was initially supposed to be doing CA (even wrote CPT) but eventually decided that it was not my cup of tea.

I initially wanted to go to the US for an MBA, but quickly realised that I don't have the work experience, and that the value of an MBA can be appreciated only after a few years of working

So I've more or less decided that I'll be doing my masters in the US. So with that in mind, here are some questions I'd need help with.

1. What would be a good subject to do a masters in?
2. Should I write my GMAT or GRE?
3. What kind of work does one with a masters find?

Again, any help will be appreciated.

[sairamboko]

Hello bhpians,

Seeking your advice for my career. I am working in a major US bank in the technology division. I work in production support and in contact center technologies. I will be promoted soon and I will be eligible for a organisation sponsored project management program which will allow me to transition to a project manager role in 1 year. I am in a confused state now. Whether should i transition to a project manager role or stay in the technology side? To get the feel of the job market, I uploaded my resume to the job search portals and I did get a very good response. Hows the scope for a project manager in the long term?
The only downside I see with my organisation is there is no onsite or travel opportunities. Apart from this, I am very satisfied with my job.

Anyone working in a similar technology? Seeking your advice on this.

Thank you!

[bluevolt]

Guys, I have two questions -

1.) I want your suggestions with respect to certifications for DBA.

Along with Oracle, we have Microsoft also that provides certifications for DBAs. I worked on MS SQL Server in college days and now in my company I am working on Oracle 11gR2.

I formally want to have qualification for a DBA along with my computer science pg degree.

But I am not sure which is the right path to become a DBA. Should I do the certifications on my own? or let the company handle the expenses if I become eligible in future for the program.

2.) I am doing distance MBA from Amity university. My idea for doing MBA is to move into Business Analyst profile as soon as possible.

Thing is that, though I am good in technical side, I am interested in managerial positions in the industry as well. MBA allows me to even switch the industry if want to move out of IT.

Before I get into 3rd sem, I need to decide which specialisation I should choose for my MBA. Should I simply go for IT or Sales & Marketing/operations management(that may help me to change industry if I want to)

Few words of advice for my career planning and betterment will be highly appreciated.

[m.shekhar]

Originally Posted by SS8939

Hello Bhpians,

I'm at an important part of my education and absolutely any advice from all of you will be highly appreciated.

First, an intro: I'm 19, in my second year of college, doing my B.com. I was initially supposed to be doing CA (even wrote CPT) but eventually decided that it was not my cup of tea.

I initially wanted to go to the US for an MBA, but quickly realised that I don't have the work experience, and that the value of an MBA can be appreciated only after a few years of working

So I've more or less decided that I'll be doing my masters in the US. So with that in mind, here are some questions I'd need help with.

1. What would be a good subject to do a masters in?
2. Should I write my GMAT or GRE?
3. What kind of work does one with a masters find?

Again, any help will be appreciated.

Hi,

Most US Masters require you to have completed the equivalent of a four year degree in India.

I would suggest you find some field of study that you want to do, look up related courses and then prepare accordingly as you have time.

A sample field/path for you which a friend of mine followed - did BBA, worked at a finance firm, did CFA is now going for a Masters in Finance degree.

For Masters most university require the GRE General Test Scores. GMAT is preferred for the MBA courses.

If you want to pursue an MBA I would suggest you work atleast for 3 year before applying as most of the top US univs require a min of 3 years work-ex.

[Samurai]

A useful article for people considering MBA right after graduation: http://businessworld.in/article/How-...12-2015-89058/