IT peoples, what would you think about this career move?

[nageov3t]

just looking for advice/input from people in the industry, since I can't exactly ask my coworkers.

currently, I'm a backup/storage admin (80% of my job is probably maintaining/building the backup environment and providing the equivalent of Tier 2-3 support, and about 20% of it is probably Tier 1-type storage support -- provisioning LUN's, fibre channel zoning, and troubleshooting basic issues)

recently, I was approached at a party by a friend of a friend who works at a similar company (web hosting), albeit a smaller one, who's looking for a general sys admin. it would incorporate the stuff I'm doing now but since they're not large enough to need, say, a dedicated 15-person backup department, it would also be more of a generalist position.

debating if the jump from backup admin to system admin is something worth considering. I don't really have any complaints about my current company, outside of the fact that I've been here too long (this was my first job out of college, and while I've changed positions a few times, I've still been with the same company for 11 years). and I like doing backup/storage work, but I worry that being in too specialized of a position might limit my future career options.

(of course, all of this is assuming that the new company's salary/benefits would be comparable... I still have to update my resume and shoot it over to the friend or a friend)

 

[Genx87]

I think being specialized helps when looking for future work. If you like backup\storage I would stay or find another position doing the same. I am in the opposite position as a sys\network admin. A jack of all trades. Finding it hard to break into the next salary bracket without specialization.

 

[rudeguy]

its all about the benjamins

 

[mikeymikec]

Does the web hosting company you're considering moving to have a good reputation with regard to how it treats its employees?

My experience may not be indicative of how web hosting companies are (I've only worked at one), but it wasn't an experience that I'd care to repeat. The conditions in which I worked at that company very much reflect the nature of that business IMO (if it covers the low end of hosting as well as higher options, then the battery-chicken-type conditions that the low-end customers get aren't that dissimilar to the conditions that employees were expected to work in), but that's not to say that it's impossible to run a hosting business unless you're an arsehole.

An alternative suggestion, as you appear to like where you're currently working, is it possible for you to get trained up / certified to improve your career options (as well as changing positions at the company you currently work for)? Work satisfaction is important, and a lot of people would give a lot to work somewhere nice.

My other suggestion would be to get a better idea of the size of the systems department at the company you're thinking of working for. It's good to get more general experience, though if you've gone from an obviously large company (if the backups team has 15 people in, I'd call that large), and made too great a leap into (the extreme scenario) "you're now responsible for everything IT-ish", you may find that experience a bit too much.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

What's your end game?


If it's management/director level then I suggest doing something more generalized - sys/net admin, get your employee management experience and go from there.

If you like being a regular employee who can go home and not worry about mgmt crap at night then stay specialized.


One thing I would be concerned about with backups in particular is that the industry seems to be fairly volatile. I'm always getting calls from people with some newfangled "disc to disc to cloud" backup device. Granted it sounds like you're dealing with enterprise level stuff, but that entire changing industry aspect would concern me a bit. Everything that's being pitched to me is that internal backup management is going away as bandwidth becomes cheaper.

With a sys admin role it's easier to adapt to industry changes and still be relevant.

 

[dougp]

How long have you been in your current position, how senior are you, and do you have a career path at your current location? You could be maxing yourself there. What kind of storage do you have experience with?

I'm a generalist, but I lean more towards server support, Microsoft products, & Microsoft licensing. I've done fairly well for myself, considering I don't have a degree - at some point, if I do want to "advance" my career, I either have to actually specialize or go into management.

There's a lot to be said about a good generalist - you tend to be more in demand among smaller companies, and depending on how well you adapt to newer technologies, even more in demand.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

<snip>


There's a lot to be said about a good generalist - you tend to be more in demand among smaller companies, and depending on how well you adapt to newer technologies, even more in demand.

Another good point. The culture in <500 employee companies is drastically different than a large enterprise.

 

[OutHouse]

you have a 15 dedicated team just for backups? damn how big is your company?

im in your opposite shoes, im a sys admin and would love to be part of a dedicated team like VMware or a SAN. im sick of being constantly being pulled in 20 different directions.

Spatiallyaware; I'm always getting calls from people with some newfangled "disc to disc to cloud" backup device. Granted it sounds like you're dealing with enterprise level stuff, but that entire changing industry aspect would concern me a bit

i work across the street from SpectraLogic and they gave me and my guys a behind the scene tour when they moved in a couple of years ago. i was blow away by whats out there for backup robotics and whats in the works.

 

[corwin]

I've been here too long (this was my first job out of college, and while I've changed positions a few times, I've still been with the same company for 11 years)

What's with this obsession about having to change jobs? What is wrong with working for a company for a long time? I don't get this mentality...

 

[SaurusX]

My question is why do IT people have to dress like frumps? Everyone else is at least business casual and they're in jeans and sneakers all the time and no one says peep about it.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

What's with this obsession about having to change jobs? What is wrong with working for a company for a long time? I don't get this mentality...

It's very difficult for IT people to move up in pay scale without leaving their company.

It also, in my opinion, shows an unwillingness to change. It's indicative of someone who doesn't want to stretch outside their comfort zone. Sometimes that's a good thing, sometimes not so much.


In general I like to see 4-8 years before moving on.

 

[OutHouse]

With a sys admin role it's easier to adapt to industry changes and still be relevant

please explain this statement.

 

[KB]

What's with this obsession about having to change jobs? What is wrong with working for a company for a long time? I don't get this mentality...

Largely because thats the only way to get decent raises. If you are getting great raises each year then feel free to stick with your job.

 

[OutHouse]

It also, in my opinion, shows an unwillingness to change. It's indicative of someone who doesn't want to stretch outside their comfort zone. Sometimes that's a good thing, sometimes not so much.


In general I like to see 4-8 years before moving on.

why would i move on when im happy with my company? above average pay, been promoted 3 times, 5 weeks of PTO, above average 401K matching, bosses who are flexible. great commute, the people I work with are not dicks, lots of other company perks.

so tell me why should I move on?

 

[Gunslinger08]

I don't do the type of IT that you do, but I would expect the small firm "generalist" position to probably be more stressful, with more potential for overtime, learning on your own free time, and being on call. If you value your off hours, it's something to consider. If you are trying to build a career and place it above your current off hours, no big deal.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

please explain this statement.

You have your fingers in everything.

Backups all move to the cloud? Not a big change for you, your role, or $$.

Sharepoint/intranet major player changes? No big deal, you're a generalist, hire some other guy who can admin the new software.

Virtualization moves away from vmware/hyperv? Who cares, hire some other person or company to deal with it.



When you're a specialist you would need to do training on your own to adapt to these changes. You work for company X who is 100% vmware, but vmware is becoming not relevant. That's a huge change in your role and job, and requires you to learn a new skillset which is a slow process.

Maybe your company pays to retrain you, if they don't you are now job hunting with an outdated or no-experience skillset.

 

[nageov3t]

What's with this obsession about having to change jobs? What is wrong with working for a company for a long time? I don't get this mentality...

my biggest concern tbh would just having it look bad on my resume, and having potential employers think it reflects a lack of drive, willingness to learn new tech, etc.

I'm in a nice position where I don't have to worry about money too much -- no kids (no plans on having kids), no mortgage, no debt. my big concern is just having career options between now and retirement should I unexpectedly find myself downsized, needing to move halfway across the country for my partner's career, or whatever.

How long have you been in your current position, how senior are you, and do you have a career path at your current location? You could be maxing yourself there. What kind of storage do you have experience with?

of the 11 years I've been with my company, 5-6 years has been in my current position (prior to that, I was working in the actual data center... cable runs, fixing physical server issues, remote hands, etc)

given my company's lack of embracement of titles, there's not a whole lot of room for upward trajectory. I suspect that at any other shop, I've be somewhere in-between a senior admin and backup architect.

you have a 15 dedicated team just for backups? damn how big is your company?

most of the team (80%?) exclusively either works on backups or storage. there are a handful of guys like me who do a bit of both... most of my background is with backups, but unlike most of my coworkers, I actually pickup the phone when clients call, which forces me into doing storage work.

at last count, though, I think we "protect" something like 200TB/night? we're also 24/7/365, so there's a lot of "bare minimum" staffing in there when we try to always have at least 2 people on-shift.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Honestly, if it were me, I'd stick with the storage administrator. Going from generalist to specialist is good; however, I'm not sure the reverse is true as hiring managers may look at you being "rusty" in your specialist skills if you've been a generalist for a few years.

Specialization in a particular field in IT will likely give you much better prospects down the road, including jumping to a much higher paying consulting gig. This is particularly true if you already have a wide range of skills/knowledge from previous work as a generalist (which is my case). I was an infrastructure rock star and came into the SharePoint consulting world and my infrastructure background has been invaluable.

Being a generalist can be fun and challenging, but it likely won't help you unless you intend to jump between small companies the rest of your life. Nothing wrong with that if that's what you really want to do, but that's a decision you have to make.

It's very difficult for IT people to move up in pay scale without leaving their company.

It also, in my opinion, shows an unwillingness to change. It's indicative of someone who doesn't want to stretch outside their comfort zone. Sometimes that's a good thing, sometimes not so much.


In general I like to see 4-8 years before moving on.

This. I've been at each of my jobs for 5 to 6 years. In the two prior cases, I left due to mergers or departmental consolidations but this time, I left for several reasons, not the least of which was much more money and better long-term prospects. If you work at a large company and you're a rock star, well, you're probably going to be stuck in your position forever because they don't want to have to replace you. Of course, they likely won't make it up in pay either.

 

[seepy83]

im in your opposite shoes, im a sys admin and would love to be part of a dedicated team like VMware or a SAN. im sick of being constantly being pulled in 20 different directions.

That's exactly how I feel some days...and all of my non-IT coworkers don't understand why it's not always easy to switch gears between different things. Design a new storage environment, configure new firewall rules, build/deploy new workstation images, configure an MFP, reprogram a VoIP phone, deploy a new smartphone, script an automated/scheduled file transfer with a business partner, etc, etc, etc. All of those and so much more might all need to happen in any given day. I'm well compensated and have good benefits, so I never get very serious about making a career jump...but some days I just want to say "F it all".

 

[SpatiallyAware]

why would i move on when im happy with my company? above average pay, been promoted 3 times, 5 weeks of PTO, above average 401K matching, bosses who are flexible. great commute, the people I work with are not dicks, lots of other company perks.

so tell me why should I move on?

I'm just telling you how hiring managers interpret this stuff. Obviously it's a generality not any absolute.

Overall, and even in your post, it indicates someone who is resistant to change and getting outside their comfort zone. 10 year+ tenure people also often negatively compare the new place to their awesome old place.

Plenty of companies have PTO, 401k matching, good bosses and good people.

My personal opinion, at 7-8 years you need to either be offered stock/profit sharing or start looking elsewhere who will make that sort of offer. At that point you're in the very prime of your IT career - age 28-38.

You don't want to be a 50 year old IT person trying to find IT work with a specialized skillset.

 

[Insomniator]

I feel like a specialized storage admin with ~11 years of exp would make more then a general sys admin at a much smaller company. IT makes no sense though, salaries vary wildly and I can't tell what it actually depends on.

I would think once you have a lot of years in something specific and valuable, like storage, you wouldn't want to leave it for a more general (likely most basic) position.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

That's exactly how I feel some days...and all of my non-IT coworkers don't understand why it's not always easy to switch gears between different things. Design a new storage environment, configure new firewall rules, build/deploy new workstation images, configure an MFP, reprogram a VoIP phone, deploy a new smartphone, script an automated/scheduled file transfer with a business partner, etc, etc, etc. All of those and so much more might all need to happen in any given day. I'm well compensated and have good benefits, so I never get very serious about making a career jump...but some days I just want to say "F it all".

It's critical for upper management to understand that it's not only bad for you, but also bad for the company to put someone in this sort of position.

I like seeing a well-rounded IT department. You need to use consultants for some of this stuff. The responsibility needs to be shared between desktop, network, and server people when at all possible. Your post describes at least a 2-man IT department.

A burned out IT person is terrible for a company. If it's the kind of place that doesn't support and respect their main IT person then you really should look elsewhere.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

I feel like a specialized storage admin with ~11 years of exp would make more then a general sys admin at a much smaller company. IT makes no sense though, salaries vary wildly and I can't tell what it actually depends on.

I would think once you have a lot of years in something specific and valuable, like storage, you wouldn't want to leave it for a more general (likely most basic) position.

Primarily because most sys admins move on to management/director level positions.

So you're really comparing two people at different levels career-wise. An IT manager/director would be a better comparison to a storage admin with 11 years experience, and I would expect pay to be comparable, probably more for the generalized person at that point.


Pay varies a lot based on the quality of company you're working for. Call center? You will get paid far FAR less. Skilled company (software development, graphic, etc) typically need higher quality support so they will pay more. But, they will expect more experience.

It's all relative.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Primarily because most sys admins move on to management/director level positions.

Not true in my experience. You might me able to say that most IT managers were system administrators at one time, but the reverse (most system administrators become managers) isn't really true. There just aren't that many management jobs available in IT.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

Not true in my experience. You might me able to say that most IT managers were system administrators at one time, but the reverse (most system administrators become managers) isn't really true. There just aren't that many management jobs available in IT.

Ok let me rephrase, most of the good and dedicated sys admins generally move into mgmt positions. I don't know of any really good sys admins who did not move up in their career. Well, except for the guy who has been at the same place 12 years, with 3% raises every year, who is still having to answer 11pm phone calls on friday night.

I think it's all about whether or not you want to spend your aging years in a direct support role. If not, then steer towards something specialized or mgmt. If you're ok with it then stay in an admin role. Again, I'd be very worried about a late 40's early 50's sys admin trying to find work.