I've wondered about this path as well. I'm a jack of all trades, and the guy before me was too (he's retired). When I leave, could they replace me with another jack? Is it just me or is that becoming really rare these days? I guess in a way we've been outsourced. Instead of getting a "computer guy", everyone just buys IT services from somewhere else. I've noticed over the years that the jack is a good guy to not only keep existing things working, but also create new solutions that WORK. By that I mean if left to their own devices, users don't know what exactly they want, and usually come up with "solutions" that turn into an over complicated pile of shit without a technical person to steer them strait.
Well I'm stockpiling my assets for my "plan b" if I get canned. I suppose my employer might be a little surprised that the next IT person may not be able to do web development, video editing, database administration and so forth, but I guess there are plenty of companies getting by without a guru these days and I'm over estimating our value.
(Score: 1) by tempest on Monday March 17 2014, @01:43PM
I've wondered about this path as well. I'm a jack of all trades, and the guy before me was too (he's retired). When I leave, could they replace me with another jack? Is it just me or is that becoming really rare these days? I guess in a way we've been outsourced. Instead of getting a "computer guy", everyone just buys IT services from somewhere else. I've noticed over the years that the jack is a good guy to not only keep existing things working, but also create new solutions that WORK. By that I mean if left to their own devices, users don't know what exactly they want, and usually come up with "solutions" that turn into an over complicated pile of shit without a technical person to steer them strait.
Well I'm stockpiling my assets for my "plan b" if I get canned. I suppose my employer might be a little surprised that the next IT person may not be able to do web development, video editing, database administration and so forth, but I guess there are plenty of companies getting by without a guru these days and I'm over estimating our value.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by egcagrac0 on Monday March 17 2014, @03:49PM
In my experience, yes, if they can find one.
If they're unable to locate another jack, 3-4 non-jacks can usually fill the void.