Sitting in class the other night made me start to think back to my earlier work days and how with each job I held I was constantly learning new technology.
My first job out of college was with a small company that dealt with Unclaimed Property. Having little computer experience, I quickly learned their DOS operating system which only required that I type simple letters (thankfully!). However, there was still an abundance of manual paper processing in that office. The owner of the company relied heavily on his secretary to word-process for him as he wanted nothing to do with the computer. In fact, he ordered a brand new computer for his personal use only to return it one week later! I had left after only two years with the company. Later on, I had heard through friends that the owner had sold this business to a larger corporation and a lot of the manual functions were transferred to online processing.
Eager for experience in a larger corporation I had applied and was offered a job at a large bank in Boston. I was asked in the interview if I knew Lotus 123 (a spreadsheet software which was later replaced by Excel). My response was no, however, “I will find a way to learn it if hired”. I was told that my response landed me the job and as promised I learned Lotus 123 and was off and running. No sooner did I begin working with Lotus 123, I was sent to training for a new software package called Microsoft Office, more specifically Word and Excel. Wondering how long this program was going to stick around, I began training and using the product. Since then, despite the many upgrades to the package, Windows is still a front runner in the market. At the same time I was also trained on the Bank’s Mainframe system which housed client data and performed most of the investment operations. The training I received from the Bank served as a great foundation. I had no idea the skills learned would become transferrable down the road.
After working for the larger corporation for a few years, I was recruited by a Law Firm in Boston as they were looking for someone with a solid computer background and extensive knowledge in the Investment Management Mainframe system (which they housed as well). They were eager to bring someone on board that required little training. Ready to move on to other projects I worked for this firm for 4 years.
I found a great article that focuses on the 10 hottest careers in 2011. Take note of #1: http://www.careerexplorer.net/ten-hottest-careers?&SearchEngine=Google&Adgroup=top+ten+jobs&Keyword=best%20jobs%20in%202011&AffiliateSite=ce&AffiliateLocationID=36347&SearchEngineCampaign=ten+hottest+careers+2&AdCopyVersion=1&gclid=CMTKneDJg6oCFQ2A5QodSiLZ1Q
It is really unbelievable how quickly programs are released, pulled off the market, or upgraded to a newer and better format. I was recently upgraded to Windows 7 at work and I have to say that it is much more user friendly that Windows Vista and didn't take much of a learning curve.
ReplyDeleteHowever, this is much unlike the new travel software we have all been tasked with learning how to use. Moving from a paper travel form to a computer program has everyone around here fumbling around trying to figure out how this software works. It is a huge learning curve for many of us and while change is hard to get used to, my hope is that once I finally figure out the program and become comfortable with it, entering a travel request will be a much smoother process. It will be interesting to see how long it takes to reach that point!