Let’s face it! Most people can always find good reasons as to why they hate there jobs but does it mean that you should quit your current jobs and find another one. I think not. Leaving one position in information technology to work at another may not solve the problem.
So let’s address 5 of some of the most common things why information technology workers hate about there jobs in order from bad to worst.
Lack of Technology
The lack of technology is probably the least hated in information technology but it is probably one of the annoying things to have deal with on a daily basis. Most businesses have good reasons no to spend additional money on something that appears to be working and is helping the be profitable but most businesses do care to spend money in areas of business that does not directly affect their bottom line and does not necessary generate income traditionally in expensive back-office technologies. So dealing with 7 year old equipment and software and out-right refusal to upgrade is one of those things that can really gets under the IT worker’s skin.
Micro managing
This one can be a deal breaker and result in high employee turnovers for the information technology department but I don’t think this is the thing that IT workers hate most about jobs. Managers that does this type of thing must understand that they are actually doing more harm than good. Allowing the IT guy/gal to take ownership and be responsible for a project, task or managing of equipment, deadlines shows what kind of employee they hired. It allows them to strengthen their short and long term goals, accomplish tasks, and ensure that their employee reviews will be of high consideration for chance at promotion, pay raises, etc.
Working Late Hours
I don’t think anyone including information technology workers like working late hours or staying after hours working on projects that can’t be worked on during business production hours and this maybe why is 3rd thing information technology works hate about there jobs. This maybe an unavoidable sacrifice while in the IT industry. The fact that working alone makes it worst as well and probably makes it not so bad when we are Co-working as a team. It just sucks having to take personal time or time away from friends and family to deal with after hours issues even it pays well. Overall, I think most IT professionals understand that some of the work that we do requires us to work after non-business production hours.
Lack of Professional Knowledge Among the Team
There is nothing worst than working next to an idiot. I am not talking about a person that is unsure about how to do something and take the time to research, ask questions, or even ask for help but rather the individual who knows a whole lot about nothing. Dealing with this on a daily basis is probably second to the worst thing IT people hate about there jobs. In this scenario there happens to be two types of people, one that is under-experience and one that is over-experience and it is that unnecessary conflict between the two that causes a poor work environment among the information technology department. Maybe it’s because the under-experienced feels the need to make a name of themselves in a new position surrounded by new teammates who are not sure of technical skills and feel pressured to take risk to make themselves stand out in management eyes. Maybe it’s because the over-experienced feels that they have keep there eye on anyone within the team who will outsmart them and like to stay in the view of management in order to justify there current job position and there value to the department. Either way it sucks because this type of unprofessional behavior undermines the needs the of the department and beings down the department’s moral. Management often plays on neutral ground when issues like these are brought to them and often the problem is not resolved until one either quits or get terminated from the company.
Lack of Pay
Finally, the 5th worst thing that information technology workers hate about there jobs is the lack of pay. Everyone knows that most corporations do not compensate well on almost any job position especially information technology. And of all of the people who thinks that IT people are paid very well need to do their research. If you consider the amount of time and effort to become an expert in certain information technology field it be the equivalent of going to school for eights years to become a physician and additional time in actual practice. Time and money spent for self study certifications, home-made labs and test environments, college degrees, and internships are extreme and almost always goes un-notice by Human Resources and upper-management in most corporations. It is not uncommon for a Job Recruiter to post a job description that will include $100,000 worth of job history experience, education, and current certifications but will offer a salary of $48,000. In the meantime the average Joe working in information technology must continue spend money and time trying to stay competitive in the job market, increasing their skill-set by returning to schools or self study programs to renew certifications and still maintain there personal finances for themselves and there families as well as maintain the sanity throughout of all of this.
Summary
If you currently work in IT and agree with what I said and you are trying to figure out ways around these hateful things then here are some ideas. Some ideas may include leaving the company or switching departments for a change of management style if the company’s culture is not the problem. Also, if you have the personal and technical skill-set it maybe time for you to become your own boss and start your own business in your specialize field. That way you not have to put up with anyone’s mess except for your own.
If you are currently thinking about entering in the information technology field then take some of these statements to heart to see if your really want to do this kind of work for the long term and not because you like working on computers. The field can be rewarding only if you are willing to give up some if not most of your personal time, learn little about alot in field of IT you choose, continue to climb the corporate latter, demand merit increases and promotions when you think you deserve them.
January 10th, 2010 12:22 am
Hi Kurtis.
I enjoyed this article/blog very much, because it really hits home for me.
It re-justifies my feelings that I have towards about working in the IT industry. It also allows me to understand and be able to explain it much in more detail.
It’s not easy and it is a frustrating career.
Though I might not be able to explain myself in detail, I can try to say what serves for me as what was very difficult for me during my time of employment as an IT consultant.
For me it does somewhat scratch a small surface of what I’ve been through. I do understand that “Lack of Professionalism” and “Micromanging” are just few of the things that fall under the catagory of “Office politics”.
I am completely agreed with the MircoManaging aspect, especially when they expected that all time on-site should be logged, and should and can be accounted for by the ticketing system (that’s if you do desktop support). It’s really a catch 22, because the ticketing system already is “evidence” of what you have done on-site, but most definitely can’t account for everything you do, yet sometimes you still need to justify the time that is not logged in the ticketing database charts. So even if your boss doesn’t micromange you, you still are defendant against your client, and having to juggle through in not being to put your boss in a tough position, in which if he has to prove your on-site time and work to the client.
I really disliked being the “middleman”. I would have to represent the IT consultant firm towards and infront of our clients. This proved difficult, because even when the client wanted one thing, our boss might not recommend it as being the best course of action, or they might have a different approach of resolving any issues. Working directly for a company as their IT department has it’s advantages. There’s much less conflict. It’s even more difficult when there’s conflict between the client’s IT department and us (the IT consultant firm).
All the above, it’s like walking on eggshells. Having to be careful what you say at all times, and the choices you make.
Appreciation was lacking. “Eveyrone” expects the computers and technology to work. And thus when something goes wrong, it “just” needs to be fixed. When everything is working smoothly, everyone just “goes back to what they were doing”. We worked our butt off, or had the expertise to fix the problem, but sometimes it just doesn’t really get appreciated or acknowledged.
Well these are just a few more additions of things I do hate about being in IT (or when I was in IT), off the top of my head.
Yes, I do understand that it could largely attributed to just me being very unlucky just to have these bad/terrible experiences. Maybe there was a lack of communication somewhere. Who knows.
Anyways.
Keep up the good work!
January 18th, 2010 5:02 pm
I totally agree with this. Here is the 5 things I hate about IT:
Users expect you to work on their home computers for free.
When things are running smooth your work is never appreciated or acknowledged.
When things go wrong or there’s an outage even if its carrier related its your fault.
24×7 support can’t we just fix it on early Monday morning.
My boss.
January 18th, 2010 7:00 pm
Yep that sounds about right and God forbid you make a mistake. Then you are known as a screw up.