[AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?

Lawhon, Alan C Contractor/Morgan Research alan.lawhon at us.army.mil
Fri Feb 18 09:38:27 CST 2005


Randall:

Good luck on getting reemployed.  I've been down the exact same road
as you, (i.e. laid off by a defense contractor), so I know where you're
coming from.

After I was laid off, (along with a group of about 6-8 other people),
it took me nearly four months to get re-employed, during which time I
managed to drain nearly all of my savings.  The strange thing about
being laid off was that this particular job was my first "professional"
job after I had graduated from college - and it only lasted about six
months - so I was blown away when the manager called us all into a
small office and told us the bad news.  I remember thinking at the time,
while he went on and on about this not being "a negative reflection
on any of you or the job you have done," ("Yea, right!"), thinking to
myself "Hey, this is NOT what I spent six years struggling in college
for - to be unceremoniously dumped!"  Fortunately, I was unmarried, so
I didn't have to go thru the stress of explaining to a "better half"
that there was going to be a drastic slowdown in the income stream.

I've been lucky since then in that I've managed to stay (more or less)
gainfully employed, but the business we're in is very up and down.  As
one boss once told me, "Alan, in government contracting it's either
feast or famine.  If you've got a contract, it's feast.  If you don't,
it's famine ..."  (In government contracting, if you're a "worker bee"
doing mundane technical work - like computer programming or run-of-the-
mill engineering work - it's a mistake to ask for [or demand] too much
money.  They'll just hire a younger worker willing to work for less.
The reality is that on government contracts neither the contractor (or
the government) wants the most efficient and/or "productive" workers.
They want the "cheapest" workers.  (Nobody ever acknowledges this
openly, but a defense contractor maximizes profit by hiring workers
as cheaply as possible since the government pays a fixed hourly rate
for each "labor category" - irrespective of the competence and skill
of the interchangeable "worker unit" that is plugged into the slot.)
It's really just a game ...  <End of rant>

I've never forgotten the experience of walking the streets ("pounding
the pavement") trying to get a job interview where everybody you talk
to says, "Sorry, we're not hiring ..."  (Just make sure that you have
a new job lined up before you make any "career change".)  I long ago
realized that there is no "security" in life.  Even Albert Einstein,
the great physicist, once complained about the "constant struggle"
people have to go thru just to keep food in their stomachs.

A funny thing about being suddenly (and unexpectedly) unemployed: You
find out (real quick) who your friends are ...

Alan C. Lawhon


-----Original Message-----
From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
[mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Randall
Anthony
Sent: Friday, February 18, 2005 8:29 AM
To: 'Access Developers discussion and problem solving'
Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?

Steve,
I find myself in a position similar to yours, unfortunately I got laid
off in the process (lack of contractual funding, natch).

1.  I was very much immersed in developing and maintaining dbases and
applications from Access2.0 through A2K, using SQL and ASP pages for
some.

2.  As the work slowed down, my access to developing new apps
disappeared.  Consequently, when push came to shove, my skillsets
deteriorated.

3.  The company I worked for was a division of a defense contractor with
a small IT department.  Last I heard that division's IT department is
getting smaller.

4.  So, during this "sabbatical", I decided to bite the bullet.  I've
got one class left, SQL Server 2K Implementation and Administration.
I'm now an MCP in ASP.Net development, I'm studying to pass the SQL
Programming exam next week, then I have two exams left to get my MCDBA.
If I had achieved this while working, that company would have given me a
bonus and a pay raise, however, even if I had accomplished this with
them, I still would have gotten the axe.

I have spoken with a number of professionals in the field when I was
contemplating getting my Masters degree.  Most concurred that a Masters
would be beneficial if you were aiming for management type positions
within the IT world, but the return on investment would be negligible if
I wished to remain technical.  Ergo, the next best thing to separate
oneself from the pack in IT is to get certified (in my humble opinion).

I'm starting to get more positive replies from companies I have
submitted a resume to, and I feel fairly confident that I will be
affiliated with someone soon.  I think that could be attributed to my
obtaining certification.

Randy.


Dear Group,

Could you indulge me in a little survey?

1) What's your main line of work these days? Access development, SQL
Server administration/development, VB, ASP/ASP.NET, PHP...?

2) How does your work today differ from what you were doing a few
years ago? Is it only that you're using newer versions of the same
tools, or are you doing entirely different development work?

3) Are you independent or do you work for a company? If you work for a
company, what's the size of the company and where do you fit in?

4) Do you have any Microsoft Certifications? If so, do you keep
current with them, and/or have they made any difference in your
current position?

Thank you very much. I'm approaching a career crossroads with the
decision to stay in business as an independent developer or not. I
have picked up a fair amount of .NET knowledge (the hard way -- is
there any other?) but I have no Microsoft certifications.

Regards,

Steve Erbach
Scientific Marketing
Neenah, WI
www.swerbach.com
Security Page: www.swerbach.com/security
-- 
AccessD mailing list
AccessD at databaseadvisors.com
http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd
Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com
-- 
AccessD mailing list
AccessD at databaseadvisors.com
http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd
Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com

-- 
AccessD mailing list
AccessD at databaseadvisors.com
http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd
Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.com



More information about the AccessD mailing list