Career

Career advice for IT professionals, including job search tips, interview techniques, project management, IT-business alignment, outsourcing, and vendor management.

You know you’re talking too technically to your business users when...

Posted May 15, 2012 - 5:57 pm

As much as we love the technologies we use and how they work, most of our business users don’t. Business users are looking for solutions to their problems and not necessarily the behind-the-scenes technologies that make it work.
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New tech advice: don't learn to code

Posted May 15, 2012 - 11:17 am

Jeff Atwood says "Please Don't Learn to Code," for a variety of reasons. Angry commentary erupted immediately.
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Mark Cuban sees college like housing bubble

Posted May 15, 2012 - 11:07 am

Cuban, of Broadcast.com and now owner of the Dallas Mavericks, sees student loans as too easy to get and believes the $Trillion owed may sink the economy.
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Resume writing in IT terms

Posted May 14, 2012 - 2:23 pm

Don't look at your resume as a way to get a job interview. It's your introduction to someone you don't know.
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Science news: Chimps are mean, sneaky bastards

Posted May 11, 2012 - 5:40 pm

A chimp named Santino made news three years ago for gathering rocks in the morning to throw at humans in the afternoon. Now he's hiding the rocks and his own anger until it's time to whip out the rocks and have at the enemy, which dumb animals are not supposed to be able to do.
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Question

How important is a Klout score during a job search?

Posted May 10, 2012 - 1:30 pm

I went to an interview the other day and was asked about my Klout score. My what? I'm only slightly kidding, in that I've heard of Klout, but have no idea what my "score" is, or even what it actually indicates. Is this something that one should now expect to be asked about during job interviews?
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Question

What should I ask a potential employer during an interview?

Posted May 10, 2012 - 11:38 am

I dread that part of the interview (well, all parts of the interview, but that's a different issue) when the interviewer asks if I have any questions. What questions can I ask that show that I'm invested in the job? And what questions does an interviewer never want to hear?
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Lynda.com: self-funded for $20k, now $70 million revenue

Posted May 10, 2012 - 11:09 am

Many want to hack education, but Lynda Weinman and Bruce Heavin did it back in the 90s, with their own money. They were profitable within a few weeks.
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10 Questions That Can Help You Be More Innovative At Work

Posted May 10, 2012 - 9:03 am

As an individual contributor, first line manager, or IT executive, you can help drive innovation within your organization simply by using old technologies in new ways.
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Why is Scott Thompson still CEO of Yahoo?

Posted May 9, 2012 - 12:17 pm

If any other Yahoo employee were confronted with a bogus credential on their resume, that person would be fired on the spot. So why does Scott Thompson still have his CEO job?
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Fixing the technology isn't always enough

Posted May 7, 2012 - 2:37 pm

Users want us to acknowledge the emotions that accompany their technology problems. Relax, though; you don't have to be Dr. Phil to do that.
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The Grill: Arthur Langer turns the IT education model on its head

Posted May 7, 2012 - 1:36 pm

Arthur M. Langer, chairman and founder of Workforce Opportunity Services, describes the outsourcing model his nonprofit organization uses to train and match up economically disadvantaged youth with hard-to-fill positions in IT.
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Career Watch: Companies expect to do more IT staff hiring in short term

Posted May 7, 2012 - 1:30 pm

Also, some advice on jump-starting a young career.
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The right way to respond to a nasty email

Posted May 7, 2012 - 12:36 pm

Very often in business, the important thing is not how you act, but rather how you react.
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How to ignore your email without losing your job

Posted May 7, 2012 - 12:31 pm

One of the simplest ways to be more productive during working hours is to reduce the time you spend on maintenance tasks like checking your e-mail. These tasks break your concentration on more important work, and a recent study from UC Irvine suggests that checking your e-mail less often can help reduce stress and raise your level of concentration at work.
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Career advice: Careers in the cloud

Posted May 7, 2012 - 12:07 pm

There are two sides to the cloud computing coin: the buy and the sell. If you're at a traditional company, now is your moment to step up and lead the charge.
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CIOs: Will you be relevant in 2017?

Posted May 7, 2012 - 7:38 am

CIOs are in danger of becoming irrelevant if they focus on old technologies and practices. Forget what worked in the past and focus on technologies that will delight employees and customers in the future.
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Quick tips For easier business trips

Posted May 5, 2012 - 7:30 am

Travelling for business can be a headache. Our coach suggests three ways to minimize the stress.
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IBM: The rapidly changing role of top security executives

Posted May 4, 2012 - 4:04 pm

Security issues are exerting a ton of pressure and monetary concerns on the executives in charge of keeping corporate networks and assets safe.
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Scott Thompson is toast

Posted May 4, 2012 - 9:10 am

Yahoo is trying its best to brush off the controversy over CEO Scott Thompson's biography, which inaccurately credits him with earning a B.S. in computer science from Stonehill College. It won't work.
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10 predictions for what the CIO role will look like in 2020

Posted May 4, 2012 - 7:56 am

CIOs can expect their jobs to change dramatically by the end of the decade. Expect an increased role in everything from business planning and cybersecurity to robot management and, of course, the cloud.
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Successful CSOs share fundamental qualities

Posted May 4, 2012 - 7:22 am

In a recent study,IBM concluded that successful security organizations tend to have common characteristics, including a dedicated chief security officer with strategic vision and the ear of business leaders.
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Yahoo CEO's resume overstated his technology background

Posted May 3, 2012 - 7:54 pm

Yahoo acknowledged on Thursday that its new CEO, Scott Thompson, does not hold a degree in "accounting and computer science" as his resume and the company's financial filings claimed, and instead majored only in accounting.
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FREE stuff: Joomla programming book, database training, and more

Posted May 3, 2012 - 4:14 pm

Each month we look for special offers for ITworld readers to try. This month, we have the new book Joomla! Programming, database training from Webucator, and more!
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How to land a cybersecurity job

Posted May 3, 2012 - 1:39 pm

Cybersecurity jobs are plentiful, from government, financial services and utilities to manufacturing and retail. But what skills do IT professionals need to qualify for these high-paying jobs?
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