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Computer Specialist or Generalist
Douglas Chick
There was a time in the I.T field when specializing
in one area was ideal. For example an e-mail administrator only had to
manage his or her mail server all day, and a router administrator only
looked after the router, and SQL admin only worked on SQL. That was then…
In today’s I.T market you have a better chance at
finding employment, or keeping your existing job if you can manage the
mail, SQL, file server, and routers. This of course may only apply to
medium to small sized companies, but I believe in this economic pearl,
larger companies are also looking for an I.T person of many hats. The
arrogances associated with I.T specialties of one job one expertise may be
of the past.
There are however some consequences of having too
many different job titles, I think I am an example of that. Although it is
true that I am fairly proficient with a mail server, a Cisco router,
application servers, SQL server, and other higher end devices, I am not an
expert. So from time to time I must call on an expert, or take on an extra
training class. My company knows this, but they also know they are saving
money. They do not want to pay for a specialist, but they also come down
hard on you with their is a problem that could have been prevented with a
little product specialty or a problem not repaired immediately. The
benefits to me personally is I acquire a wealth of knowledge that comes in
very handy, and have more options when I feel over worked.
Let me know your opinion:
DougChick@TheNetworkAdministrator.com |