Aside from duties I share with other folks on my team, I have been the sole overseer of a rather intricate and fairly integral part of our computer operations for over 5 years. None of my peers have been able or interested in acquiring additional expertise in this area, despite my attempts at knowledge transfer. At this point, this system requires little maintenance, and doesn’t take up much of my time, thanks to my well-thought-out planning and design ;). Unfortunately, there have not been many other job opportunities with this skill requirement in my locale, so I have not been able apply any type of leverage for a salary increase unless I’m willing to move (as many of my former co-workers have done since the company is raise/promotion-averse unless you fit the management mold).
Additionally, it appears that my boss’s #1 priority is to make sure that everyone is expendable. With a FT opening available under him, a job requirement in the posting is experience with this niche field that I have carved out, along with strengths in the other areas that most others of my team share. This is despite the fact that we don’t need two people overseeing this specific area - we barely need one.
After three failed interviewees, the last candidate has a strong background in my skill-set, but is weak in the other required areas. Still, he is the best fit so far, as he gives the impression that he is bright and willing enough to learn the other facets of the position. In all likelihood he will be hired.
Looking on the bright side, this may provide an opportunity for me to concentrate on another (new) job skill that is in more general demand in the IT world. Also, I can try to possibly expand this niche, providing more value and manpower requirements, but that won’t be easy. Still, I can’t help but feel like I’m being squeezed out.
Anyone been or is currently in a similar situation? Any advice welcome - thanks!
IMO, you should never be scared of eliminating your own job - if you’re good enough to automate it out of existence, or simplify the business process, or make everything so robust and self-correcting that you are no longer needed, that means you’re good enough to move on to something bigger and better. Anyway, there’s always something else to do.
Likewise (and my case for this is probably a little weaker) you shouldn’t be afraid to surround yourself with brilliant people - because that’s how to create an environment in which your own skills can prosper (be it through support or challenge). The alternative (hiring dull people who are no threat to you, just means you’ll be stuck mopping up their messes all the time.
I agree with Mangetout. I have seen several start-ups fail because the creator of the software was unwilling to give the keys to someone else and move on to other projects. I’ve also seen engineers waste years being the person stuck maintaining legacy projects while the rest of the team moves on to the next great thing, and then find themselves behind the technology curve playing catch up with their skill set.
I’m going to take a little different tack than the posters above …
Yes, OP, you’re in a crack. They are aiming to replace you … eventually. So now’s the time to decide what’s the optimal way to leave and where you’re going. Get that resume up to date and reactivate your networking efforts; you’re going to need them within a year, maybe sooner.
As the others have said, you can get trapped being Mr. Maintenance for now-obsolete tech. As a part-time consulting developer I clean up (or milk) these situations regularly. But as a full-timer, particularly if you’re in an esoteric field in a less-than-major city, you’re rapidly painting yourself into an unemployable corner.
Unless you’re at retirement age you need to work hard NOW to get back out of that corner.
If you are spending very little time on this system, you boss hiring someone who can learn how to maintain it won’t affect your job, since you presumably get paid for doing the other stuff. And having more than one person know critical technology is just good sense. You can quit or get run over by a bus any time.
Now, if you feel that they don’t appreciate the job you do keeping thus system up, maybe you can arrange a small crisis - just enough for the management to realize what happens if it breaks. (Probably due to some new requirements.) I’ve seen that people involved in dealing with a crisis do better than those whose stuff never breaks.
But don’t let on I said this.
Thanks for the responses so far…on the plus side, my company rarely fires anyone; it’s still a slap in the face that they would be willing to hire a new body rather than pay me a little more to make me want to stay/go the extra mile again.
Be careful in ascribing motivations: if I was a completely benevolent manager who only wanted the best for my employees, I still might feel uncomfortable that some critical thing was only understood by one member of my team. I mean, what if Mixolydian wins the lottery and takes off for Key West? I’d be happy for them, but it would suck for everyone else.
I understand the motivation…it’s just that management really didn’t put forth a strong effort in trying to get someone already on the team to become familiar with the app; I worked with a “new guy” in the department a year ago more than a few times to show him the ropes. He was never sent for training either. Meanwhile, I was strongly persuaded (willingly, but nonetheless) - including training - to learn the different, more-marketable skill mentioned, to balance the load rather than backup a single individual since quite a few have that knowledge.
Now that there’s an opening available, instead of hiring based upon workload need, they’re just targeting a vulnerability. Maybe it’s just coincidence that this is the best candidate, but he doesn’t bring much else to the table aside from a strong background in my niche.
Sorry Voyager, maybe the way Count phrased the sentence? Brain fart. As far as an arranged crisis, it’s a bit risky. Before the recent upgrade, it would happen without my help, but the system runs very smoothly these days. Something to consider, though.
I have a similar situation. The system I wrote is inherently stable - but people change requirements on an hourly basis. This was expected and the system is designed to handle this. The problem with this is that my management, though very smart, know nothing about what it takes to take complex software working. That it is not causing a crisis must mean that it is simple.
Now, I’m retiring in 2 years and one month from today and likely sooner. While I do have backup, who can handle the fastest changing part of the system, he is being pulled into the ever growing group dealing with a permanent crisis.
At the beginning of the performance review process I told my VP that my only regret about the project is that I didn’t design it to crash every so often. We’ll see if he got the message. If he didn’t, I have a certain degree of freedom at this stage of my life. “Oh, if I good off you won’t promote me in 3 years? Tsk, tsk.”
So I expect a crisis is coming, one I’m going to warn them about.
They are going to have a hard time finding someone to replace me, since the average really smart CS guy in Silicon Valley is not going to be interested in working in a non-CS organization. If they start now they’d be hard pressed to find someone I can train in time. If I give two weeks or even a month’s notice - well, it will be interesting.
And, of course, who has bandwidth for documentation? I do have an extensive file of notes on what I did, but decoding it will make Finnegan’s Wake look like Fun with Dick & Jane.
So don’t break anything - but don’t put off vacation because something might happen. That’s what backup is for.
Do you mean as in consulting? Not counting on it. My company is very big, and is more than willing to enforce rules that will shoot themselves in the foot.
However I’ve done an hourly rate calculation if they choose to ask. It is big.
However, I’m already sitting on a gold mine in my IRA (I’ve been good about saving my pennies) so I really don’t care, and would never suggest it.