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		<title>Wearing Multiple Hats Gets The Job Done!</title>
		<link>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/10/27/wearing-multiple-hats-gets-the-job-done/</link>
		<comments>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/10/27/wearing-multiple-hats-gets-the-job-done/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 27 Oct 2011 14:57:59 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ITCareerCoach</dc:creator>
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		<description><![CDATA[If you react negatively after reading a job description that requires cross functional skills, you may be throwing away a valuable learning opportunity! Though the thought of working on a challenge outside your immediate area of expertise makes you uncomfortable, it will actually increase your value as a resource. Information technology (IT) professionals are frequently [...]]]></description>
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<p><div id="attachment_3332" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 435px"><img src="http://www.it-career-coach.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/wearing-multiple-hats-gets-the-job-done.jpg" alt="wearing multiple hats gets the job done!" title="wearing multiple hats gets the job done!" width="425" height="282" class="size-full wp-image-3332" /><p class="wp-caption-text">wearing multiple hats gets the job done!</p></div><br />
<blockquote>
<p>If you react negatively after reading a job description that requires cross functional skills, <strong>you may be throwing away a valuable learning opportunity</strong>!</p>
<p>Though the thought of working on a challenge outside your <em>immediate area of expertise</em> makes you uncomfortable, it will actually increase your value as a resource.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Information technology (IT) professionals are frequently asked to perform jobs completely different in nature from what they are <i>hired </i> or <i>trained </i>to do.</p>
<p><strong>For example:</strong></p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Business Analysts</strong> on web development projects may be asked to <em>create</em> cascading style sheets (CSS), <em>design</em> user interfaces (UI) or <em>perform</em> user acceptance tests.</li>
<li><strong>Software Developers</strong> may be asked <em>gather</em> requirements from stakeholders or customers, <em>verify / validate</em> requirements, <em>write</em> Use Cases or create UML documents.</li>
<li><strong>Project Managers</strong> may be asked to <em>design</em> databases, <em>architect</em> software programs, <em>document</em> business requirements or <em>create</em> user interfaces (UI) specifications.</li>
<li><strong>Database Analysts or Database Developers</strong> may be tasked with <em>designing</em> front-end applications or data entry forms used in gathering or collecting data.</li>
<li><strong>Technical Writers</strong> may be tasked with <em>gathering</em> or <em>documenting</em> business requirements even when they have little or no formal training.</li>
<li><strong>IT Managers</strong> may help web development teams <em>debug</em> code, <em>test</em> software products, <em>facilitate</em> meetings or <em>gather</em> requirements.</li>
</ul>
<p><i>Don&#8217;t reject assignments because you have never done them before or because they have not been formally written into your job description.</i></p>
<p><strong>A can-do attitude or the willingness to do whatever it takes to get the job done</strong></strong>, is required for success in today&#8217;s competitive workplace.</p>
<h3>Why Do Employers Blur Job Descriptions?</h3>
<blockquote><p>Employers want you to develop cross-functional skills because they are short staffed, they want to save money or they want you to be a valuable asset to their organization.</p></blockquote>
<p>Managers typically do not have the budget that allows them to staff their projects with all the specialized skills the project needs.</p>
<p>So, <strong>a good way to win your manager&#8217;s favor</strong> is to volunteer for tasks beyond your immediate skills or comfort zone, especially in areas where your project is short staffed.</p>
<p>Let&#8217;s take a look at the typical <strong>web development project</strong> which in a perfect world, needs to be staffed with <em>project managers, business analysts, user interface designers, web designers, user experience analysts, data analysts, database developers, database administrators, software developers, web analysts, technical writers, copywriters, network administrators, web writers, software testers</em> and more.</p>
<blockquote>
<p>If every web application project is perfectly staffed, web development costs will be prohibitive for most organizations.</p></blockquote>
<p>Also, staffing each project with all the needed resources may be counter productive because there may not be enough work for each role beyond the life cycle of the current project.</p>
<p>For example, the User Interface (UI) designer&#8217;s skills are required at the beginning of a web development project to help with the visual design / layout of the web site / application.</p>
<p><em>However, once the coding for the project begins, their may not be any use for the User Interface (UI) Designer&#8217;s skills until a new web development project is launched.</em></p>
<p>So, the organization that hires a UI Designer will be forced to fire him / her half-way through the software development life cycle!</p>
<p>As you can see, this approach is <strong>not ideal</strong> for both User Interface (UI) Designers and Project / Software Development Managers.</p>
<blockquote><p><strong>Employers solve this type of staffing problem by hiring professionals with cross functional skills!</strong></p></blockquote>
<p>That is why you may see job descriptions for <a href="http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/10/20/what-software-do-i-learn-to-become-a-business-analyst/" title="What Software Do I Learn to Become A Business Analyst?" target="_blank"><strong>technical business analysts</strong></a> or job postings that require specialized technical skills (CSS, HTML, User Interface (UI) Design, etc.) even though they are listed for business analyst positions.</p>
<p><strong>The willingness to wear multiple hats is required for success in today&#8217;s information technology (IT) industry.</strong></p>
<blockquote>
<p>Employers want you to be confident and willing to tackle any challenge thrown your way, even when the problem domain does not lie within your immediate area of expertise.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>For example, a Microsoft .NET Software Developer may be asked to write some PHP code or a PHP Developer may be asked to write some Visual Basic/ CSharp (C#) code even when these programming languages are not part of the programmer&#8217;s skills.</p>
<h3>How To Gain Cross-Functional Skills</h3>
<p>Developing cross functional skills, starts by acquiring a lot of new information on a new domain.</p>
<p><i>Here is some information that can help you in the quest for cross functional skills:</i></p>
<ul>
<li><b>Start with a Road-map:</b><br/>
<p>Start with a comprehensive <em>road-map</em> or a <em>curriculum</em> that shows you all the lessons, concepts or topics you have to learn in a step-by-step manner.</p>
</li>
<li><b>Learn More to Earn More:</b><br/>
<p>Identify all the reading resources that you will need to accomplish your learning goals including <em>blogs, videos, textbooks, newsletters, magazines</em> etc.</p>
</li>
<li><b>Make Daily Progress:</b><br/>
<p><strong>Plan to make consistent, daily progress</strong> instead of a <strong>strenuous, herculean</strong> effort.</p>
<p>When it comes to learning, winning small daily battles is better than a mad, one-time dash that may end in discouraging failure!</p>
</li>
<li><b>Get Some Feedback:</b><br/>
<p>Incorporate third-party review or feedback from peers, coaches, instructors, etc.</p>
</li>
<li><b>Build Your Resume:</b><br/>
<p>Keep in mind that taking on challenges outside your immediate area of expertise, scores points in the eyes of current and future managers.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Keep in mind that wearing multiple hats is an opportunity in disguise</strong>.</p>
<blockquote><p>Acquire a &#8220;<strong>can do</strong>&#8221; mindset and live outside the silos or boundaries set by your job descriptions!</p></blockquote>
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		<title>Oracle Or Microsoft Access, Which Is Better?</title>
		<link>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/17/oracle-or-ms-access-which-is-better/</link>
		<comments>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2011/02/17/oracle-or-ms-access-which-is-better/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 17 Feb 2011 23:14:10 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ITCareerCoach</dc:creator>
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		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.it-career-coach.net/?p=3105</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Are you matching your strengths to your opportunities or are you just being ideological … interested only in following your own ideas even when they won&#8217;t get you any results? Here is a situation that illustrates the challenges of being ideological versus being results oriented. It is a situation that illustrates the challenges of learning [...]]]></description>
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<div id="attachment_3106" class="wp-caption aligncenter" style="width: 428px"><img src="http://www.it-career-coach.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/oracle-or-ms-access-which-career-is-better-for-you.jpg" alt="Oracle Or Microsoft Access, Which Is Better For Me?" title="Oracle Or Microsoft Access, Which Is Better For Me?" width="418" height="287" class="size-full wp-image-3106" /><p class="wp-caption-text">Oracle Or Microsoft Access, Which Is Better For Me?</p></div>
<blockquote><p>Are you matching your strengths to your opportunities or are you just being ideological … interested only in following your own ideas even when they won&#8217;t get you any results?</p>
<p>Here is a situation that illustrates the challenges of being ideological versus being results oriented. It is a situation that illustrates the challenges of learning an enterprise software like Oracle compared to a poor man&#8217;s database like Microsoft Access.</p>
<p><strong>Are you wondering about who this situation involves</strong>? You are safe my friend because today, I will mainly be talking about me <img src='http://www.it-career-coach.net/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':-)' class='wp-smiley' /> </p>
</blockquote>
<p>When I started out in the industry, my first priority was to get my foot into the door.</p>
<p><strong>My goals were</strong>:</p>
<ol>
<li>To transition my career without incurring a lot of additional debt</li>
<li>To learn a marketable skill so that I could get a job quickly</li>
<li>To get myself into a position where I would be in high-demand by delivering excellent results</li>
</ol>
<p>There were a number of career paths that looked promising and I looked into them all. Here a few of them:</p>
<h3>Business Analysis</h3>
<p>The business analyst career path was mostly available to systems analysts or management consultants people or poorly defined. </p>
<p>By poorly defined, i mean that it depended on the whims of hiring managers (it was subjective and depended on the employers needs or definitions) and so, there was no very clear or direct path to becoming a business analyst (this was in the ‘90s).</p>
<h3>Network Administration</h3>
<p>I had worked in network administration in an internship job right after college. My duties entailed helping support a Lotus CC:Mail/ Novell Netware Network</p>
<p>Based on my own first-hand experience, I ruled out computer networking primarily because I realized that I was not passionate about that industry.</p>
<h3>Systems Programming</h3>
<p>While in college, I had tried to learn C/C++ and I also decided that it wasn’t my thing because it took a long time to develop a fully functional software using C/C++</p>
<p>Based on experience, I knew that I wouldn&#8217;t be able to master C/C+ in a few months  or get a job easily.</p>
<p>My finding was that it would take a number of years to become really expert or highly skilled at C/C++.</p>
<p>I was also certain, that even when I became highly skilled, I still won&#8217;t be able to deliver stellar results based on C/C++.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.it-career-coach.net/2007/07/25/learning-c-programming-language-is-bad-for-your-career-c-programmers-cant-find-jobs/" target="_blank" title="C/C++ programming language is bad for your career">In case you&#8217;re interested, read my thoughts on choosing C/C++ as a programming language here&#8230;</a></p>
<h3>Enterprise Database Software</h3>
<p>I investigated getting an entry level job in SAP / Oracle / IBM or some other enterprise software since that is where it seemed that the big bucks where being made. In the 90’s, the major database players included <strong>IBM, Oracle, Microsoft</strong>.</p>
<p>Oracle was very popular in the enterprise database computing circle. However, learning Oracle was no small feat.</p>
<blockquote><p>I mean that installing Oracle on your own local computer for learning purposes was not an easy proposition even for experienced oracle professionals because companies hired senior / experienced Oracle consultants just to install and setup Oracle correctly on their servers.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In addition to that, Oracle was targeted at the enterprise buyer which meant that purchasing a full-featured Oracle license for an individual like me without corporate sponsorship &#8230; was simply beyond my budget!</p>
<p>In addition, even if I raised the money to buy an Oracle License, I would have to spend additional weeks installing Oracle correctly by myself or else hire an Oracle database consultant to install it (Oracle database consultants billed anywhere from <strong>$60/hr. to $120/hr.</strong>)</p>
<p>And assuming that I overcame the hurdle of buying an Oracle license and then installing Oracle, <strong>I would still have to figure out one more thing about Oracle … how to learn Oracle!</strong>
<p>You see, Oracle was one of those complex enterprise software application that had a really high learning curve.</p>
<blockquote><p>The chances that I was going to learn or master Oracle in time enough to get a job was very low because professionals who had been working with Oracle for years where still struggling to understand it &#8230; it was that complex!</p>
</blockquote>
<p><strong>So, tell me, what will you have done if you were in my shoes?</strong></p>
<p>Did I fixate on learning Oracle … even though I knew professionals that worked with Oracle for years were still struggling to get to a comfort level with it?</p>
<p>Absolutely not! One of the Oracle professionals that I was personally acquainted with had started working with or learning Oracle while we were still in college.</p>
<p>By the time I was evaluating learning Oracle, this professional (a lady based in the United Kingdom) was just getting comfortable with Oracle &#8230; and that is after working with it for 8 to 10 years!</p>
<p>So, I decided that the Oracle database and many of the other popular enterprise software applications available at that time had too high a learning curve!</p>
<blockquote><p>Yes, I know that everyone&#8217;s situation is different and yes I understand that &#8220;<strong>what is good for the goose is not always good for the gander</strong>&#8220;.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But my situation was that I was married and I had to pay my bills.</p>
<p>Even though my wife was willing to support me, I wasn&#8217;t okay with asking her to take care of all the bills while I went on a multi-year learning trip.</p>
<p><em>Not only that,I had been out of college for a few years and didn&#8217;t want to risk taking another 8 to 10 years to learn a new career!</em></p>
<p><strong>And I definitely didn&#8217;t want to start a career that would require such an expensive re-training that I would have to go deeply in debt!</strong></p>
<p><i>Put yourself in my shoes and tell me what you would have done if faced with my situation keeping in my objectives which were</i>:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<p><strong>To learn a marketable skill in a short time</strong>: I had to learn a marketable skill so that I could easily get a job and get out of unemployment.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>To be prudent or save money</strong>: I had to pay my bills and account for all sorts of living expenses, while paying for my own re-training.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>To get into a line of work where I could easily become competent</strong>: I needed to learn a skill that I would become an expert at in a reasonable short time.</p>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>What will you have done in my shoes &#8230; because I choose Microsoft Access!</h3>
<blockquote><p>In those days, a lot of professionals looked down on Microsoft Access as a sort of poor man’s relational database even though Microsoft Access had a lot going for it at that point in time.</p>
</blockquote>
<h3>Low Cost of Learning</h3>
<p>Microsoft Access was available as part of the Microsoft Office family of products.</p>
<p>The cost of a Microsoft Office / Access license was as low as $300. And I budgeted an additional $100 for buying Microsoft Access textbooks from the local seller … Barnes &#038; Noble. <i>I would never forget the price that I paid for my very first Microsoft Access Book … just $49.50</i>.</p>
<blockquote><p>So, for less than $500, I was guaranteed that I would learn or master Microsoft Access … which was great news for me as an unemployed newbie IT professional!</p>
</blockquote>
<h3>Low Learning Curve</h3>
<p>It took me between 30 and 60 days to study or master Microsoft Access from textbooks. After which I spent my remaining time, taking Microsoft Access practice tests and building relational databases.</p>
<p>In my first job interview test administered by a local staffing agency in Tulsa, Oklahoma, I scored above 90% and got hired into the systems / data analysis department of a local e-commerce firm with a starting salary of $15/hr.</p>
<h3>Accelerated Time To Market</h3>
<p>By my third month of working with Microsoft Access, I had completed a project that was estimated to last about 6 weeks in 2 weeks.</p>
<blockquote><p>Because I could achieve those sorts of results, the IT Manager called a recruiting firm without my knowledge or permission and advised them to find more challenging work for me &#8230; which they did!</p>
</blockquote>
<p>By my third month, I was billing $76,000/yr. and my billing rate continued to increase with time!</p>
<p>Dear Friend,</p>
<p>What I have learnt is that the only thing that stops us from achieving the results we want is our limiting belief systems or self-imposed mental boundaries.</p>
<p><strong>So, what works and what doesn&#8217;t?</strong></p>
<ol>
<li>
<h3>Don’t hang your career on getting a recognized certificate or diploma</h3>
<p>That is so old school! The only thing that matters is your ability to perform on the job … and no accredited degree or diploma or program can confer that to you.</p>
<p>In other words, you either learn or know how to get the job done or you don&#8217;t.</p>
</li>
<li>
<h3>Don&#8217;t get stuck learning any vendor&#8217;s software</h3>
<p>Because I got my foot in through the door, I have since had the chance to learn or work with Oracle and IBM enterprise databases at the employer’s expense!</p>
<p>Learning Microsoft Access first actually made it easier for me to learn or work with SQL Server, Oracle and IBM databases later on.</p>
<p><strong>Remember that you are the one that makes the job work and not the software, vendor or qualification</strong>.</p>
<p>I have seen professionals who want to become business analysts get stuck on learning an enterprise requirement management software like IBM Rational RequisitePro.</p>
<p>These good folks forget that many employers can&#8217;t afford the licensing costs of the same software that they are hung up on and they also forget that requirements management is first and foremost a set of principles or techniques and <strong>not a software!</strong>.</p>
<blockquote><p>If you learn requirements management techniques you can for example document requirements using Microsoft Office or your employer can purchase any of the myriads of requirements management software in the market.</p>
</blockquote>
<p><strong>So why are you so hung up on learning IBM Rational RequisitePro as if that makes you a business analyst?</strong></p>
</li>
<li>
<h3>Learn a marketable skill</h3>
<p>One of the biggest challenges facing professionals is the right choice of a career. I know that because I get asked that question every day</p>
<p>I’ve seen professionals get stuck with programming skills that are not marketable like mainframe programming or  C/C++.</p>
<p>In one instance, a C/C++ programmer with a computer science college degree after being unemployable for 3 years got the very first job he interviewed for &#8230; after I coached him on C#, ASP.NET and .NET Framework.</p>
<blockquote><p>His mistake that of failing to learn a marketable skill. The good news is that it only cost him a few months to rectify that mistake. And, once he fixed that, his career was back online again!</p>
</blockquote>
</li>
</ol>
<p>Here is my last advise to you on this point, make sure that you are pragmatic and not ideological about your career choices.</p>
<p>If it is  looking like you are getting stuck on the path you are on, carefully evaluate all the other alternatives available to you.</p>
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		<series:name><![CDATA[Career Paths for Database Professionals]]></series:name>
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		<title>Career Spotlight on Microsoft Access Database Developers</title>
		<link>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2009/12/15/career-spotlight-on-microsoft-access-database-developers/</link>
		<comments>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2009/12/15/career-spotlight-on-microsoft-access-database-developers/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2009 19:33:02 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ITCareerCoach</dc:creator>
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		<description><![CDATA[The Microsoft Access Relational Database has been around for a while and it is used in many businesses, Information Technology (IT) Teams and organizations. Microsoft Access is commonly used in building desktop software applications, data analysis programs and corporate databases where the number of records are as few as 2 billion records or the number [...]]]></description>
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<blockquote><p><div id="attachment_2815" class="wp-caption alignleft" style="width: 210px"><a class="highslide" onclick="return vz.expand(this)" href="http://www.it-career-coach.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Microsoft_Access_Developer_Career.jpg"><img src="http://www.it-career-coach.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Microsoft_Access_Developer_Career-200x300.jpg" alt="Microsoft Access Developer Career" title="Microsoft Access Developer Career" width="200" height="300" class="size-medium wp-image-2815" /></a><p class="wp-caption-text">Microsoft Access Developer Career</p></div>
<p>The Microsoft Access Relational Database has been around for a while and it is used in many businesses, Information Technology (IT) Teams and organizations.</p>
<p><strong>Microsoft Access is commonly used in building desktop software applications, data analysis programs and corporate databases where the number of records are as few as 2 billion records or the number of users who access the system at any one time are as few as ten concurrent users.</strong></p>
<p>The ease with which Microsoft access database developers create functional relational databases, add data entry forms, build reports and distribute their database projects to multiple users creates a market for skilled Microsoft Access Relational Database developers.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>However, Microsoft Access database solutions are not well suited for web, distributed, enterprise or large database development projects leading. Because of this, Microsoft Access database developers have to transition their skills to enterprise database development systems like SQL Server and Oracle at some point in their career!</p>
<p>This series of articles reviews the the merits and demerits of Microsoft Access database development and offers a transition plan or career path for updating Microsoft Access Database Development Skills.</p>
<h1>The Case for Microsoft Access Developer Careers</h1>
<ol>
<li>
<p><strong>Easy of Use</strong> &#8211; Microsoft Access is one of the easiest relational database platforms used in business because of it&#8217;s intuitive graphical user interface (GUI).</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Office User</strong> &#8211; Microsoft Access is also popular with business or power users. It is relatively easy to install, configure and use on a desktop, laptop or home computer which makes it a winner for many.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Low Support Costs</strong> &#8211; Unlike enterprise databases like Oracle or IBM DB2, Microsoft Access databases do not need dedicated database administrators.</p>
<p>The Microsoft Access developer (you) in this case is also the Microsoft Access Database Administrator unlike enterprise databases where there tends to be a split between the <i>duties of the database administrator and the database developer</i>.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Data Entry Forms</strong> &#8211; Microsoft Access is a unique database for office environments because it comes with a set of forms for building data entry (entering, editing, deleting, updating) forms.</p>
<p>This feature eliminates the costs and complexity associated with typical software development projects based on Oracle, IBM DB2 and other enterprise databases.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>In-Built Reporting Capability</strong> &#8211; Microsoft Access also incorporates the ability to generate simple or complex, customized reports.</p>
<p>However, the Microsoft Access Reporting feature is not a full fledged reporting tool like Crystal Reports or SQL Server Reporting Services.</p>
<p>The ease or simplicity of designing and building reports in Microsoft Access eliminates some of the complexity or costs associated with building external reports using enterprise reporting tools.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>In-Built Application Development Environment</strong> &#8211; Microsoft Access is a flexible database software that allows you to customize or write full-blown software programs using the popular and easy to learn programming language known as VBA or Visual Basic for Applications.</p>
<p>Many database developers actually use the VBA feature of Microsoft Access to jump start their programming careers by learning VBA and then transitioning to other programming languages like Visual Basic!</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Graphical SQL Query Building</strong> &#8211; Writing SQL is made easy in Microsoft Access because of it&#8217;s Graphical Query Designer which allows you to join tables and add filters or clauses to them.</p>
<p>You can also see or modify the generated SQL query using a a flavor of SQL known as Access SQL or Microsoft Access&#8217;s in-built Query Wizards.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Data Analysis Tool</strong> &#8211; because Microsoft Access allows you to build tables, data entry forms and reports quite easily, it is commonly used as a Data Analysis tool.</p>
<p>Using Microsoft Office Access, you can for example, design a survey, create a table to store the data, build a simple data entry form, build a report and then give multiple users access to your reports or application.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>External Database Access </strong> &#8211; database developers who are unfamiliar with enterprise databases like Oracle or SQL Server access them through a Microsoft Access database</p>
<p>This is partly because the Microsoft Access database developer can connect, query or modify the data in an enterprise database without having to leave the safety and comfort of the familiar Microsoft Access environment!</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><strong>Multi User Access </strong>- Microsoft Office Access supports a <strong>limited number of users</strong> accessing or modifying it&#8217;s data at the same time.</p>
<p>It is sometimes seen as a better choice for data analysis projects where multiple users have to update, edit, delete or work with the same information while retaining each individual&#8217;s ability to rapidly prototype, build or extend it using forms.</p>
</li>
</ol>
<p>As you can see, there are many reasons why the Microsoft Access Database Development tool is common, popular and frequently used in all sorts of database development, reporting, data analysis and software development projects.</p>
<blockquote><p>To get started, there are many situations that Microsoft Access is not suited for.</p>
<p>Microsoft Access database developers are sometimes not comfortable with enforcing proper database design practices or writing complex subqueries, complex joins within Microsoft Access.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>That is why database developers frequently resort to taking strong SQL Query Writing + Database Development Classes (like at the <a href="http://www.it-career-coach.net/shopping-cart/data_analyst_boot_camp.html">Data Analyst Boot Camp</a>) after first falling in love with Microsoft Access.</p>
<p>Microsoft Access still limits database developers despite it&#8217;s powerful, and flexible relational database engine.</p>
<p>Hence the need to upgrade or transition to enterprise relational databases.</p>
<p>In the next article, I will discuss both the limitations of Microsoft Access as database development tool and the reasons for upgrading to an enterprise database like SQL Server.</p>
<blockquote><p><i>If you are interested in becoming a better database developer by mastering relational database and SQL query writing, you can enroll Online at the <a href="http://www.it-career-coach.net/shopping-cart/data_analyst_boot_camp.html">DataAnalystBootCamp.Com</a></i></u></p>
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		<title>What Is The Job Of A Report Writer?</title>
		<link>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2009/08/03/what-is-the-job-of-a-report-writer/</link>
		<comments>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2009/08/03/what-is-the-job-of-a-report-writer/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 03 Aug 2009 19:14:09 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ITCareerCoach</dc:creator>
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		<description><![CDATA[Can one make a career or earn a living out of just writing SQL Reports? Considering that there&#8217;s more to the SQL Report Writer&#8217;s job than just writing reports, the answer is yes! The following question was posted by a report writer who is trying to get a handle on the duties, roles, responsibilities or [...]]]></description>
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<blockquote><p>Can one make a career or earn a living out of just writing SQL Reports?</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Considering that <u>there&#8217;s more to the SQL Report Writer&#8217;s job</u> than<u> just writing reports</u>, the answer is yes!</p>
<p>The following question was posted by a report writer who is trying to get a handle on <strong>the duties, roles, responsibilities or functions</strong> of a SQL Report Writer.</p>
<h2>Can I Make A Career Out Of SQL Report Writing?</h2>
<blockquote><p>Can one make a career out of just writing SQL Reports?</p>
<p>If so, do you think corporations are getting lazy by overpaying SQL Report Writers $65K+ just for writing Reports.</p>
<p>I develop database documents, flow charts, append revisions.. When approved i create the sql, the error checking, import required data for setup&#8230; Move on to programming &#8230; building database connections, run load performance tools (custom built).. modify tables as needed, modify documentation as needed.. bench mark the sites and move on to the next&#8230;</p>
<p>I failed to mention the part where i build custom reports based on the clients needs, exporting to csv/excel/data dumps for other programs/complex dump algorythms</p>
<p>Does the SQL Report Writer have to care about the semantics of database design or the value of the data stored?</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>The Job Of A SQL Report Writer</h2>
<p>The SQL Report Writer&#8217;s role is often misunderstood as just writing reports.</p>
<p>The reality is that a SQL Report Writer&#8217;s job is often more involved!</p>
<p>The Report Writer has to know <strong>the value of the data, where it is coming from, how to get at or extract it, how to clean it and verify that it is accurate and how to present information correctly</strong> using charts, graphs, aggregates, statistical computations, etc.</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p>The Report Writer&#8217;s duties includes optimizing or fine tuning slow running reports. The performance of a report may degrade over time as additional data is loaded into tables or as more tables are joined to get at the required data.</p>
<p>A report may degrade in performance over a period of time or run slowly because the joins are inefficient or because the sql statements need to be optimized or because the data structures (indexes) used in the tables need to be optimized or for other reasons.</p>
<p>Whatever the situation, the Report Writer is responsible for monitoring the performance of reports and taking corrective action to optimize or improve the performance of the reports when necessary.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The Report Writer&#8217;s job role includes reconciling discrepancies between the expectations of data managers and information presented in their reports. A report writer has to spend part of their time validating or proving to decision managers that the data presented on their results are valid or accurate.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The Enterprise Report Writer is responsible for writing the reports needed for different teams, managers, decision makers or departments.</p>
<p>Some of the reports may use computed or aggregated columns (averages, sums or statistical computations) and the report writer has to write subqueries, nested queries and complex sql statements to present the required data.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The Report Writer may have to access, import, extract, transfer or load data from heterogeneous data sources (<i>Oracle, AS/400, SQL SERVER, TEXT FILES, Microsoft Access</i>).</p>
<p>As enterprises grow, they collect data across a network of legacy mainframe applications, geographic boundaries, time zones, and corporate divisions, data warehouses and databases. </p>
</li>
<li>
<p>The Report Writer&#8217;s job description includes presenting timely, up to date or current data. This is especially important for time sensitive reports or nightly reports that need to run successfully before the day shift starts or reports that are compiled at the end of a quarter or business cycle.</p>
<p>Time sensitive reports include monthly statements (bank statements) or reports that need to be printed or mailed by a certain date or reports that need to be available early in the morning for a trading / securities desk or financial / investment team.</p>
</li>
</ol>
<blockquote><p>Yes, there are lot of reasons why a company will hire dedicated SQL Report Writers and Pay them Well <img src='http://www.it-career-coach.net/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif' alt=':-)' class='wp-smiley' />  </p>
</blockquote>
<p> This post answers a question about <strong>&#8220;Making A Career Out Of SQL Report Writing&#8221;</strong>!</p>
<p>If you have any Question about your career, <b>Post IT</b> as a comment on this page and I will be sure to answer it for you!</p>
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		<title>How To Become A SQL Report Writer</title>
		<link>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2009/07/16/how-to-become-a-sql-report-writer/</link>
		<comments>http://www.it-career-coach.net/2009/07/16/how-to-become-a-sql-report-writer/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 16 Jul 2009 21:09:57 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ITCareerCoach</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[AS400 Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Cognos Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Crystal Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[data analysts]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Database Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Hyperion Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[IBM COBOL Report Writer visual FoxPro Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Ms Access Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[PL SQL Oracle Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[report development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[report development training]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[report writer training]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[report writing classes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Report Writing Course]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[report writing courses]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[report writing seminar]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[report writing training]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[reporting developertraining]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SQL Report Writer]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[SQL report writing training]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Sql Server Reporting Services Report Writer]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[The report writer as a key member of the database, sql or data analytics team is responsible for creating, validating, distributing and documenting the reports required by an organization. Report Writers work with various types of relational databases, sql query writing and report writing tools because they need to retrieve, aggregate and present data from [...]]]></description>
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<p>The report writer as a key member of the <i>database, sql or data analytics team</i> is responsible for creating, validating, distributing and documenting the reports required by an organization.</p>
<p>Report Writers work with various types of relational databases, sql query writing and report writing tools because they need to <i>retrieve, aggregate and present</i> data from different databases including Oracle, SQL Server or ODBC Compliant Databases.</p>
<blockquote><p>Since it is not practical or feasible for Report Writers to learn or master all the available database reporting tools, they specialize in a few and then learn any additional reporting tool come along on the job!</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Report Writers can port report writing skills from one Reporting Platform to another because Reporting tools are based on<b> these major components:</b></p>
<ol>
<li>
<p><b>Report Writing Databases</b>:&nbsp; Report Writing Databases act as repositories of the company&#8217;s reporting data. The data needed for report writing projects may be stored in data warehouses, proprietary databases, relational databases or ODBC compliant databases.</p>
<p>Report Writers usually have to create Reports based on data distributed across multiple databases or tables. Because writing all the SQL queries, sub queries, joins, aggregate queries, rollups, etc. can get quite involved, they need to have strong SQL Skills, database skills and data analysis skills.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><b>SQL Queries</b>: Report Writers have to identify the tables that contain the required data based on the reporting requirements handed to them.</p>
<p>After identifying Reporting Requirements, they may have to write complex SQL queries to extract the information, trends, or patterns contained in the data. The final query is often saved for re-use as a stored procedure.</p>
</li>
</ol>
<h3>Report Writer Duties</h3>
<p>Report Writers work closely with end-users, stakeholders or management to gather and document reporting requirements and  to test or validate their reports after.</p>
<p><b>Here are some of the roles and responsibilties of Report Writers:</b></p>
<ol>
<li>
<p><b>SQL Data Retrieval</b>: Report Writers need to write SQL code for extracting, summarizing, aggregating or presenting data from one or more database systems.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><b>Data Validation</b>: Report Writers need to validate the results of their SQL Queries with the end users because of discrepancies that may exist between what the reports say and what the users expect!</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><b>Data Presentation</b>: Report Writers present their results in the form of tables, pie charts, bar charts and other plots or diagrams. The data presentation duties of a Report Writer is facilitated with Reporting Tools like SQL Server Reporting Services, Crystal Reports or Microsoft Access Reports.</p>
</li>
</ol>
<h3>Report Writer Careers</h3>
<p>Report Writers use tools that they are familiar with to retrieve data from different databases including Oracle, SQL Server or ODBC Compliant Databases.</p>
<p>
<blockquote>It is important to note that a Report Writer who is skilled in one tool like SQL Server Reporting Services and strong in the essentials of relational database design, development and sql query writing can connect to most databases (Oracle, Sybase, Microsoft Access, AS 400, JD Edwards), retrieve the data to SQL Server and then write the Reports.</p></blockquote>
<p>Since it is not practical or feasible for Report Writers to learn or master all the database reporting tools out their, all that they need to do, is specialize in a few reporting tools and then learn any new reporting tools for their specific job situation.</p>
<p>A skilled Report Writers can be placed in a variety of positions including:</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p>Sql Server Reporting Services Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Ms Access Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Crystal Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>PL SQL/Oracle Forms/Report Writer </p>
</li>
<li>
<p>SQL Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Hyperion Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Cognos Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>IBM COBOL Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Visual FoxPro Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>Database Report Writer</p>
</li>
<li>
<p>AS400 Report Writer</p>
</li>
</ol>
<h3>Report Writer Training &#8211; How to Become a SQL Report Writer</h3>
<p>Report Writers may choose only one of these two training options, based on their career aspirations or job requirements.</p>
<ol>
<li>
<p><b><a target="_blank" href="https://www.e-junkie.com/ecom/gb.php?c=cart&#038;i=90350&#038;cl=18643&#038;ejc=2" title="SQL Boot Camp - Report Writer Training" target="_blank">SQL Boot Camp</a></b>:&nbsp;The SQL Boot Camp provides you with all the database development and sql query writing skills needed for Report Writing jobs.</p>
</li>
<li>
<p><b><a target="_blank" href="https://www.e-junkie.com/ecom/gb.php?c=cart&#038;i=203663&#038;cl=18643&#038;ejc=2" title="Data Analyst Boot Camp - Report Writer Training" target="_blank">Data Analyst Boot Camp</a></b>:&nbsp;The Data Analyst Boot Camp provides you with all the database development, sql query writing, data analysis and statistical analysis skills needed for Report Writing jobs.</p>
</li>
</ol>
<p>In this article, I discussed the skill requirements, duties, roles, responsibilities and career paths available to Report Writers.</p>
<p>If you have any question about becoming a Report Writer, go ahead and post it as a comment at the end of this post and I will be glad to answer it for you!</p>
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