Members Sheik_Yerbouti Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 I've got a good bit of experience working on print servers (Sun Solaris, Imation, Creo, etc.), and I have over 15 years of professional technician experience, so I'm not a total n00b, but having just been laid off for the second time in four years (thanks ever so much, {censored} economy!), I need to get out of the tech business and into a (somewhat) more stable field that's actually got a real future to it. What are the most in-demand and trending upward aspects of the IT field and which certifications should I study for, both for the short term (something to get me in the door) and the long term (where the money and the future lies) that stand the best chance of being a strong jump-start to get me going? Thanks in advance, to anyone who can help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Neilrocks25 Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 To be honest, its a {censored} business at the moment. I know I am trying to get back into it. If you want networking, and as most printers are networked now you can always try for a Cisco CCNA I need to get re-certified in this myself. You can also look at an online degree course or speak to a few universities that run courses and see what they advise. Also knowledge helps a lot, for my job I know this lot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 3volved Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 Linux/Unix certs, MCSE's and CCNA/CCNP's help a lot. I found though they're somewhat futile because they expire far too quickly for my taste, which is why I start classes for my masters next month. But those certs I listed are certainly a good place to start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Flyingskull Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 ITIL has helped me as many of our larger customers and pontential customers ask for it. It helped me to move away from the hands on techical side to the business/planning/consulting side. And I'm one of those weird people who like process improvement Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mesa4x12er2 Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 It depends on what you want to do, what stress/time level you want to commit, and how much you want to get paid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Pepi Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 I'm glad my IT job involves more infrastructure than software. OS support is ending our careers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MattACaster Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 Maybe I'm in the minority, but none of the places I've interviewed for has cared about me not having certs, just experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cibyl Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 Where I work, these are the most valuable skills/certs to have for an IT weenie: Red Hat Linux Enterprise ServerCisco Networks - CCNA and/or CCNPAnything Storage - SAN, NAS, etcVMWareCitrix, VDIWindows Server Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Reverse Entropy Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 I think the quickest jumpstart for you will be CCNA, then the related Security segment. In the meantime, you can download free versions of Citrix XenServer to get some fluency, same with VMWare's ESX, that will give you the basics in virtualization (all server pools are running VMs these days). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Harvest Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 Definitely get in on any cloud related stuff if you can... that's the future mang. VMware, Amazon s3 (not sure if they have a cert), EMC, Rackspace CloudU, etc. That's assuming you want to stay on the technical side and not get into something else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Gary Cohn Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 Hey Neil, I've been getting into trading (research phase at this point) and I always see these computer set-ups that have 2-4 big screens that are all showing a trend and market software. Do you have experience with these programs? What is the best bang for the buck? I'm always floored when my brother sends me pictures of the trading floor he's on with those screens. I can't find much info on them. To be honest, its a {censored} business at the moment. I know I am trying to get back into it. If you want networking, and as most printers are networked now you can always try for a Cisco CCNA I need to get re-certified in this myself. You can also look at an online degree course or speak to a few universities that run courses and see what they advise. Also knowledge helps a lot, for my job I know this lot Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Rear Naked Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 get a bloomberg terminal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Neilrocks25 Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 Hey Neil,I've been getting into trading (research phase at this point) and I always see these computer set-ups that have 2-4 big screens that are all showing a trend and market software. Do you have experience with these programs? What is the best bang for the buck?I'm always floored when my brother sends me pictures of the trading floor he's on with those screens. I can't find much info on them. It's a mixture of programs, and systems. I do a little trading at home and use oanda's software its free and you can try a practice account too (I do Forex). But the banks use a lot of different stuff. It's not fun setting up am 8 screen trading desk with a bloomberg system.My speciality is VoIP stuff though. I have a lot of trade floor experience, if you name a trading bank I probably have done work for them. My last role was at UBS, I like working for Morgan Stanley the most though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Neilrocks25 Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 get a bloomberg terminal I won't cost much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Bob Savage Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 Definitely get in on any cloud related stuff if you can... that's the future mang. VMware, Amazon s3 (not sure if they have a cert), EMC, Rackspace CloudU, etc.That's assuming you want to stay on the technical side and not get into something else. Agree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sheik_Yerbouti Posted October 10, 2012 Author Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 Thanks for the responses, guys, you've given me a good basis of stuff to check into and help get me up to speed. I was kinda thinking CCNA as a start, too, and I'll definitely look into the Cloud certifications as well. 'Preesh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Terminus Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 All of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jenksdrummer Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 I've got a good bit of experience working on print servers (Sun Solaris, Imation, Creo, etc.), and I have over 15 years of professional technician experience, so I'm not a total n00b, but having just been laid off for the second time in four years (thanks ever so much, {censored} economy!), I need to get out of the tech business and into a (somewhat) more stable field that's actually got a real future to it.What are the most in-demand and trending upward aspects of the IT field and which certifications should I study for, both for the short term (something to get me in the door) and the long term (where the money and the future lies) that stand the best chance of being a strong jump-start to get me going?Thanks in advance, to anyone who can help! Cisco, if you have network experience. Every opp that comes up "requires" Cisco experience, which, sadly, I don't have any. I've got 15 years as well...no certs, {censored} I dropped out of high school and got my GED, and no college or other training. The only time certs help is when you're attempting to get employment, otherwise they mean little to nothing, and even then, they mean little to nothing when it comes to getting employment. Either the person on the other side of the desk thinks you're capable, or they don't. The hard part is getting to where you're at the table... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members NeloAngelo Posted October 10, 2012 Members Share Posted October 10, 2012 short term:network+, mcp, cisco. long term, depends on what you want to do. mcse for network engineering, mcsa for administration, cisco cisco cisco, cisco. get all the cisco certs you can. cloud is the way of the future, so get on it. I.T. is pretty booming in my area. i get at least 3 calls a day from headhunters who saw my resume on monster, but it's mostly one day-6 month contracts, and temp to hire. i only have a+, mcp, and n+, with classroom experience in mcsa, security+, and cwna. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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