This is the opposite of what I'm seeing in some cases - most of my experience is companies running so lean that they eventually run into problems (can't cut jobs, don't have enough people, etc.). I suspect that's not the same across all companies, however.
As for Microsoft running fat, I can see that actually.
I agree on the skills - but there's also one other thing.
Today's job search is a CONSTANT. No matter how happy, secure, and satisfied you are, I always recommend people send one evening a week sending out resumes to companies and job postings they really want. Don't do it for everything, just what looks neat. Just keep yourself out there.
I've been laid off twice in the last thirteen years, and the department at my last job got cut 25% a few months after I left with no warning. Its worth it to be careful.
Regional issues are usually ignored when people assess any job loss - I'm in Silicon valley and we're having a pain of a time finding some kinds of programmers at my company. But the state I used to live it is sorta trashed economically period.
And I know what you mean for Quebec, I've actually had friends there send me job specs for technical PMs.
I'm a bit mixed on this. On one hand, yeah, this has a whiff of PHB planning.
But on another, frankly, I'm not sure how much my cubicle contributes to my productivity anyway. I've done far better work taking my laptop to another room, working from home, etc., anything but actually sitting around in a grim gray box for IT Biscuts. Several of my co-workers are semi-mobile, and it works well for them.
I'd imagine the one factor is, even in an ideal situation, the individual personalities.
It sounds like he wasn't as encumbered as originally thought, changing the equation a bit.
Also, and again I have not been ON the campus but have been on several campuses and similar buildings, I wonder if maintenance tunnels, underground connectors, etc. could have played a role. Hell, on my old job I used to cut through maintenance tunnels to avoid people bothering me when I was on my way to meetings.
Still, all speculation at this point, we must remember.
Have some friends in the area, so our usual gang was trying to figure out what was up.
From what I heard they put all schools in the county into lockdown when the attack was detected - not just college campuses. The gunman is apparently dead, but obviously everyone is extremely nervous.
I was a computer and game enthusiast for over two decades. I wrote business software, websites, databases, and soforth. Nothing exciting like gaming supposedly is, and my skillset wouldn't have worked in the gaming world except, perhaps, as a webmaster.
When I became a Project Manager? THEN I got interviews at game companies.
Interesting article. It pretty much notes what's being said here - good telework requires good policies, good enforcement, and good planning.
In my last job I telecommuted for a good 3-5 months until I left. The company had excellent policies and security. There wasn't a single reported incident of data theft from our division in the two-and-a-half years I was there. I was definitely more productive, and I was also better able to plan around illness, holidays, and emegencies.
It's all about good policy. A company without telecommuters is still insecure if it has a crap IT Risk policy.
Me personally, I'm a big fan of humanity. I don't quite get the whole nihilistic "humanity sucks, boo hoo hoo" thing. If that's what you really believe, that we're all so terrible, go eat a gun -- you won't be much missed.
Seriously, Amen.
Life is participatory. Sitting around acting emo and talking about how bad humanity is just helps make your life one pathetic self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don't like it, get off your ass and start fixing it.
However, most people pulling the "I-hate-humanity" routine are enjoying the emotional dispay and attention.
Maybe if we start looking up and ask "what's out there" we'd be a hell of a lot better off than looking at each other and asking "what can I find objectionable about this person" today.
Maybe what humanity needs is a serious after-school project of space travel. The same way you give a troubled kid a good after-school project to give them focus.
. . . we supposedly had no worries over calls being tracked inside the country? That it was only suspected terrorists. Apparently that was, no surprise, a lie.
Though leaking classified information is obviously somehting to be concerned about, this sounds more like someone's casting a wide net to try and catch a few fish. It's the kind of thing that's ripe for abuse, and smells like an unwarranted search and siezure (of data).
So, what will next week bring? All our phones are tapped? It seems every week or so things get worse . . .
It's just very, very neat to see how people do technical work like this in adverse situations.
I'm passing this one on to my branch's VP of disaster planning. He's very cool, and likes to have a little "extra" to hit people over the head about good planning.
what will that mean for corporate report developers and business intelligence staff?"
More to do and more to play with - if it even gets much adaption.
Report development is not something you can substitute easily for with a search system like this. In complex reports it's both art and science. Such searches may make reports easier to GET.
Intelligence staff - someone has to gather, write up, and analyze the data. This isn't going away either. Besides, to be cynical, if a PHB is looking for intelligence, it'll have to be provided by someone else.
So - at best a neat new way to find stuff people are already doing.
As overblown and uncritical as I find the article, I think there's some virtue to this - which makes it worth watching longer before emulating.
Basically, you implement a massive feedback system and use it to improve the employee/company experience. In short, it's something forcing people to interact, albeit through tickets - it's a culture-development tool. It helps quickly make a corporate culture by upping some forms of communication.
I'll guess that after a few hundred tickets, managers and employees just start interacting more like people. That's what's important - five tickets can be prevented by five minutes of talking like people.
So far, it sounds like it worked, but if this is indeed a success I wouldn't say it's the toolset per se - it's what the toolset let you build.
It does take creative problem solving ability. Beyond that . . .
Having "evolved out" of programming into a PM role I found 1) I didn't use much math beyond the basics. 2) I COULD NOT just work where I wanted. I've said this before and I'll say it yet again - regions of the US vary highly. 3) Telecommuting? Not so much. I'm allowed more telecommuting leeway was a Project Manager.
And best job . . . I don't see that either.
*I* enjoyed it. However I also enjoy Project Management just as much (not that I don't program as a hobby still). However, it also had its limitations - among them insane hours, and issues of respect, comunication, and job stability. Frankly, in my management role I have LESS stress.
Slashdot Mirror
This is the opposite of what I'm seeing in some cases - most of my experience is companies running so lean that they eventually run into problems (can't cut jobs, don't have enough people, etc.). I suspect that's not the same across all companies, however.
As for Microsoft running fat, I can see that actually.
I agree on the skills - but there's also one other thing.
Today's job search is a CONSTANT. No matter how happy, secure, and satisfied you are, I always recommend people send one evening a week sending out resumes to companies and job postings they really want. Don't do it for everything, just what looks neat. Just keep yourself out there.
I've been laid off twice in the last thirteen years, and the department at my last job got cut 25% a few months after I left with no warning. Its worth it to be careful.
Regional issues are usually ignored when people assess any job loss - I'm in Silicon valley and we're having a pain of a time finding some kinds of programmers at my company. But the state I used to live it is sorta trashed economically period.
And I know what you mean for Quebec, I've actually had friends there send me job specs for technical PMs.
I'm a bit mixed on this. On one hand, yeah, this has a whiff of PHB planning.
But on another, frankly, I'm not sure how much my cubicle contributes to my productivity anyway. I've done far better work taking my laptop to another room, working from home, etc., anything but actually sitting around in a grim gray box for IT Biscuts. Several of my co-workers are semi-mobile, and it works well for them.
I'd imagine the one factor is, even in an ideal situation, the individual personalities.
It sounds like he wasn't as encumbered as originally thought, changing the equation a bit.
Also, and again I have not been ON the campus but have been on several campuses and similar buildings, I wonder if maintenance tunnels, underground connectors, etc. could have played a role. Hell, on my old job I used to cut through maintenance tunnels to avoid people bothering me when I was on my way to meetings.
Still, all speculation at this point, we must remember.
Pretty much my statement. I'm annoyed with the sudden shilling - but happy the tools used for shilling ALSO let me talk about this with people.
Thanks for the correction - and you're right. We still are figuring this out and should, in this case, actually assume the worst.
I'm seeing a lot of people making political hay out of this already. Really, can't we let the bodies get cold?
Though this is what we can expect in a mass media age. Here we are, on Slashdot, already discussing it when they're still counting the dead.
But I'm glad there is a place to discuss it. I have friends in the area, I know people who went to the colleges there. It's really freaky.
Have some friends in the area, so our usual gang was trying to figure out what was up.
From what I heard they put all schools in the county into lockdown when the attack was detected - not just college campuses. The gunman is apparently dead, but obviously everyone is extremely nervous.
Apparently the campus had had bomb threats in the last two weeks. No idea if they're connected:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18134671/
My thoughts are with the lost and their loved ones.
Now, if there was just a keyboard for the Wii . . .
I was a computer and game enthusiast for over two decades. I wrote business software, websites, databases, and soforth. Nothing exciting like gaming supposedly is, and my skillset wouldn't have worked in the gaming world except, perhaps, as a webmaster.
When I became a Project Manager? THEN I got interviews at game companies.
You never know.
Nah. Been taken.
I still need a Companion too . . . this Time Lord stuff is high maintenance.
It'll go so well with my TARDIS.
Interesting article. It pretty much notes what's being said here - good telework requires good policies, good enforcement, and good planning.
In my last job I telecommuted for a good 3-5 months until I left. The company had excellent policies and security. There wasn't a single reported incident of data theft from our division in the two-and-a-half years I was there. I was definitely more productive, and I was also better able to plan around illness, holidays, and emegencies.
It's all about good policy. A company without telecommuters is still insecure if it has a crap IT Risk policy.
. . . my first time actually that I recall. I had hoped for "Funny" but I admit I can see why.
How long will it take for this to be dragged into the Intelligent Design community as "proof" that "Darwinism" is wrong for some reason?
Me personally, I'm a big fan of humanity. I don't quite get the whole nihilistic "humanity sucks, boo hoo hoo" thing. If that's what you really believe, that we're all so terrible, go eat a gun -- you won't be much missed.
Seriously, Amen.
Life is participatory. Sitting around acting emo and talking about how bad humanity is just helps make your life one pathetic self-fulfilling prophecy. If you don't like it, get off your ass and start fixing it.
However, most people pulling the "I-hate-humanity" routine are enjoying the emotional dispay and attention.
Me? I wanna go to the stars.
Maybe if we start looking up and ask "what's out there" we'd be a hell of a lot better off than looking at each other and asking "what can I find objectionable about this person" today.
Maybe what humanity needs is a serious after-school project of space travel. The same way you give a troubled kid a good after-school project to give them focus.
. . . we supposedly had no worries over calls being tracked inside the country? That it was only suspected terrorists. Apparently that was, no surprise, a lie.
Though leaking classified information is obviously somehting to be concerned about, this sounds more like someone's casting a wide net to try and catch a few fish. It's the kind of thing that's ripe for abuse, and smells like an unwarranted search and siezure (of data).
So, what will next week bring? All our phones are tapped? It seems every week or so things get worse . . .
It's just very, very neat to see how people do technical work like this in adverse situations.
I'm passing this one on to my branch's VP of disaster planning. He's very cool, and likes to have a little "extra" to hit people over the head about good planning.
Basic rule - if you want the intelligence in business intelligent, you need an intelligent person to apply it.
what will that mean for corporate report developers and business intelligence staff?"
More to do and more to play with - if it even gets much adaption.
Report development is not something you can substitute easily for with a search system like this. In complex reports it's both art and science. Such searches may make reports easier to GET.
Intelligence staff - someone has to gather, write up, and analyze the data. This isn't going away either. Besides, to be cynical, if a PHB is looking for intelligence, it'll have to be provided by someone else.
So - at best a neat new way to find stuff people are already doing.
The sad thing is it's now news when someone rationally thinks over their position and changes their mind based on reasoning and evidence.
As overblown and uncritical as I find the article, I think there's some virtue to this - which makes it worth watching longer before emulating.
Basically, you implement a massive feedback system and use it to improve the employee/company experience. In short, it's something forcing people to interact, albeit through tickets - it's a culture-development tool. It helps quickly make a corporate culture by upping some forms of communication.
I'll guess that after a few hundred tickets, managers and employees just start interacting more like people. That's what's important - five tickets can be prevented by five minutes of talking like people.
So far, it sounds like it worked, but if this is indeed a success I wouldn't say it's the toolset per se - it's what the toolset let you build.
It does take creative problem solving ability. Beyond that . . .
Having "evolved out" of programming into a PM role I found
1) I didn't use much math beyond the basics.
2) I COULD NOT just work where I wanted. I've said this before and I'll say it yet again - regions of the US vary highly.
3) Telecommuting? Not so much. I'm allowed more telecommuting leeway was a Project Manager.
And best job . . . I don't see that either.
*I* enjoyed it. However I also enjoy Project Management just as much (not that I don't program as a hobby still). However, it also had its limitations - among them insane hours, and issues of respect, comunication, and job stability. Frankly, in my management role I have LESS stress.