How to Find a Position in Information Technology

A few weeks ago someone asked me about how they should go about conducting a job search to find a position in Information Technology. This is something that I have been doing since I became a professional software developer in 1986. The game has changed quite a bit. The one thing I absolutely would not do is limit my job search to your local newspaper. This will not get you anywhere. Job searches and those you need to connect with in order to secure an interview is done totally online these days. If you are considering a career in Information Technology and you are unable to conduct a digital search you are in for quite the challenge. After writing this response i realized that this information maybe useful to others. With that in mind, here it is:

Here are a few of the ways I conduct a job search. There are a couple of differences since your situation is somewhat different being that you have very little experience. I decided to think about what I did to seek employment when I was younger and merge that will how I do it today with regards to technology and social networking. Here is what I came up with:

· You said that you are familiar with Monster and Dice. There are other online job search tools such as CareerBuilder, HotJobs. I would do a search for as many of those as I could and post profile and job search agents on those sites that can match a position with your experience.

· Also these days many companies are pulling back from using Monster and Dice and they are posting jobs on their own internal job sites. I would decide what position you are seeking such as ‘Junior Programmer’ our ‘Junior Network Analyst’ and conduct a search of the companies in your area. Once you have a list of organizations then you can look for their websites and go to their career link or jobs link and see what is available.

· I would also look up the recruiting firms in your areas. These are companies such as TekSystems, and Adecco and talk to a recruiter and explain what you are kind of position you seek. Perhaps they know of companies that do internships or they can find you an entry-level position. Establish a relationship.

· Have you utilized the career placement office in your university?

· Find the user groups in your area that specialize in the topic you are interested in. This is a great way to network. For example, I was a member of the The Dallas.net User Group. This can provide you with an inside track to positions and you can build a relationship that you can use.

· Microsoft has a great job site. Explore it at http://www.microsoft.com/careers

· Join networking groups in your area.

· Setup a profile on LinkedIn.com. This is a great way to find out about job opportunities. You can do the same on Facebook. Here is a link to great ways to use linkedin written by Guy Kawasaki who is considered somewhat of a guru on Internet Marketing. Read more here

· You can also join an organization such as The Association of Computing Machinery. I get a listing of jobs available email from this once a month.

I hope this helps. Let me know if I can be of further assistance!

Warmest Regards,
Kai Ajala Dupé

DreamSpark

I hope everyone is enjoying the holidays and spending time with friends and family. This is also a great time to review the past year and start making plans for the success you wish to enjoy in the coming year. Ok. Now that we have the pleasantries out of the way let us get back to work. Microsoft has a website called DreamSpark

This is a wonderful resource for students. Microsoft allows you to download full blown copies of the tools on the site as long as you are a student. The year 2009 thanks to President-Elect is the year of NO MORE EXCUSES. If you are student enrolled in a technical field you no longer have the excuse of not having access to the software you need to compete in the course. Visit the site here and get what you need to excel.

Warmest Regards,
Kai Ajala Dupé

IT faces 'dire shortage' of core skills

According to Kelly, this year's results show little change. "Last year, we highlighted that IT was the forgotten corporate asset but, this year, the survey really shows that the shortage of people with the rights skills for work on key areas like IT infrastructure is even more pressing," he said. "Across Europe and even in the US, we are facing a dire shortage.

You can read more of this article here

I recently gave a talk at The 26th African American Men and Boys Conference. During my speech I quoted statistics from one of Jawanza Kunjufu works State of Emergency: We Must Save Black Males. One of the statistics was that 67% of all African American males are expected to experience the penal system by the year 2010. Another alarming statistic is that 84% of all crack cocaine convictions are African American males. We all aware of the high dropout rate.

All of this talent and wasted potential of young African American males. We need to work very hard to encourage and support any African American male who has an interest in Information Technology. These are wonderful careers that can give these young people confidence and allow them to provided for their families. Not to mention these jobs are available in huge numbers right now as the country works to rebound from the recent economic crisis.

We need to take advantage of any and all opportunities to introduce these young brothers to a career in Information Technology. As an IT Professional who has been developing software for 25 years I am willing and able to serve anyone who has interest in supporting such an initiative.

Warmest Regards,
Kai Ajala Dupé

Blackbird: A browser for African Americans

There is new browser geared for African Americans. I love it and I would love to know what you think. Read more...

Please post your thoughts.

This past week I connected with Dr. Chance Lewis of Texas A&M University. He was a guest on my radio show (http://www.diopanddupeshow.com) and he has written a book entitled The Dilemma’s of Being an African American Male in The New Millennium. This is an excellent book. I read it from cover-to-cover and have suggested that many of my peers introduce this book to their students as well as some of the single moms who are rearing young men. When I purchased this book from Amazon I noticed that it was only available in one format, paperback. I thought to myself. Where is the e-reader version? Where is the audiobook? Where is the Kindle version? I have been reading books by great African American scholars for over 15 years. Rarely do I find any of them taking advantage of having their books produced in multimedia formats. Such giants as Jawanza Kunjufu and Nai’m Akbar. Print is dead. E-readers such as the Kindle are becoming more and more popular. Review this article for more information regarding this point. These are 2 scholars whose work should be available in as many formats as possible. Why the dearth of African American scholars in the electronic media? I am not sure. But I am happy to report that Dr. Lewis and I are collaborating to produce his book in audio format.

"It’s a tool for enhancing instruction in the classroom"

That is my favorite line from the article below regarding third grade students using iPods to boost their reading fluency. If you are in education or teaching children this is an article you do not want to miss. So, why are so many urban schools not using technology? Why is technology blocked or banned from the schools? Here is more evidence that these tools not only work but are being used in school districts all across the country and if our young people are not using these tools to learn or not proficient in using the technology in general they WILL be behind. There is no question about that!