by
Jim Staats
| Nov 30, 2012
Takeaway of the week is just because the holiday shopping season is in full swing, doesn't mean shopping for talented IT professionals has eased up. OK, that may have been an all-too-pat post-Black Friday/Cyber Monday tie-in, but the fact is top companies remain on the hunt to fill key technical roles in all sectors of the IT market. Learn more about the positive spin for IT, the expectations for a CIO and job candidate no-no's for HR.
Gartner: IT Means Business
Job seekers out in the IT market, you have a valuable ally backed by positive facts and figures.
The long-held view of IT departments - and those staffers within - as company-funded black holes is transitioning to a vision of the technical units as quite beneficial to business, according to Gartner.
Or, so say more of today's chief financial officers, to sum up findings gathered and presented by the research firm at its own symposium, reported on in a recent CIO.com article.
At the firm's Symposium/Txpo on the Gold Coast, Gartner executive Tina Nunno said that based on a recent survey of U.S.-based CFOs, more of the top number-crunchers were coming around to see the value of business analytics and in investing in technology to help their businesses.
Nunno, in discussing findings of her firm's recent survey, CFOs' Demand For IT, said CFOs put information and financial analysis as the top priority.
"This would help them run the business to make more dynamic decisions about sales and effectiveness in the organization," said Nunno.
At the same time, Nunno said, there was less of a focus on cost management, also a good sign for the overall stock of IT departments.
However, Nunno stressed that for this stock to continue to rise, it falls upon IT executives and CIOs to continue to stress to CFOs how their departments help overall productivity and growth.
As she noted, the survey also found that only five percent of respondents saw IT as a competitive advantage resource.
CIO Lying in Wait? Find Out
If a CIO position is part of your IT career path, check if you have or will have what it takes as discussed by those who've held the position.
That's the essence of a recent commentary piece in InformationWeek based on chats with a handful of CIOs.
Beyond a wealth of both technical and business skills and experience, the executives suggest a handful of qualities as helpful to assume their position:
- Multidimensional leaders: The more of a variety of leadership roles in both business and IT organizations, the better.
- Public-facing product champion: As Kent Kushar, CIO of E. & J. Gallo Winery notes, a customer orientation is critical for CIOs. He is expected to discuss vintages at wine-tasting events as comfortably as he is presenting analytics at board meetings.
- Knowing the Players: Get to know those senior executives accountable for core business units and buddy up with board members to better understand what results are expected and how performance is measured.
Hiring Manager Turn-Offs
Potential job candidates can be inundated with the positive things that hiring managers are on the lookout for, with small shift given to the things to avoid.
An item this week in glassdoor.com helps balance that out with a few suggested qualities - including the following - best to avoid if one has any hopes on attaining that dream job:
Lack of energy: In interview situations, energy level is on display the moment you one enters the room, so commit to an enthusiastic demeanor.
Inability to use free time: A lack of outside interests doesn't help hiring managers get to know the full person being considered; conversely, a list of hobbies shows potential employers someone interested in expanding current interests.
Uneven online presence: These days, someone without a valid online presence in social media sites, especially when it comes to technical roles, is viewed as a person not engaged within the industry of interest and not paying attention to the details needed to succeed in a tough job market. More than a third of hiring managers consult social media sites for candidate credentials.