[Sigia-l] Re: is it just me, or is it really hard to find IAs right now? (David Walczyk)

[David Walczyk]

It seems to me that, contemporarily, IA is seen as a
job category rather than a field with sub-disciplines.
The current supply/demand problem is also not
surprising. Both are common as a job expands into a
field (of specialists?).

In my perusal of job postings (primarily limited to
postings on this list) I have noticed requirements as
different as “skilled coder in x, y, and z” and
“strong business strategy and branding skills.” Often,
these “required skill sets” are associated with the
same position. Yet many people might argue that IA is
only indirectly concerned with either of these skill
sets. Instead, I am frequently told (or read) IA’s
should be able to work and communicate with people
holding these jobs – not be them. Regardless, clearly
they are polar opposites and expecting someone to be
“super” at such a range is illogical. Some may not
agree with this example (it is certainly extreme) but
my conclusion is that (perhaps) job descriptions
should be more focused rather than catch-all. The
position requirements “net” should be cast deep rather
than wide.

In regard to the employee or contractor/freelancer
debate I would like to make one observation. To me,
the current trend in IA is very similar to that
experienced by (Windows) NT professionals in the
mid-1990s. At that time, NT expertise was at a
premium, training/education was not widespread, and
hourly rates were significantly higher then full-time
salaries. Then, at the close of the 1990s (early
2000s), a funny thing happened – market economics took
over and supply began to meet demand. What was the
effect? Hourly rates  went down (drastically) and
salaried jobs became harder to come by. What lesson
might be learned by IA? Well, take away from this
story what you will, but to me, it is one example of a
pretty consistent history: market economics have a
tendency of winning out. Competition is good we are
told, even if it (eventually) effects our lifestyle
requirements negatively.

I apologize for such a lengthy post, but the topic (in
general) is increasingly important.

David Walczyk

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