For several years now, there has been a movement afoot to encourage more people to join the ranks of technology. Formally and informally, I’m one of the advocates for that. Where I depart from the norm, is that the avenue into technology should necessarily be coding. By all means, if someone is inclined to code, that’s all well and good. However, there are 3 basic issues to consider before heading straight for the nearest coding boot camp.
- Is the market flooded? In other words, how would you stand out from the armies of new cohorts that crop up every few months?
- Will you get a job at all? You may learn the latest and greatest languages and frameworks, but who’s hiring for that? Do you know how that fits into other technology? Are you willing to accept a non-coding job?
- Is your job more prone to being outsourced? Now this is not a worry of only career changers. Many established careers have been upended by outsourcing.
Sometimes graduates of these coding are sorely disappointed that they get job offers that may pay more than what they were doing before, but they are not coding. They wonder if the steep price was worth it.
Women’s Leadership Forum Reception
When I go to events like last weekend’s Leadership Forum Reception, I take the opportunity to tell people that tech is still a great career choice. I make a point to highlight how someone with a non-traditional background can potentially make headways into the field. For example, legal, pharmaceutical, educational and other backgrounds could lend themselves to improving the design of product meant to serve their fields.
I use normal, every day experiences like going through the security lines at the airport, ordering at a restaurant, and waiting in a store checkout line, to illustrate technical concepts such as multi-factor authentication, protocols, load balancing, etc. When people have that AHA moment, they realize that technology can be fun. They realize that we don’t have to begin the conversation with 0s and 1s. Those things can come later. But first, it is best to ignite the passion for technology, so as to not discourage them before they even get a chance to explore the field.
Coding is only one of the many opportunities available to work in technology. It saddens me that so many people who could qualify for one of those equally well-paying jobs are not even aware that they have what it takes to start the journey, or make a career change into technology. If you are one of those people, don’t count yourself out without talking to someone like me first.