Oracle DBA Contracting/Consulting/Career Discussion
- From: Rui Cat <rui_catcuddler@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: "oracle-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx " <oracle-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 18 May 2012 08:29:03 -0700 (PDT)
Dba DBA has made some good points. The bigger "shops" do things to their own
advantage and do push their people to perform and more about the bottom line -
I would add CGI to that list too. There are others on the list who can talk
more about Pythian though I can say that they prefer fulltimers rather than
contractors though maybe that has changed since I met with them a couple of
years ago. Mind you the place sounds good but busy.
I agree about Tek-Systems... seems like a decent sort of place but like any
agency like them it all depends on the person who you deal with. Mind you I
have dealt with a couple of them from Tek and they were, for the most part,
fair. Randstad might be another one to think of too.
A thing about contracting - you need to know the types of contracts available
and what can and cannot be done with them. For me, I would stay away from the
temporary term contracts as you actually make less with those (a Tek-Systems
person explained that to me some time ago). And you do get more if you are
incorporated - actually most agencies will not look at you if you are not
incorporated.
Being independent you would also foot your own training - companies don't want
to pay for a temp employee to get trained ... you should already know it..
that's why they would contract you in the first place.
Rui
On Wed, May 16, 2012 at 9:04 AM, Taylor, Chris David <
ChrisDavid.Taylor@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Guys/Gals (specifically in the U.S.),
>
> I've been with my current company for almost 6 years and I have identified
> a trend in my own career that at about 5 years I'm ready to move on to
> something new. So, I need some advice/thoughts/etc from people in
> consulting and/or contracting positions - specifically as Oracle DBAs.
>
> I haven't pursued anything yet and it seems to me that the paths before me
> are similar, yet lead to very different conclusions.
>
> I *think* what I really desire is a company that has an Oracle practice
> group of accomplished technologists that collaborate and get assigned
> consulting projects as a team to go to client sites, but allow their
> employees a 'break' in between projects for training, time off, conferences
> and
the like. What companies would fit that type of idea? Accenture? IBM?
> Oracle Consulting?
>
> These are things I enjoy and give me a sense of job satisfaction:
> - the feeling of 'moving forward' instead of standing still
> - collaborating with other SKILLED Oracle technologists (developers and
> DBAs)
> - working with people who DO seek to be the best, and provide excellent
> quality solutions/ideas
> - solving problems
> - performance tuning (SQL queries, database architecture, server setups
> and configuration)
> - working with new technology
> - meeting new people
> - traveling
> - working with other people who achieve at a high level and are enjoyable
> to work with
> - having time (a week, maybe 2, maybe a month) between projects to relax,
> take time off, recharge before jumping right into the next one
>
>
> Things
I don't enjoy:
> - routine maintenance
> - working in the same building day after day for years on end
> - dealing with the ramifications of internal/departmental power struggles
> - No longer solving real problems
> - dealing with people who do NOT seek to be the best, or provide excellent
> quality solutions
> - 'falling behind' - having perceived gaps in my abilities as an Oracle
> technologist such as Exadata, RAC, ASM
>
> These are the thoughts I'm working through:
> - Do I pursue a position with an Oracle practice group within a larger
> corporation? Think IBM or Oracle Consulting or BIAS or any number of other
> consulting companies that (I think) have specific practice groups that
> focus on delivering solutions from the ground up)
>
> - Would I rather pursue a smaller specialized consulting/services group
> such as Pythian or other similar
services provider? (Being intentionally
> simplistic here and I'm aware I'm minimizing the services of Pythian here a
> bit, but it's an example I needed)
>
> - Would I rather pursue a contracting job through a group like TEK Systems
> (or similar) and work mostly solo as contracts expire?
>
>
> Chris Taylor
>
> "Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of intelligent
> effort."
> -- John Ruskin (English Writer 1819-1900)
>
> Any views and/or opinions expressed herein are my own and do not
> necessarily reflect the views of Ingram Industries, its affiliates, its
> subsidiaries or its employees.
>
> --
> //www.freelists.org/webpage/oracle-l
>
>
>
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