Jim Staats Posts

IT Outsourcing: Economic Slide Could Produce Upside for Providers Despite a decline in the IT outsourcing market recently, a possible double dip economic downturn could spell good news for outsourcing providers in the near future. So says findings from the latest quarterly report by outsourcing firm Everest Group, as reported in CIO this week. For the first time in the past year, activity within the global outsourcing market, for both IT and business processes (BPO), dropped, according to t ...

Takeaway of the week is that more signs are pointing to IT jobs on the horizon. You just have to know where to look. Are you interested in healthcare IT? Have you considered spanning the globe right from your computer as an online-only contractor? If you’re already in an IT job, are you content? Other people say you are.   The Online-Only Worker Bee Technological advances connect the global workforce like never before. One of the growing dynamics of this new reality is the growth of t ...

Takeaway of the week is that more signs are pointing to IT jobs on the horizon. You just have to know where to look. Are you interested in healthcare IT? Have you considered spanning the globe right from your computer as an online-only contractor? If you’re already in an IT job, are you content? Other people say you are. The Online-Only Worker Bee Technological advances connect the global workforce like never before. One of the growing dynamics of this new reality is the growth of the o ...

Despite the gloomy economy and a global shift in some traditional job functions, there are plenty of IT jobs to be had if one knows how and where to look. So says Todd Thibodeaux, president and CEO of CompTIA, in a Computerworld Q&A this week. Thibodeaux, a longtime leader within the technical fraternity, highlights mismatched skill sets as a prime reason so many unemployed IT technicians are being prevented from filling otherwise appealing job openings. “An IT career requires a lifelo ...

More and more employers may be turning to virtual job fairs in an attempt to broaden their candidate pool while saving travel and expenses. In these online forums - in which both companies and job seekers can log in from across the globe - participants can access a variety of “booths” of such big-name firms including Procter & Gamble Co., Citigroup or Boeing Co. to learn details about the company as well as open positions, according to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal. These job ...

Jimmy Hooh Chee Ming had considerable experience after 28 years in the IT field, but still sought a little extra insurance to bolster his transition into a full-time project management role. His co-workers pointed him toward CompTIA Project+ and he’s been singing praises ever since. “Having gone through Project+, I am confident I can manage a given project accordingly,” said Hooh, transition and transformation manager with HP Malaysia. “It really helps me a lot, especially (when it comes to) ...

Takeaway of the week is it’s always best to toot your own horn when it comes to highly sought value you can add to an organization, because who knows when someone else would do it for you. And don’t look now, but it’s another voice trumpeting the ‘rise of the machines,’ but could it be with an IT silver lining? SME Branding? Toot Your Own Horn Subject matter experts shouldn’t wait around for anybody but themselves to tout that value-add expertise to the outside world, so says an executive fro ...

Privacy and security issues are said to be among the chief concerns for healthcare administrators facing new HIPPA regulations and a ramped-up electronic health record (EHR) incentive program. A new study, however, indicates that many of those executives are failing to “walk the walk.” In a report by consulting firm CSC, a HIMSS shows that fewer than half of large healthcare organizations - 47 percent - in the U.S. conduct annual security risk assessments and nearly six in ten didn’t dedicate ...

Take-away of the week is a weather report: More clouds are forming on the horizon in the world of IT services. Organizations big and small are having to adapt as will the technicians of today and tomorrow. Survey: IT as a Service Gaining Headwind Based on findings of a recent survey by F5 Networks, the enterprise trend toward IT services on demand, in the cloud, ITaaS or catchy name of your choosing, will continue to get a stranglehold on the industry in the next few years. Nearly 75 percent ...

This week’s take-away would seem to be when one gathers facts pointing to a positive trend in the IT labor market in the coming year, plan to face the flip side for the future the following week. Hence. . . The Cloud Could Rain on Tomorrow’s IT Staffing Trends An oversized, centralized IT department is a relic in this day and age of cloud computing and mobile technology, according to reports out of a recent technical conference. The IT department of 2015 will have fewer full-time staffers, mo ...