Never Giving Up: Margaret Thomas, South Bend, Ind.
A closeup from the 2008 Redmond/MCPmag.com Salary Survey.
As a systems administrator, my job is to keep the technical systems running, upgraded and supported. Nothing unusual here, but:
- Not one piece of equipment is still under the original manufacturer's warranty. This includes every server, router, switch, PC, laptop and printer.
- Many support contracts were canceled in an effort to reduce costs.
- Oh, and, of course, there's no budget for anything new.
- So how do I keep enthusiasm up in this seemingly dire situation?
"Never give up"-these three words keep me going, no matter how bad it seems for the business, as well as for the IT industry overall.
Dot-com bust? Techies leaving the industry in droves? Fewer systems people who are female? Declining enrollment in computer science and engineering programs? Those trends give me all the more reason to stay put and enjoy what I do. Sure, it's a challenge to be in a thriving, fast-paced company-who wouldn't prefer that? But it's a bigger challenge to be where I am, in a company struggling to grow and thrive in a toxic economic climate. What doesn't kill me makes me stronger.
