I’ve been mostly offline for the last ten days or so, cutting back on blogging and forum participation and mostly staying away from the Twitter/LinkedIn/Facebook circles. We’ve had 3 of 4 family members who have fallen ill in the last week (myself included), and we’ve been prepping for the baby with improvements to the house and lots of pink purchases. But I am still around and engaged, doing some real work behind the scenes; as Mark Twain said, “The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated”.
I do have several SQL Server-related projects in the pipeline. I’m working some articles for SQL Server Central, including a series on how to get started with scripting in SSIS (thanks to Steve Jones for the suggestion). I’ve volunteered to be a technical editor for the SQL Server Standard, the recently revived print magazine that is now run by PASS and will be published as an online magazine. I’ve also volunteered to work on a CodePlex project spearheaded by Jorge Segarra that will help to identify Protected Health Information (PHI) assets within healthcare organizations to insure compliance with HIPAA. Also in the mix is an add-on for the PASS website that will allow the aggregation of SQL Server-related blog posts, a project that will hopefully be ready for testing this week.
Looking forward, I've volunteered to be a speaker at the SQL Lunch series, and for my first presentation I will be discussing ways to integrate Report Builder 2.0 into your SSRS environment on October 12. I'm also on the lookout for speaking opportunities for 2010, and am actively working to bring SQL Saturday to Dallas in January or February of next year.
More to come soon!
Well, perhaps not a whole new identity, just a consolidation of multiple facets of my online persona. For several years now, I’ve maintained a personal website (www.timmitchell.net) and a professional website (www.bucketofbits.com). The personal site, an old Community Server install, consisted of a neglected personal blog and a few family pictures, but sadly had been untouched for nearly a year. On the BucketOfBits.com website, I had published links to my recent blog posts and downloads from my presentations.
So, to simplify administration and to consolidate my online footprint, I’ve decided to merge both sites under the TimMitchell.net domain. This site will be a (mostly) professional site: I’ve imported the professional content and links from BucketOfBits, and I’m cross-posting my SQLServerCentral blog there as well. For the content that is purely personal, including pictures of the kids and some random thoughts that have nothing to do with SQL Server/technology/career, I’ll maintain my “personal” identity on Facebook, which I’ve found is better suited for that purpose.
I reviewed several different platforms, including the Mojo Portal, DotNetNuke, and WordPress for this consolidation project, and decided to roll out BlogEngine.net, a C#/SQL Server blogging platform. It was easy to deploy, is relatively simple to configure or re-engineer, and supports multiple themes for when I get tired of the same old layout. It supports cross posting of blogs, and the setup to cross post my SSC blog over to this new site was very easy. Thanks to fellow Dallas-area SQL guy Lee Everest for giving me some pointers on this platform. The visual layout is as plain-vanilla as it gets, so I may spice it up with a new theme once the dust has settled.
As always, feedback is welcome. Let me know if you find any problems or have suggestions.
In a blog post a few weeks ago, I wrote about social networking in the SQL Server community. I was inspired by being witness to a colleague posting on Twitter about being unexpectedly and suddenly thrust into the open market of looking for a job. His network responded immediately, rebroadcasting his message and exponentially widening his circle. It seems like SQL peeps are starting to come around to social networking, but if you’re a newbie to that arena, where do you start? Is LinkedIn for you, or is Twitter more appropriate? What about Facebook and MySpace? Should you have a presence on all of them?
Now I don’t consider myself a social networking expert, but I have used all of the above listed tools with some success, and am happy to share what works for me. Your mileage may vary, so don’t take my word for it – talk to others, experiment on your own, and find what works for you.
The first and most obvious professional networking tool is LinkedIn. This service has always specifically targeted networking as a professional development vehicle, rather than enumerating one’s social contacts. This is demonstrated by the Reference feature found only on LinkedIn; you can write a recommendation for a professional contact, and can even request a recommendation from a contact. LinkedIn does not have as many organic social networking features as other services; however, what it lacks in features, it makes up for in legitimacy, and anecdotal evidence suggests that this is the primary destination for those intent on using social networking for professional purposes. A new feature added recently is a status update, similar to the one used by Facebook, and is a nice touch for impermanent notifications (I use this to notify my contacts when I post a new blog entry). As for my use of LinkedIn, I include as many people as possible; I make it a point to add most everyone I meet through my work, and I don’t think I’ve ever turned down an invitation. My opinion is that if you only use one networking site for professional contacts, use LinkedIn.
Next on the list, and arguably the most controversial, is Twitter. Depending on whom you ask, Twitter is either a useful tool for brief notifications, or a colossal time sink. I’m of the opinion that it could be either one, depending on how you use it. I use Twitter almost daily, keeping my desktop client (I currently use Twhirl, with no complaints) open most of the time. It’s easy to configure so that I only receive notifications upon messages addressed to me (either a direct message or an @ reply), and I can easily ignore it when I’m busy. I’d estimate that 90-95% of my Twitter contacts are professional in nature. I’m a little more restrictive about whom I follow on Twitter; because the noise can become overwhelming, I only follow those people who regularly post interesting information. I don’t follow everyone who follows me, but I rarely block anyone from following me. Many corporate networks block Twitter, so you may not have the option to use it during the day, but I’ve found it to be of value to me to keep up with those in my circle.
Also to be considered is Facebook. This is much more of a social site than LinkedIn, and somewhat more socially oriented than Twitter. Most of the people I talk to consider Facebook to be purely a personal outlet rather than a professional networking tool. I tend to agree, though I do have many Facebook “friends” that are mostly professional. Facebook is one of the more feature-rich tools, including chat, status updates, personal picture galleries, and a large profile section to describe everything from your relationship status to the music you like, even religious and political views. Because of this, Facebook is also frequently blocked by corporate proxy servers. I’m the most restrictive on whom I’ll “friend” on Facebook; I reject invitations from people I don’t know well, and I occasionally prune my list of friends. Here’s a telling statement: I don’t use Facebook at work, at all. That should adequately describe how much I value this outlet as a professional tool, which is to say, not much. For me, Facebook is almost entirely personal.
Lastly, there is MySpace. To be frank, I never use MySpace any more. I used to use it a lot for mostly social and family contacts, but the obnoxious features and spyware/virus invasion was too much to take. I assume that I still have a MySpace account, but I haven’t logged in in months, nor do I plan to in the near future.
Using social networking tools to build one’s professional circle can be valuable, but can take some trial and error to make it work for you. I’d be interested to hear some other stories of how social networking has worked, or not worked, as a professional communication tool.
Like many SQL Server (and other technology) people, I utilize several social networking vehicles to stay in touch with others in the SQL community. Some of those who don’t use Facebook and Twitter (among others) have expressed skepticism of the real value of social networking. Does it work? Does it provide any value beyond entertainment? Can it actually help your career? I believe the answer to all of these queries is Yes.
I read a post by Chuck Boyce Jr. earlier today. Chuck, a fellow SQL tweep, found himself suddenly looking for a new job. He posted a brief message on Twitter indicating that he’s looking for a new opportunity, and almost immediately, his tweet was re-tweeted by at least two dozen others (could be many more – those were the ones that I observed from my list of friends). Now I don’t know Chuck or the quality of his work, but I do know from his online activity that he cares enough about his career to share knowledge through Twitter and his blog. As a result of that “relationship”, I was happy to share his job quest with those who follow me
We all have a relatively small geographic circle of associates, and a few more that we know through professional associations past and present. I’ve found that social networking is an excellent way to broaden that reach. I’ve asked a number of quick questions on Twitter, and have always received feedback, usually in a matter of minutes.
I’ll bet if you ask Chuck in a few weeks, he’ll tell you that his virtual network generated leads which wouldn’t be otherwise available to him. And it’s those kinds of favors that aren’t soon forgotten, and turn beneficiaries into benefactors down the road.
I read a post on Brent Ozar’s blog last week that discussed employers’ expectations when hiring new team members. Though the story was specific to database professionals, the same principles apply to almost any hiring situation. The moral of Brent’s story is that when hiring, just like in real life, you have to compromise what you may really want to stay within the budget you have to spend. If you had an unlimited budget, you’d hire Paul Randal to be your DBA, Emeril to be your cafeteria manager, that Sham-Wow guy would lead the janitorial team, and every employee would have a corner office and lunchtime massages. Most situations don’t lend themselves to that kind of financial freedom, so you settle for more affordable talent.
There’s a flip side to this, specifically from the perspective of the candidate. Everyone who has sat for an interview worries that they’ll be passed over in favor of someone who is better qualified. Only the most arrogant truly believe that they are the best talent money can buy; the vast majority of people have enough self awareness to know that there are others who are better qualified, smarter, and willing to work for less money.
For the job candidate, the takeaway from this is to simply be yourself. Understand that the employer wants to find the best person for the job, but they’re operating within a certain budget, and they won’t make their decision on skills alone. Don’t try to convince your interviewer that you’re Seinfeld if you’re closer to being Carrot Top, or even Ben Stein. Be honest about your strengths and your weaknesses, and don’t try too hard to impress. Your transparency will be apparent to any interviewer worth his/her salt, and even if you’re not a fit for that position, you’ll make an ally for the next time an opening appears.
I just finished reading Success Is A Choice: Ten Steps to Overachieving in Business and Life. Written by Rick Pitino, a highly successful collegiate and professional basketball coach, this book was a good read in that it was well organized, eloquent, and included many stories from the author's own experiences.
As the title suggests, the author offers ten rules that must be adhered to to achieve maximum success. Like other self-help/motivational books, there's nothing here that would be considered groundbreaking. However, Pitino and co-author Bill Reynolds have a way of relating to the reader so that one recognizes his own shortcomings without feeling like a scolded puppy.
Chapter 8, entitled "Be Ferociously Persistent", was, in my opinion, the zenith of this book. With a well proportioned mix of timeless quotes, common sense, and personal experiences, Pitino reinforces to the reader that continued hard work is necessary to achieve and maintain success. If you buy into the whole "4 Hour Workweek" thing, you won't enjoy Chapter 8 - the author correctly illustrates that success requires that you work harder, longer, and with greater intensity than the next guy. I also enjoyed the final chapter, "Survive Your Own Success", which serves as a reminder that success itself can be poisonous if you allow yourself to become complacent in your achievements.
If you're looking for a clever book to guide you to success shortcuts, this is not the book for you. However, I do recommend this book as a concise motivational tool, a brief but useful set of reminders to those who are willing to go above and beyond.
Like most everyone who works hard in our industry, I’ve run into more than a few conflicts trying to balance work and life. Personally, the further I progress in my career, the blurrier the lines become between work time, family/me time, and just plain lazy downtime. It’s quite easy to say that you’re going to spend X hours at work, and the rest of the time is mine, but the reality is that that this rarely occurs as planned. Systems break down, executives create last-minute projects, direct reports need attention, and a thousand other things have a way of derailing your plans to be home in time for The Office. Further, it’s terribly easy to keep working even while physically separated from the workplace; VPN and mobile connectivity are great tools but make it very easy to forget you’re actually at home.
To help me make sure that I get a sufficient amount of downtime, and frankly, to keep myself out of the doghouse at home, we’ve set up two family nights a week. Wednesday and Saturday nights are now sacred, reserved for the members of my real “core team”. We have agreed, barring any real work emergencies, to disconnect completely on those nights and spend time together playing games, going out for the evening, or just hanging out. This is a new approach for us, one that I am optimistic about, and I’ll be glad to share the results in a few months.
I’d be interested to hear any other strategies to deal with this. How do you keep your bills paid and your career moving forward while reserving enough time for yourself and your family?
I was tagged by Grant Fritchey (aka Scary DBA) in the latest get-to-know-you question. This one asks, “What do you wish you had known when you started?” I could go on for hours about the things I wish I hadn’t had to learn the hard way, but here are the highlights. Apologies to those who were tagged before me if I repeat their points.
It’s OK to make mistakes. It’s also OK to admit it. There are two types of people in this world: those who make mistakes and fess up, and those that make mistakes and try to cover it up. Everyone – everyone – makes mistakes in their jobs, and in life in general. While there are some high-profile mistakes that are notoriously noteworthy (airline disasters, medical errors), the vast majority of us are permitted, and even expected, to make a few errors here an there. As long as you can learn from your errors and not continue to make the same mistakes, it can be filed under the “Valuable Lessons Learned” heading. Further, those whom you work with and for will have more respect for you if you admit your errors up front, especially when you deliver a plan for resolution.
Technical skills are not enough When I started out, I had my mind set on simply learning a craft, fine-tuning my skills to become one of the best in the field, and keeping my head down and working hard for the next 40 years. While it is important to grow and learn hard skills, today’s economy is not friendly to the stereotypical technical geek working in a dark basement and slinging code (or monitoring logs, or building desktops, or whatever). To be successful, you’ve got to break out of your technical world every now and again and interface with nontechnical people. Spend half a day shadowing one of your end users to see how the systems you build/support help them to do their jobs. Spend time with senior management and executives to find out what big-picture goals they have, and how you help get the organization there. Have coffee with someone unfamiliar with technology and learn how you can ease them into the digital age. Most importantly, get to know the overall goals of your organization/clients/customers – you’ll be far more successful in the long run.
You are responsible for your own career development Technical careers require constant learning. Training, college, and conferences/trade shows are great ways to learn and network, but many companies can’t or won’t fork over the cash for these career development events. The bottom line is, it’s up to you to take charge of your career. A few thousand dollars for conference fees can be painful, but it could be argued that you’ll easily recoup that investment over the course of your career. For those who truly are budget strapped, there are tons of free career resources; user group events, online references (even videos!), libraries, and volunteer opportunities are all cost conscious ways to build your network and skillset.
Don’t try to be an expert in everything There are generalists, and there are specialists; nobody can be an expert in all things technical. Find something that you enjoy doing (that statement alone should be a bullet point), and become an expert in that thing. You don’t have to specialize to the point that you’re a niche player, but you can limit your scope such that you can be known as an authority in your chosen area.
Don’t take things too seriously I almost didn’t type this last one for fear that I would portray myself as having a lackadaisical attitude toward my career; nothing could be further from the truth. We’re all human (see #1 above) and are limited by a number of factors, including emotions, limited energy, family commitments, and natural abilities. Don’t be a stickler for absolute perfection; accept that some things are part of live and unchangeable. When obstacles block your path, don’t freak out or become the voice of negativity; take a breath, smile, and know that, if it was easy, everybody would be doing it and our skills would be far less valuable. Address problems or deadlines with a sense of urgency, but don’t let your commitments consume you to the point that you spend all of your time working.
Again, I could go on for pages on this topic, but these are the lessons I’ve learned the hard way that stand out in my mind. Now, to keep this thing rolling, I’m going to tag Jack Corbett, John Magnabosco, and TJayBelt – not sure if TJay reads my blog, I suppose I’ll find out shortly :)
I’ve seen a good deal of coverage recently that is geared toward those who have recently begun a career as a database professional. Brad McGehee posted this week about some potential topics for a book for new SQL Server developers, and Craig Outcalt is publishing a series of articles on SQLServerCentral.com aimed at new DBAs. Brent Ozar also has a meta page on his site that has links to a number of publications that are helpful to newbie database gurus. Good information all – in fact, one of Craig’s articles was so good that it was plagiarized earlier this week.
There are a lot of folks interested in careers as database professionals, and for good reasons. For starters, experienced DBAs and database developers earn well above average wages: the annual Redmond Magazine Salary Survey reports that that the average base salary for a DBA or Database Developer is $81,495, while Salary.com reports the median salary at just over $84,000. Next, anecdotal evidence suggests that the number of opportunities for experienced database professionals will continue to increase, recession notwithstanding. In addition to the tangible benefits and growth, a career in database management can be highly fulfilling given the right circumstances. Although the hours can be long at times, DBAs and database developers generally work in comfortable and safe environments, and are presented with an interesting array of challenges that keep the job from getting stagnant.
So from the outsider’s perspective, how does one get started as a DBA? How does one make the jump from helpdesk/analyst/cashier to a career in database management? If you ask ten people that question, you’ll likely get ten different answers. Like many jobs in IT, there is no clear-cut career path to becoming a DBA. A college degree always helps – in fact, many employers will only consider degreed candidates. Also helpful is a solid understanding of underlying technologies, including networking, DNS, hardware, OS, and web architecture, among many others. Of course, experience is king – even the most junior database professional must have at least some experience actually performing database administration tasks.
I’ve been asked a couple of different times recently how I got into “the biz”. In my next post, I’ll share my experience in the hope that it can help someone else crack into this industry. In a later post, I’ll share my recent commitment to take it to the next level, an ongoing process that will hopefully lead to many good things down the road.
I don’t do resolutions - they’re cliché, overdone, and rarely stick. However, I’m a believer in setting goals and periodic progress points, and making goals public is proven to increase the chance of success. I blogged a couple of months back that I was committed to sharpen my skills and increase my participation in the SQL Server community, and so far I’m doing fairly well at sticking with it.
There were a couple of items I didn’t address in my previous set of goals, so here goes:
-- Average twenty forum posts each week. I’ve skimped on forum participation recently and need to get back in the groove here. -- Have lunch or drinks with 12 new people. By “new people”, I mean folks that I have either met this year, or people who I was already acquainted with but had not yet dined with. -- Earn the MCITP certification in SQL Server Business Intelligence.
As an update, I’ve already booked one of the three speaking engagements on my November list – I’ll be presenting at SQL Saturday in Tampa in a couple of weeks. I’m a little late on my article for SQL Server Central, but I’m ahead of schedule for my JumpstartTV videos – I’ve already submitted four of them. I’ll continue to present progress updates.
I was tagged by Gail Shaw to post two big mistakes made during my professional career. The only challenge here was to narrow the list down to two :)
The first one is very easy. During my early days working with SQL Server, I wore a lot of hats, including that of web developer. One of my first major web projects was to create a student assessment system, which would allow instructors to create online exams. Students would then be able to use the web interface to take the exams, and the manual paper grading process would be no longer. Now I’m not ashamed to confess that I was underqualified at the time to effectively complete this process; as the sole developer/DBA, the entire project from spec to support rested on my inexperienced shoulders. Nevertheless, I forged on and delivered the application on time, albeit untested. The magic hour was the following morning, when a dozen educators were to begin entering exams on the new application. I should also mention that I was still in college at the time, and was in class – over an hour’s drive away – during the critical go-live.
It probably goes without saying that my phone started ringing shortly after the first staff members arrived. Problems were rampant, and I ended up leaving class to go address the issues. I dodged the angry mob at the front door and managed to get in and take care of the most pressing issues so the test building could commence. In the end, the application was made usable and found a niche where it worked pretty well. However, I can’t help but wonder if this tool wouldn’t have gained more widespread acceptance if I had been more experienced at the time and had done a better job during development and deployment.
Lesson learned: Admit when you’re in over your head, and insist upon a thorough testing cycle.
The second one caused me a good deal of embarrassment and cost me the better part of a day. After receiving a report from an end user that a critical report had not been run on one of our main databases, I got with our hardware guys to arrange for a restore of the database backup file from tape. Since this is a large database, it takes a few hours to copy over, but our backup guru agreed to copy the file directly to the development server to save another copy operation from live to dev. I got the call a few hours later that the copy was complete, but I found only old files on the target directory (and deleted some of them, as part of a periodic manual cleanup). I called our backup guy again and told him something had gone wrong and the file hadn’t been copied. Always a good sport, he kicked off the file restore again. When the call came that the process was again completed, I checked the backup directory and still found only old files, including one I had deleted earlier. I made another call to our backup guy to find out what was wrong with the backup software, and simultaneously opened a window to the live database server backup folder. As I was explaining to our backup engineer that he had made a mistake, I saw the filenames in the backup directory on the live server – which looked curiously like the files I had deleted! The database backups on the live server had a different naming convention than those on the dev side, and I had recklessly deleted the restored file the first time. A quick RESTORE HEADERONLY confirmed that I had just wasted a good part of my day, as well as that of one of our best hardware guys.
Lesson learned: Before you assume someone/something else is at fault, make sure you’re not doing something silly to cause the problem in the first place.
[Post edited 12/19 - added the link to Gail Shaw's blog.]
I’ve read a number of responses from Chris Shaw’s first DBA networking quiz. I missed out on the first one, but I have been tagged by Grant Fritchey for the second round.
The Questions for this quiz… What are the largest challenges that you have faced in your career and how did you overcome those?
1) The first one of these, I still laugh at when I remember it. I got involved in the IT industry later in life than most (mid-20s) and found quickly that I had a knack for learning and applying new things quickly. I was doing tech and sysadmin work and there was an acute shortage of those skills, so I probably received more praise and recognition than I really deserved at the time. During those early days I started to imagine myself as the alpha ubergeek, and believed that I could be an expert at all things technical. I started to learn programming, jumping from C++ to Java and Perl to PHP, then onto non-Windows system administration – Linux/UNIX and even a little OS/2, and finally database administration in MySQL, Oracle, and of course SQL Server. I remember at the time thinking that I would be able to set myself apart as an expert on all these disciplines. Need an enterprise application built? I’m your guy. It’ll be a web app? That’s still me. I’m also the database guy (architect, dev, and DBA), and I’ll do the sysadmin as well. Oh, and I maintain the hardware too. I actually created a schedule that encompassed about two years, and included time for me to self-train in each of these topics. I wish I still had that schedule, which would now be good for a hardy laugh, but I can remember that I had allocated a mere three months to teach myself everything about both PHP and MySQL. This story does have a happy ending, in that I realized the absurdity of my intentions before I got myself in over my head. My youthful inexperience allowed me to convince myself that I could learn everything about everything, and could maintain this knowledge as the technologies changes. Another positive result is that my study in these other disciplines gave me a cursory understanding of other technologies to which I might not have otherwise been exposed.
Lesson Learned: Don’t try to be an expert in everything. Identify a few things that you enjoy and do well, and maximize your time in those areas.
2) This challenge is ongoing, but I’ve gotten much better at this, particularly in the past year. I’m a big believer in hard work, and I have seen that a person who learns a craft that is in demand and puts his or her nose to the grindstone will do well. However, when I think about the people that I perceive as successful, these are not people that simply work hard (although most of them do work very hard). Those who are exceptional are people-persons as well. They work to know their constituency, including executives, end users, and fellow technical staff, and are comfortable at explaining difficult concepts to all groups. They are good enough at office politics so that they are rarely blindsided. In short, these successful people have soft skills to accompany their technical prowess. One of my favorite lines used to be “I’m not a salesman, and I don’t play office politics”. However, I’ve learned that everyone has to be a salesman to some extent, even if you don’t sell anything, if for no other reason to do enough self-promotion to ensure that you don’t become an office wallflower. Office politics is not necessarily an evil thing – at its root, it’s about knowing people and understanding interpersonal dynamics.
Lesson Learned: Keep working hard, but you’ll do even better if you also spend some time talking to and getting to know the people you work with/for.
To keep this thing moving, I’m now tagging Tim Costello and Devin Knight.
DBA, database developer, analyst, SQL grunt, or whatever your title may be, there is no question that your role will be evolving in the next few years.
I read a couple of posts from Jason Massie about the Death of the DBA (part 1 and part 2) earlier today, in which he predicts a diminishing market for database administrators, and SQL DBAs in particular. These posts are not the first references to the “cloud computing” initiative stealing away market share from hard-working DBAs, and to some extent I can agree with this. Opportunities for the “typical” install-backup-restore-defrag DBA will be reduced in the future, though it could be argued that this has already begun. The stereotypical introverted techie who works best while locked away in an isolated server room can make a good living right now, but it is this type of position that could be in jeopardy due to cloud computing or similar automation.
Tomorrow’s database professional must know not only the technology but the business that requires it. DBAs cannot afford to be agnostic about the data stored on their systems; he or she must understand not only the technical objects and methods, but has to grasp the big picture of what the data and metadata collectively represent. This new generation of database professionals must have an understanding of the organization’s objectives, and must have at least a familiarity with – and just as important, an empathy for – users at every level, from data entry clerks to CXOs. Top-notch database gurus will have to perform as well in a boardroom as they do in the server room.
I think you’ll find that the role of the DBA is not dying, but will certainly be forced to evolve. There will not be a shortage of opportunity for those who understand the business as well as the technology and can translate (sometimes ill-defined) business needs into intelligent system objects and functionality.
In the past few years, many people - myself included - have expressed a desire to see the quality of the Microsoft certification program improved. Even though there have been some positive changes in the MCP program during the past few years, it still lacks the repute (and frankly, market value) many of us hope for. On that topic, I was interested to read in Greg Low's blog earlier this week that there is a new Microsoft Certified Master certification program for SQL Server 2008.
According to Greg's post and the information on the official website, this track is a rigorous 3-week program (that's three straight calendar weeks, not three work weeks) that blends instruction, labs, and exams to provide a comprehensive evaluation of candidates for the Microsoft Certified Master: SQL Server 2008 certification.
This program is not for the faint of heart or wallet – long days and the extended schedule make a brutal learning schedule, and the $18,500 price tag (plus travel, lodging, etc) set this certification apart for only a select few. There is a formal application process, and candidates must meet a number of criteria to qualify; a minimum of 5 years experience along with the MCITP admin and developer certifications are the most notable prerequisites. The application fee alone is $125 and is, of course, nonrefundable.
We asked for a better, more thorough certification process. Is the Microsoft Certified Master certification the answer? No, at least not by itself.
Let me first say that this new certification is a great idea. Those who need or desire to set themselves apart as the top 1% of the top 1% will be well served. I can think of a few people I know whose knowledge, experience, and occupation would be well suited to justify this kind of investment, but I can count those people on one hand. Most people can convince their employers, or can justify spending from their own pockets, a few hundred, perhaps even a thousand dollars every few years to maintain current certifications. However, many employers have to be given the hard sell to send their staff to one week of training at $2-4k per week, never mind the $18k plus expenses (along with three weeks away from work) for this new offering from Redmond. There are probably a few independent contractors who could cost justify this, but for the other 99.9% of us, it would be impossible to amortize such an investment of time and money, especially considering that we’ll see a new product every three years.
There is still a large underserved population within the SQL Server community who want for more than the off-the-shelf MCTS/MCITP certification offers, but are unable to rationalize spending the kind of time and money required for the new Master certification. I would like to see something in between these two extremes: a certification process requiring an application process and certain experience benchmarks, along with more practical examinations and at least one personal interview. In my mind, this is a process that could be completed in three or four days, administered regionally rather than solely in Redmond, and farmed out if necessary – at least partially – to existing test providers.
I know this would take some time to implement, and even cutting-edge companies such as Microsoft take some time to change direction like this. The answer may come from a party other than Microsoft – perhaps even PASS as Andy Warren suggested recently.
Comments for or against are welcome…. Let me know what you think.
Turning up the heat. Take it up a notch. Stepping up to the plate. Less talk, more action.
However you choose to describe it, I’m upping the ante on my participation in the SQL Server community. As I wrote in my previous post, I had allowed myself to get so busy with other things that I neglected my professional writing for months. Well, to the enjoyment of both of my blog subscribers (thanks Mom and Dad), I’m now on a schedule that a drill sergeant would appreciate.
Thanks to inspiration by the blogging of others (Steve Jones and Andy Warren and their regular daily blogs) as well as some online articles including Scott Hanselman’s How To Be a Better Developer in Six Months (even though it’s been some 16 months since he wrote that…. I really have been slacking), I am taking it on myself to schedule regular contributions this site and the community as a whole. I’m publishing said schedule for two reasons: 1) to remind myself of what I have committed to, and 2) I fully expect that my fellow community members will taunt me relentlessly if I start slacking.
So here goes:
To be fair, the last one is more of a long-term goal, but putting it out there will be a friendly reminder to me, and will serve as my announcement of my interest in same, in case anyone is in need of those services :)
I’ve set some other goals for myself that will not be as visible to the community but, in taking Hanselman’s advice, I’ll share them with you here as well:
So there it is. It seems like a very short list considering the amount of time I’ve been working it out in my head, but it’s out there, it’s public, and I’m committed. If I am spotted slacking in any of these goals, you all have my permission to call and harass me, or just leave snide comments on my blog. For my part, I promise to report back on my progress of these less-visible goals.
