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The Invisible IT Guy

  • June 20, 2005 at 5:00 pm

    #186274

    We've all been this person, usually early in our careers, but sometimes in a situation where we are too busy, just buried under the workload and seen as the invisible IT worker. We're no different than the telephone. Everyone expects us to just work when they need us and be invisible otherwise.

    And if we're not invisible, it's usually a bad situation. At least it has been in my case. The only times that I've come to the attention of upper management as a DBA in large companies is when something isn't right. And in those cases, it's not a whole lot of fun.

    But it's a cyclical thing. Reading the article, I remember working for Dominion Resources, a huge company, early in my career and I loved the times when things went wrong. It gave me a chance to shine and bring myself to the attention of senior management. It really helped me to network and grow my career. I think lots of people trying to advance in life are struggling to do the same and not be the invisible guy.

    What's funny now is that I try desperately to be the invisible guy. I'm one of those senior level people that likes to go to work, do my job well, make things better, accomplish things, and at the end of the day go home and forget about work. I really don't have an interest in growing my career and would have loved to spend years at JD Edwards, just keeping the systems going. Being an Operations grunt, not necessarily innovating anything, not building the resume, but going to work, being a valuable employee, but perhaps underutilized. I know my former boss thought so. He wasn't sure I was a good hire because I was overqualified, but I must have convinced him otherwise because I really enjoyed a year and a half at JD Edwards before Peoplesoft tore it apart. A moment of thank for Brian for that opportunity.

    I talk with some friends at times about this, how some of us want to be invisible and others don't. We wish those who want to grow their careers well and we hope those that don't find a stable environment where they can work and enjoy life. Not that this is any great insight into employment, but it's something that managers sometimes forget (and feel free to send this on). We're all in different places in our lives as well as having different strengths and weaknesses. A good manager looks to use the different strengths and weaknesses and meld them together into a good team, one that's effective.

    Too many managers seek to homogenize and treat everyone the same. Looking at people as cogs in the machine, not as the individual pieces of art that I know them to be.

    Steve Jones

  • June 20, 2005 at 8:45 pm

    #566927

    The "this person" link to a 404 page.

    Nice article .

  • June 21, 2005 at 8:23 am

    #567051

    Grrr, I hate when people move links.

    http://www.informationweek.com/blog/IWKconferences/archives/2005/04/the_plight_of_t.html

  • June 21, 2005 at 8:26 am

    #567055

    Hehe. I've read a article with something like this a few days ago... was about a Whoops incident. Can't recall the circumstances .

  • June 21, 2005 at 5:45 pm

    #567287

    Yeah I think I know that guy

  • June 23, 2005 at 10:56 am

    #568012

    Appropos for the "Invisible IT Guy" theme, no?

  • June 23, 2005 at 10:58 am

    #568013

    Not so invisible anymore .

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