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July 13, 2001

Strange days indeed

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This column marks the beginning of my 5th year writing Career Opportunities. It always seems hard to believe that you have been doing something so long when anniversaries arrive. I enjoy writing Career-Op and will continue to do it as long into the future as possible. I especially enjoy the emails from readers asking for advice or telling me when I am right, wrong or otherwise. Feel free to send me your comments or questions at douglas@welchwrite.com. Thanks to all for 4 great years and many more to come.

What happened?

Based on the high tech corporate climate that existed four years ago, who would have thought that I would eventually be writing columns about how to survive a layoff or how to move back into the corporate world? The heady air of the Internet Boom effected us all. For the first time, high-tech workers were garnering some of the respect and money that they always deserved. There finally was a group of business owners who understood the need for high-tech talent. Many of them were even high-tech workers themselves, suddenly thrust into the role of management. High-tech workers were courted, wined and dined, given ludicrous signing bonuses. It seemed that the era of the high-tech worker had finally arrived.

Unfortunately, as we have all seen, being able to write Java code doesn't necessarily make you the best CEO of a high-tech company. Chasing financing instead of building a profitable company was never really a business plan and buying Aereon chairs at $1000 each was probably not the wisest use of company funds. So it seems many got lost along the way. Now we all have to deal with the hang-over of our collective "lost weekend."

Not so bad

Despite the gloom that the press might like to paint on the high-tech market, the truth is, the Internet and other technologies have changed the world. I would be extremely surprised if these advances were to just up and blow away as some seem to predict. High-tech workers have garnered a bit more respect, maybe not as much as they wanted, but still an increase over previous years. The job market might be a little tight right now, as the workforce is reshuffled out of high-tech startups and into more traditional business, but your skills will still be the major factor involved in getting any job.

Sure, companies will be looking at resumes more carefully. They will be investigating the actual work you performed instead of the title you held. They will be weeding out those folks who, perhaps, fell into a high-tech job because it was the hip place to be. This is actually good for all of you. People who can demonstrate needed skills -- web page development, graphic design, networking, systems integration, will find an improved job market. The people hiring you will actually have some idea of the work you do and the effort involved in doing it well. An HR person today might finally understand how difficult it is to develop even a simple web page because they have tried it themselves.

More and more high-tech work is going to be brought "in-house" where costs and deliverables can be more closely controlled. You might just find a cozy new place inside of a larger company where you can work 9-5 on your projects instead of putting in the insane hours of most startups. As we have seen, the number of hours invested in a project do not always indicate its quality. Some startup companies spent millions of dollars and thousands of hours and never released a single product. If you were deeply involved in a high-tech startup, perhaps it is time to rejoin the "real world" and have a life outside of your work. A full-time job with a more traditional company may be just what you need.

Sure, the Internet bubble has burst, but this need not effect your goals and dreams for a better career. As a high-tech worker, you are in for the long haul. High-tech isn't just a waystation on your life path, it is the focus of your career. The Internet "shake-up" will help to clear the hype from the high-tech industry and allow you to concentrate on your career instead of high-tech buzz. Amazing what can happen over four short years.

about this column.

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Douglas E. Welch is a freelance writer and computer consultant in Van Nuys, California. Readers can discuss career issues with other readers by joining the Career Opportunities Discussion on Douglas' web page at: http://www.welchwrite.com/dewelch/ce/

He can reached via email at douglas@welchwrite.com

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