SQL Experts Are Here
My in-box is full with responses to my little rant about the SQL MVP, and are there really any SQL Experts. Many people have responded with similar feelings. There were a couple replies that don’t necessarily agree. Here’s some food for thought.
Ben,
You pose an interesting question. I would say that there IS a shortage. I would also say that with all the RIF’ing that there is a shortage of experts in general.
I work with a company that has provided software to major retailers for many, many years. We’ve seen IT departments go from knowing little to being experts to being decimated to the point of just ‘duct-taping’ systems to keep things running. These people know their stuff, but are spread so thin that it’s all they can do to get through the day much less improve things.
What has happened in the last few years is stunning. As companies have outsourced their IT departments, there is little we can do. Penny wise, pound foolish. Daily I witness companies band-aiding their systems just to keep things going. The companies that are now handling IT duties at companies that have outsourced are barely competent(to be kind) compared to their predecessors.
So, short answer, YES! There is a definite shortage of SQL Server experts.
Hope this didn’t come off as a rant…not my intention.
SR
Hi there,
I work at a (at least in Sweden) rare company constallation of only SQL Server "experts" in a consultancy firm that concentrates on bringing solutions to customers with SQL Server problems. One of our guys are that kind of a MVP person that burns like a candle in the dark to spread knowledge and help people get better, faster and more reliable SQL Server data to the right peeps. Håkan Winther, as his name is, strive to be out there on the forums answering questions, when me and others of my kind thinks "that would be nice to know, but to be able to answer, I must first refresh my knowledge a bit" and waits for his answer to come. 🙂
It is kind of hard these days to follow the diverse product categories within SQL Server; CLR, Filestream, AS, RS, SSIS, azure etc. I’m sticking to T-SQL atm and even there I find new findings if not weekly, then at least monthly.
There are a lot of us out there that has been around since early SQL Server versions, but a few that keep surfing that bleeding edge of newly released or "next version" beta versions deepest secrets. But there has to be more than those that are considered experts. I guess that when you "breathe" SQL Server all your working time, and still manage to spread the word, solving problems and helping folks, then you can consider yourself an expert.
Jonas
Ben
There is no shortage of SQL Experts. There is a a shortage of SQL Experts that will work for substandard wages and conditions and produce the results that clients are expecting. The expectations have gotten out of hand. Too often companies have a check list and want to get "experts" at journeyman rates for piecemeal commitments. When an expert confronts them with the real cost for the results they are seeking the expert is dismissed. As 30 year veteran of the industry with deep and broad experience going back to Sybase roots of SQL Server working with all of the associated technologies I know. Too often clients are sold a bill of goods from vendors that what they would like to accomplish is cheap and easy (this is rarely the case). Too often the problems they want to address have nothing to do with SQL Server but that is where the problems become apparent. There is rarely a silver bullet.
We have picked most of the low hanging fruit and the problems are generally more complex and do not have a simple technology cure. The days of having a SQL wizard wave a few lines of SQL script to solve a problem are over. Solutions take far longer and reach deeper into the organization so that "experts" are generally the bearers of bad news and dismissed.
We as "experts" also bear significant blame. We try to please clients/employers too often and don’t take a big picture view. We in the industry must manage expectations better and make sure that we look at the total solution. Too often we give the client/employer what they ask for and not what they need.
Regards,
Dan
If you want to get into the conversation, send your comments to btaylor@sswug.org.
Cheers,
Ben