Career Forum's Most Recent Posts

You want a raise.  You've done the research so you know that you deserve a raise.  Now, how are you going to get it?

Johanna Rothman has kindly offered to advise you. Post your questions here, or see her initial advice to "Start salary thinking with a review of your accomplishments."

Are CIOs getting too old? Are they too concerned with the bottom line, or their expanding waistbands, to keep up with the newest technology? Gartner analyst Gene Hall says, "The number of CIOs leaving their jobs doubled this year -- that's right it doubled." Will the twentysomethings bring a new perspective to the enterprise?

Rick Davidson, CIO Manpower Inc., shared his Lesson in Leadership with Computerworld.

The lesson: You need a high level of personal integrity. As you move higher up in the organization, your actions gain more meaning and impact, so you need to be true to your core, which is shaped by your values, upbringing and business experiences. You’ve got to stick to that core, and when you don’t, you can get negative or undesirable outcomes.

Bill Spooner, CIO Sharp HealthCare, shared his Lesson in Leadership with Computerworld.

The lesson: The importance of employee motivation. You’ve got to do everything you can to make your employees proud to work for you and proud of what they’re doing. They need to sense the importance of what they’re doing.

Your thoughts?

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Related Blogs:

  •  Lesson: Push decisions down into the organization

David Rice, CIO Siemens Medical Solutions USA Inc., shared his Lesson in Leadership with Computerworld.

The lesson: It’s important to listen to a wide variety of people, but ultimately you have to listen to your own thoughts and feelings as to what’s the right thing to do. Sometimes there’s such a cacophony of voices, and sooner or later, you have to bring the curtain down on those voices and decide for yourself the best thing to do. Otherwise, you end up with a form of cognitive dissonance. Anyone in a leadership position who thinks that someone sooner or later will present them with a golden key probably shouldn’t be in that leadership position. You have to be willing and able to take all the input, synthesize it and decide for yourself the right thing to do, even if what you think is different from all the input you’ve got. Ultimately, it’s what you’re being paid to do.

Bette Walker, CIO Delphi Corp. shared her Lesson in Leadership with Computerworld.

The lesson: It takes a long time to get a change agenda understood in a global organization. Say you want to change a project management standard and apply it consistently across the globe. It takes an average of nine months of consistent communication before the organization starts to understand and embrace it.

Many times, when I’ve started on a change agenda, I’m up to agenda item No. 4 and the organization is really just starting to internalize item No. 1.

John Dick, CIO Regions Financial Corp., shared his Lesson in Leadership with Computerworld.

The lesson: It’s important to push decisions down into the organization. Ninety percent of the time, people know what the right answer is, but they may not have the confidence — particularly when they’re junior-level — to make the call. Having decisions made lower in the organization provides a more powerful organization.

Your thoughts?

Computerworld.com reader, James Turnhill, wrote in to say:

I take a big issue with Rick Sigler's response last week which included his calling of a prospective job hopper a 'punk'. As the president of a consulting group, who has decided to cast judgement and call others slanderous names, it seems to me, Mr. Sigler, that it is you that is acting quite immature. Last I checked, most if not all states are 'right to work' entities in which either party can terminate employment for any reason. Quite frankly, whether it is socially irresponsbile or not, it's a person's right to choose where he works and for how long. In addition, just as companies attempt to negotiate salaries downward, why is it viewed as playing games when workers try to negotiate salaries upward?

...Read more

Bob wrote:

In 1999, after 17+ years with an utility company in their Engineering IT dept, I was told "your going"! I said, "to Corporate IS"? Management said, "yes." I went but I surely wasn't happy with it. No rhyme or reason, just moved me. Never had anything but glowing reviews.

I resolved to make the best of it, but it left me wondering just how valuable I was. So I put my resume out and got a big bite by a wireless communications provider (cellular). They offered me a 20% increase in salary, better benefits (by far), less hours, and less stress.

...Read more

Flip wrote:

My company is either going to be sold or closed. I am 56 years old and my company has not been on the leading edge. I have looked around, but it has been made clear I am too old.

You wonder how you are going to get by. Realizing I may have to take part time clerical level jobs after 3 degrees and 3 professional certifications is not confidence building.

What can one do?

Response from Amy Wrzesniewski, Associate Professor, Yale University School of Management:

The worst scars are on those who are laid off, but those who are left behind can't avoid some consequences.

If you've been laid off, paying the bills may be an initial and continuing challenge, but maintaining enough confidence and self-esteem to land the next position can be, in its own way, even more difficult. If you find another position, is it as good as the last? Can you maintain your standard of living? Are you anxious about the ax falling again? Is your new position at the same professional level? Is it in the same profession at all?

Sometimes those who aren't laid off experience "survivor guilt." It may beat the alternative, but it can also make for an unhappy workforce. In IT, where there have been many rounds off layoffs over the years, do you find yourself getting weary of it all?

CIO William Cross thinks so. According to Cross, who did his doctoral thesis on how stress affects programming, IT workers often have this toxic mix: They tend to avoid people but have a need for recognition and praise. Add system frustration and long hours, and you can end up with workers facing some dangerous stress, according to a report just in from the Share conference.

Cross, CIO of Seminole Electric Cooperative Inc. in Tampa, Fla., believes one answer is having some down time. "We go to great lengths to help keep people from being called on nights and weekends," he said. "Stress is a big deal with us."

How much work do you do while you're officially not working?

Do you check your e-mail everyday?  More than once per day?

What devices do you pack  when traveling for fun?  

Can co-workers and subordinates always reach you if necessary?  Do they?  

If you vacation with family, how do you justify the time away from them?

Do you plan your trips based on connectivity -- or lack of it?

Is technology a vacation enabler or destroyer?

Question: RAJ From India wrote:

I have around 1+ year of experience in Oracle PL/SQL and want to shift to either of these:

1.Data Warehousing (Cognos,Informatica)
2.Oracle Applications (Technical Module).

Can you suggest which of the two technologies will have more growth

Thanks
Raj

Answer from Katherine Spencer Lee, Executive Director, Robert Half Technology:

Dear Raj,

Oracle, Informatica and Cognos are all excellent products and we have seen recent demand from our clients for all of these skill sets. Most recently, we have see a stronger demand in the area of Oracle applications. In addition to the “core” Oracle applications, Oracle has acquired both JD Edwards and Peoplesoft over the past couple years. These ERP systems are used by thousands of companies. We expect demand for Oracle applications to continue to increase as well as many of the companies currently running JD Edwards and Peoplesoft eventually convert to Oracle.

Question: Anonymous wrote:

Am I in danger? I'm a 58 year old EDI/B2B Senior Administrator and Developer, and plan on working until I'm 70.

I'm familiar with EDI transactions and two types of EDI software, plus B2B connectivity using AIX shell scripting. We have a lot of contact with external and internal customers. I also have legacy system experience on mainframes with COBOL, DB2, some SQL, and JCL.

Answer from Katherine Spencer Lee, Executive Director, Robert Half Technology:

Dear Anonymous,

Many companies still have legacy and other mainframe systems that require knowledge workers, and companies often have a hard time finding people with those skills; however, I wouldn’t recommend relying on that strategy as your only approach to job security. When you have chosen a career in information technology it is imperative (at any age) to stay current on cutting-edge technology to maintain a competitive edge. Some of the most in-demand skill sets today are Windows Systems Administration, .Net, J2EE and SQL.