Hey Hey, You You, Get Outta IT!( with apologies to the Rolling Stones)

Although improving, the Information Technology job market has been abysmal for the last few years. Many of my friends and (former) colleagues have been out of work for months if not literally years. This because the Internet Boom created lots of jobs in IT and people rushed into IT to fill them. In the subsequent Bust, the jobs disappeared, but not the people! Many IT jobs have come back to pre-boom levels, but the IT job market has been bloated by people who didn’t really belong in IT. This is slowly changing as these people find more appropriate and often rewarding work in other fields.

When we were in the midst of the Internet Boom, roughly 1995-early 2000, the market priced many dot com companies absurdly highly. At one point, Priceline, which was spending several dollars for every dollar in revenue, had a higher valuation than the three largest airlines combined! Work in IT abounded. Acquiring venture capital was relatively easy – an interesting idea, backed by nothing: no business plan, no founders with a track record of success, etc, could get funded. Remember the term “New Economy?” Things were going up forever! This was the information age baby – prior rules of business just didn’t apply!

The heavily dotcom weighted NASDAQ stock index peaked March 10, 2000, more than double its of level of a year before. By late 2001, it was serious we were in deep doggy doo doo. The “New Economy” was dead.

I spent most of the boom years consulting. I had a blast – there was plenty of work for smart hard working people, and work for lazy less than brilliant types as well. I probably should have joined a startup and made oodles of money and retired, but I’m happy with my prior choices – I really did have a blast! And then all of our “Greenspan Irrational Exuberance” crashed to the ground. In 2000 alone, dot com stocks fell approximately 90%. In fact, the burst of the Internet bubble is widely credited as spurring US Economy’s major downturn in 2000 and 2001. The international economy was not good either.

I started doing the startup thing after the bust. Consulting was steady but slow unless I wanted to fly to the Pacific Rim where my friends would have kept me very busy. But with a new lifestyle with wife and kids it wasn’t a great choice. Startups weren’t a great choice either! My first, Cerint Technology Group, which did offshore outsourcing with an interesting twist, was a “textbook failure.” Our Venture Capital guys even went bankrupt and only gave us some of the promised seed money. When things got really tough, the principals collectively and immorally screwed me. Hey guys, you bastards could have given me the promised now-worthless stocks options! My second startup, The Security Training Institute, www.i-sti.com, did somewhat better because of our gifted leader, “The Poodle,” Pierre Noel. There was simply too much competition – too many people in IT! It didn’t matter much if you were great; someone “good” or “OK” who needed to make their mortgage payment was cheaper.

A lot of people entered IT because that’s where the jobs were. I’m a prime example. Despite a longtime fascination with computers, I was working on my PhD in Mathematics and intended on working in that field. I found an “interesting job” working for Apollo Computer and thought I’d get some practical industry experience before returning to finish my doctorate.

Now I probably belong in IT, BUT some of the people who entered IT during the boom probably do not belong here! Slowly over the last few years most of these people have found or are slowly finding more rewarding and/or appropriate work in other industries. Before you jump down my throat saying I’m an elitist bastard, let me give a few examples (names changed to protect the innocent, and to amuse myself):

Pluto worked his way up to worldwide director in charge of something important for a large software concern. He was smart, talented, and did a great job. He wasn’t technical, and had no great love of technology, but he was a good business dude who did real well. He now owns a small design and advertising firm and is as happy as ever.

Raphael was a “middle manager” for large computer vendor. He had been there a long time and was successful and happy. After being laid off and unemployed for a while, he’s a middle manager once again, this time outside of IT. He is just as happy there – IT has no particular draw or fascination to him.

Agamemnon was a decent technical guy. He was smart, had been in IT since college, and expected to be there until retirement. He was in IT because that’s where the jobs were. After being laid off and unemployed for a while, he is now a combination house husband, apparently quite gifted schoolteacher, and professional gambler, and is happier than ever!

All three of these people have something in common. They were in IT because that’s where the jobs were. They are now out of IT because the jobs aren’t there anymore.

They have no particular love for IT. Although they were all successful in IT, and enjoyed their work, they are now successful out of IT.

We are slowly recovering from the Internet Boom and subsequent Bust. And part of this recovery involves the slow and painful reduction in the IT workforce. Many of those people who joined during the boom years are slowly moving out. It’s been long, slow, and painful – but recoveries often are.

The IT job market is slowly recovering from a massive party, and an even bigger hangover!