It is nice to see IBM changing their tune (maybe, based on some comments
in the article). Historical reference, I got into SA work in the
early/mid-90s. Hardly anyone in the SA field (there wasn't really a NA
field at the time, we SAs did it all) had degrees. There were no
degrees/course work that were specific to being an SA, all the degrees
were aimed at programmers or electrical engineers. I went through four
or five jobs (and probably a dozen or more contracts) without having a
degree.
In 95-96, I was lucky to help write a kind of small book about Perl with
a few unknown Perl people (I think their names were something like Larry
Ball, Randy Schwarz, and Tim Christensen, but my memory is kind of fuzzy
:-) Over time, I did contracts or worked directly for a number of small
companies, like JP Morgan Chase, Chrysler, Mobil, and Qwest. For the
most part, that has been all I've needed for my credentials.
Around Y2K, I ended up as part of an outsource for Bank One as a
subcontractor for IBM. After a period of time, the IBM management
wanted to convert me to an employee. We went through all the formal
processes, I got stellar interview comments, and got to the salary
negotiations and offer stage. When they found out I didn't have a
degree I was told I couldn't be hired unless I took a very junior
position for about 75% of the salary I was currently making from my firm
(and about 1/3 of what they were paying my contract firm for me). I
told them, no thanks, I'll keep making what I'm making and you can keep
paying twice as much for me as you could have.
Fast forward about 2 years, and Bank One decided to get rid of the IBM
outsource. I was on another contract at another company when my client
manager got hired by Bank One. He knew my background, knew I knew some
of the Bank systems and people, and invited me to come work for him
throwing out the people who wouldn't hire me before, at greater than the
salary I would have been making at IBM had they hired me and given me
standard raises. I jumped at that chance.
About six months later, I was an acting manager, sitting in a staffing
meeting when our managing director (two levels above me) made the
pronouncement that from now on, only people with Master's in CS or BA
could be hired as managers or senior engineers. So, sitting in the
meeting, I asked him "so, you're saying I can't be promoted into the
position I'm temporarily filling, nor am I qualified for the position
I'm actually in?"
That night, I decided for my family's sake, I needed to get a degree to
ensure I would never miss out on a promotion or job offer. So, Bank One
paid for me to get my MBA, which I've never specifically needed since.
I've done a lot of hiring over the years, and a lot of interviewing. In
almost every job requisition, there has been a line about needing a
degree, and the HR recruiters have used it solely to weed out
candidates. On many occasions, I've had the outside recruiters bring
resumes directly to me (around HR) because the person was otherwise a
perfect fit. I've hired any number of those people sometimes over the
objections of HR and rarely been unhappy with my choices.
-spp
On 12/15/2016 11:44 AM, Bill Bogstad wrote:
http://qz.com/858194/ibm-employees-without-college-education/
An interesting article on how you don't need a college degree to work
for IBM. It quotes BLS statistics that 47% of Network and computer
systems administrators don't have four year college degrees. Food for
thought?
Bill Bogstad
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