Theres no blody support JOBS!!!

[bogeyman]

Does that mean you are cashing in your chips so to speak or do you intend doing any IT related work when you get there?

Dunno. If I go to Cyprus (least favourite, but ok) I can piddle about doing web stuff for tourism sites for a mate of mine. Meager pickings but probably sufficient - and he's a fun guy.

Probably will buy some holiday properties and live mostly on the rents.

[vhadiant]

Development as I learned it decades ago is already gone.

Not all development work is going to cheaper cost centres. Just like 1st line support, 1st line sys admin, your run-on-the-mill development work is at risk. And it should be.

The important thing is keep re-inventing yourself and move to areas that are indespensible to the business.

[expat]

Not all development work is going to cheaper cost centres. Just like 1st line support, 1st line sys admin, your run-on-the-mill development work is at risk. And it should be.

The important thing is keep re-inventing yourself and move to areas that are indespensible to the business.

The old adage, I discovered later than when I needed to know, is that you should be in the same business as the top boss. That way you'll be indispensible.

Meanwhile, I have indeed kept reinventing myself, quite successfully too. I started over 30 years ago as a mainframe COBOL programmer, went to Assembler, RPG, client-server, C, Windows apps, unix, Oracle, Siebel, and now specialise in Data Migration, especially Siebel.

Ironically I'm not sure that Siebel data migration will get me a job in 10 years, or even 5; but I'm pretty sure that mainframe COBOL will still be around when I retire, and even when I die.

[swamp]

I'm amazed anyone manages to contract these days in support.

What do you do exactly? Move a beige box around and switch it on.

[jim2406]

i have to say i really dont agree with the 'all development work will be outsourced' sentiment earlier in this thread.

some may be, but there's always going to be a place for highly skilled developers with good soft skills.

a good developer isn't just a code monkey - they might be involved in project management, team leading, business analysis, DBA work, performance tuning, config management, training..

many developers i've met (1) aren't passionate about what they do, (2) are barely able to hold a conversation, (3) don't understand the needs of the business. i think if you've got these covered you're always going to be able to find work.

[Ivor Bigun]

i have to say i really dont agree with the 'all development work will be outsourced' sentiment earlier in this thread.

some may be, but there's always going to be a place for highly skilled developers with good soft skills.

a good developer isn't just a code monkey - they might be involved in project management, team leading, business analysis, DBA work, performance tuning, config management, training..

many developers i've met (1) aren't passionate about what they do, (2) are barely able to hold a conversation, (3) don't understand the needs of the business. i think if you've got these covered you're always going to be able to find work.

Jim, I think you're got to consider that the game has changed forever. There is less call for end customer developpers. it is a dying trade.
If you need a parrallel, then look at HTML coders.

Nowadays, there is more "out of the box" software catering for the consumer's needs and the commercial pressure to remove the expensive parts out of IT is immense.
Software suppliers and outsourcing companies are actively trying to maximise profit by driving expensive elements out of IT - That IT is you!
"Dooer" employee skill will be reduced by "leveraging" and de-skilling which lessen the need for what you describe.
Also, headcount may increase because of the opportunity to use cheaper labour but even that may not continue.

It ain't rocket science - you are doomed!

[AlfredJPruffock]

Jim, I think you're got to consider that the game has changed forever. There is less call for end customer developpers. it is a dying trade.
If you need a parrallel, then look at HTML coders.

Nowadays, there is more "out of the box" software catering for the consumer's needs and the commercial pressure to remove the expensive parts out of IT is immense.
Software suppliers and outsourcing companies are actively trying to maximise profit by driving expensive elements out of IT - That IT is you!
"Dooer" employee skill will be reduced by "leveraging" and de-skilling which lessen the need for what you describe.
Also, headcount may increase because of the opportunity to use cheaper labour but even that may not continue.

It ain't rocket science - you are doomed!

Ah nostalgia ..whatever happened to HTML coders ... knowledge management , ecommerce and dot net ?

Evaporate ...

[gingerjedi]

From today I've noticed a few government install/upgrade project jobs trickle onto the market for a late April start, a few agents even took my calls and sounded interested which hasn't happened much in the last few weeks, maybe the purse strings are loosening at last?

[fingers crossed mode]

Chin up people.

[shoes]

Nowadays, there is more "out of the box" software catering for the consumer's needs

The customers' needs change. Short term project will crop up every now and again, one driver for this over the last few years has been changing legislation for example. If you've got a short term project and you don't want it screwed up you don't outsource, you get some contractors in.

Of course longer term anyones particular skillset is going to be gone. Can anyone make a living now at what their retired parents did? or their grandparents? In IT the change is faster but it is economy wide. It's not as doom and gloom as 'change or die', it is normal ; 'Change when you need to, you probably won't notice you're doing it.'

If you're smart you'll do ok. A half decent IQ is what makes you a valuable commodity, not x years experience in y technology. If you need to change outside of IT then do it. Who wants to sit in front of a monitor all day anyway.