IT/Software career thread: Invert binary trees for dollars.
- Thread starter Traak
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If you want that promotion, hours of meetings per day will likely be the expectation.
I try to plan around the meetings, do trivial stuff like email during meetings where I don't have to pay attention much. Or I get stuff done around the house during the workday and then work on stuff that requires my focus after everyone has signed off for the day.
I try to plan around the meetings, do trivial stuff like email during meetings where I don't have to pay attention much. Or I get stuff done around the house during the workday and then work on stuff that requires my focus after everyone has signed off for the day.
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Ok, that's a bit different.
I do wish there was a way to properly account for recurring bullshit like meetings when planning iterations. I've done a pretty good job of being vocal during standup when I need to spend hours prepping for a meeting or putting out some fire. I don't even have to remind my boss anymore, he just assigns me half the amount of work since my other responsibilities as essentially devsecops can and frequently does take the other half.
I do wish there was a way to properly account for recurring bullshit like meetings when planning iterations. I've done a pretty good job of being vocal during standup when I need to spend hours prepping for a meeting or putting out some fire. I don't even have to remind my boss anymore, he just assigns me half the amount of work since my other responsibilities as essentially devsecops can and frequently does take the other half.
Breakdown
Gunnar Durden
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Amen. the modern white collar office worker has about 10-15 hours a week TOPS that they are responsible for. Keep in mind the average worker is a millenial woman with no skills that gets nothing done, but has to be hired to meet quotas.
I swear to god I sit in 3-5 meetings a week where its about 30 people on a call. 5 have something to discuss or present, and the rest are shitty women whose only job is to sit in meetings and send "official" communication emails, update slide decks and send out meeting recaps.
The first 10 is always just bitches gossiping, then alot of "PRAISE HANDS" emojis in chat while people who do work explain their project updates.
Oh well, more gaming time for me, cause you book me in meetings, I aint working through them, im gonna play baldurs gate on one screen and watch Patti and Belinda "wait 2 minutes in case anyone else is joining"
I swear to god I sit in 3-5 meetings a week where its about 30 people on a call. 5 have something to discuss or present, and the rest are shitty women whose only job is to sit in meetings and send "official" communication emails, update slide decks and send out meeting recaps.
The first 10 is always just bitches gossiping, then alot of "PRAISE HANDS" emojis in chat while people who do work explain their project updates.
Oh well, more gaming time for me, cause you book me in meetings, I aint working through them, im gonna play baldurs gate on one screen and watch Patti and Belinda "wait 2 minutes in case anyone else is joining"
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Meetings are were I do my admin bullshit. Hour tracking emails drawings etc.
Palum
what Suineg set it to
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This is true. Occasionally I get yelled at for keeping my camera off. So then I put it on so I can be seen visibly ignoring them and working on other things. Sometimes also on the phone. Some weeks I have like 38 hours of meetings. I couldn't do work if I didn't idle in meetings and do other shit.
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Not being at a meeting is a very easy thing for others to notice. When whomever is running the meeting has to stop what they're doing and check attendance because that person isn't answering questions, everyone will notice. It's worse than the person who was obviously not paying attention and frequently has to ask for the question to be repeated.
Maybe the culture is different at your company. But at mine, I would rather find a way to be productive while barely paying attention. Does kinda suck if you're expected to have webcams on.
Maybe the culture is different at your company. But at mine, I would rather find a way to be productive while barely paying attention. Does kinda suck if you're expected to have webcams on.
TJT
Mr. Poopybutthole
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I don't mind doing mindless tasks in meetings. Administrative work or whatever, but lots of my tasks at the moment require my concentration. At this job I have inadvertently become "the guy" to ask almost any question about our data infrastructure. I am trying to offload this onto people but its going to take some time. Its a good career spot to be in though.
So whenever I get invited to a meeting that is otherwise 100% irrelevant to me I still have to spend time in it explaining "no dude, this doesn't contain that or you have to use X instead of Y."
I am pretty much against the idea of being at work all day then having to wait until everyone at work stops wasting my time so I can actually work. I won't be doing that. The other leader I mentioned earlier in the thread finally got the hint that she can't just randomly contact me at 8PM and expect me to respond.
So whenever I get invited to a meeting that is otherwise 100% irrelevant to me I still have to spend time in it explaining "no dude, this doesn't contain that or you have to use X instead of Y."
I am pretty much against the idea of being at work all day then having to wait until everyone at work stops wasting my time so I can actually work. I won't be doing that. The other leader I mentioned earlier in the thread finally got the hint that she can't just randomly contact me at 8PM and expect me to respond.
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Siliconemelons
Avatar of War Slayer
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Old man IT rant:
IT used to be essentially 90% people that could "figure stuff out" - regardless of rank, level, title. From common techs to the upper level managers and sys admins. Heck, that was essentially the job for tier 1-2 people, figure out what the user did or didn't do, fix it, if that does not work, get a work around and report up to someone to then "fix it"
I mean, simple stuff... like general .01 deviation from the text book... now it is like the world ends, no one can figure them self out of a wet paper bag.
IT used to be essentially 90% people that could "figure stuff out" - regardless of rank, level, title. From common techs to the upper level managers and sys admins. Heck, that was essentially the job for tier 1-2 people, figure out what the user did or didn't do, fix it, if that does not work, get a work around and report up to someone to then "fix it"
I mean, simple stuff... like general .01 deviation from the text book... now it is like the world ends, no one can figure them self out of a wet paper bag.
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Khane
Got something right about marriage
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Thats because 90% of people with IT jobs were nerds who had an interest in computers. Now the field is just seen as high salary potential and tons of people with no real interest get into it for the money.
It's kind of like finance in that regard nowadays.
It's kind of like finance in that regard nowadays.
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TJT
Mr. Poopybutthole
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Definitely notice this. I am training up one of my reports because he is so godawful at troubleshooting it astounds me. I'll give him some problem with a clear solution and tell him to show me what he would do first to solve it. For each one he was randomly guessing and was not on track in any way. He is making progress and clearly wants to learn and be more capable. But his starting point is just bad.
The_Black_Log Foler
Stock Pals Senior Vice President
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Depends on company culture and meetings. I attend standups but I’m at a point where I don’t attend sprint retros because we don’t even do sprints anymore. Those meetings usually have one person complain and it ends in 5-10 minutes.
The_Black_Log Foler
Stock Pals Senior Vice President
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“Go get a CS degree” is the new “go get a business degree”.
Unfortunately people who aren’t interested in it that pursue it for money are in for a rude awakening….
ToeMissile
Pronouns: zie/zhem/zer
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Around ‘05 while in the Air Force I needed a barcode font installed for some inventory project I was working on. The PCs are understandably locked the fuck down so I needed our squadron assigned IT guy to install it for me. Nice enough dude, but know how to install the font…. “Just drag/drop it in the folder”.
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ronne
Nǐ hǎo, yǒu jīn zi ma?
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I haven't applied for random jobs in over a decade and am getting pretty fucking floored by some of the interview processes I'm encountering.
I just got an email from HR at a large medical records company after a first round interview asking me to schedule a battery of 3 exams before proceeding to the next interview? And these are like fully proctored shit like you have to take for vendor certs etc:
What is involved in the set-up?
Please make sure your environment is appropriate for testing:
• You must use Google Chrome to schedule and complete the assessments
• Ensure you are in a well-lit, quiet, and private room
• No one else can be in the room with you
• No phones, headphones, or earplugs are allowed
• You will need to disable pop-up blockers and share your screen for the duration of the assessment
There's also a consent form for full control/recording of your desktop/webcam during the exams. This shit seems insane to me and my initial reaction is just to withdraw from the entire process and write this company off as no longer an option, but maybe I'm just too old fashioned and this is the norm at larger places now? Almost everywhere has some level of like basic reading comprehension/cognitive assessment thing to take before actual interviews begin, but this one is beyond anything I've seen so far.
Do you guys put up with this shit in current year job markets or is this place just letting their HR go wild for no reason?
I just got an email from HR at a large medical records company after a first round interview asking me to schedule a battery of 3 exams before proceeding to the next interview? And these are like fully proctored shit like you have to take for vendor certs etc:
What is involved in the set-up?
Please make sure your environment is appropriate for testing:
• You must use Google Chrome to schedule and complete the assessments
• Ensure you are in a well-lit, quiet, and private room
• No one else can be in the room with you
• No phones, headphones, or earplugs are allowed
• You will need to disable pop-up blockers and share your screen for the duration of the assessment
There's also a consent form for full control/recording of your desktop/webcam during the exams. This shit seems insane to me and my initial reaction is just to withdraw from the entire process and write this company off as no longer an option, but maybe I'm just too old fashioned and this is the norm at larger places now? Almost everywhere has some level of like basic reading comprehension/cognitive assessment thing to take before actual interviews begin, but this one is beyond anything I've seen so far.
Do you guys put up with this shit in current year job markets or is this place just letting their HR go wild for no reason?
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