Dec 15: Book Review: The Nomadic Developer
So I just finished reading The Nomadic Developer: Surviving and Thriving in the World of Technology Consulting
and I thought I'd write up a quick book review on it to get back into the swing of things with my blog. The problem is, once I got started I ended up having a lot to say about this book and about my experiences as a technology consultant. I have decided to break the book review down into the main sections that I found useful from this book. I guess from the introduction you can surmise that I liked the book and that I am going to recommend that you get it. You would not be mistaken, but let me explain why.
and I thought I'd write up a quick book review on it to get back into the swing of things with my blog. The problem is, once I got started I ended up having a lot to say about this book and about my experiences as a technology consultant. I have decided to break the book review down into the main sections that I found useful from this book. I guess from the introduction you can surmise that I liked the book and that I am going to recommend that you get it. You would not be mistaken, but let me explain why.I have worked as a contractor for several years now. The situation has been much different for me than it is for the typical contract based developer. The main reason for this is that I have been contracted full time for the last few years with the same company. As a result, I think I started to become lulled into the idea that I was actually an employee of the firm. My rude awakening came in a one, two punch combination: The awesome financial situation in 2008 through 2009 and the fact that the company was trying to expand. The company is used to working with large corporations to deliver expensive sites, unfortunately these are the exact clients that have run with their tails between their legs and have pretty much abandoned all of their fledgling projects until the economic uncertainty goes away. Since the firm's managers are starting to look at a bunch of salaried staff sitting on the bench they have needed to cut back on my hours so that they can keep them earning. It only makes sense and I would do the exact same thing were I in their position.
The second item seems like it might be a good thing, expanding offices etc means more potential to win new business right? Right. The problem is that the firm has tried to expand several times in the past usually with short-lived results. This time however, they have decided to take things seriously and have begin to implement "Stricter Policies" across the board. You better make sure your TPS cover letter is attached buddy or you are going to hear about it. From who exactly it's unclear since they basically let go of their entire accounting department and instead of sending email to friendly.jenny@mediumcompany.com I now sent them to accountsreceivable@largecompany.com. Now I get it, I honestly do, they have to plug all of these holes since there are so many more people working for the company. Each of these little holes is hemorrhaging money and wasted time and so they should be plugged. The area that specifically affects me as a developer is the fact that they have stopped treating me as "Matthew the Helpful Software Architect" to "Contractor Number Five". This has had wide ranging effects on my relationship with them, and I am sad to say that none of them are good. The biggest issue for me is the lack of loyalty I now feel from them which in turn erodes my loyalty to them. If I am treated as a developer that can be picked up and tossed away without concern for my contributions to the company - specifically the tech department - why should I go the extra mile for them? I would never do less than my best at work, but why should I waste my time mentoring a fellow developer when I have to send in a request for approval for billing those hours before I can actually talk to the kid about what writing good software means? Long story short, it's the contractors that bring in the bulk of new knowledge to a team because they have to constantly be learning to stay on top of their game.
As a result of these changes, I have started to look for different opportunities. In order to help prepare me for the world of contracting, I thought I would pick up The Nomadic Developer and see what the book had to say. I was drawn mostly by the tag line "Surviving and Thriving in the World of Technology Consulting" because it really seemed that the author gets what consulting is about. Consulting is both incredibly freeing by making you your own boss but in turns can be some of the most stressful living you can imagine. Overall, I think the book is an excellent read for those people that are currently employees and are considering being a contractor. The writing style is great and I looked forward to reading the sidebars from the contributors talking about their experiences specifically relating to the text you are reading. There were some key parts of the book that I did feel applied to me especially and which I will delve into further in future blog entries:
Chapter 4: Getting in
Chapter 5: What you Need to Ask Before Joining a Technology Consulting Firm
Chapter 6: Surviving
Chapter 7: Thriving
Chapter 9: Avoid Career-limiting Moves
Chapter 11: An Anthology of Sage Advice
You can find Part 2 of the review here.
The second item seems like it might be a good thing, expanding offices etc means more potential to win new business right? Right. The problem is that the firm has tried to expand several times in the past usually with short-lived results. This time however, they have decided to take things seriously and have begin to implement "Stricter Policies" across the board. You better make sure your TPS cover letter is attached buddy or you are going to hear about it. From who exactly it's unclear since they basically let go of their entire accounting department and instead of sending email to friendly.jenny@mediumcompany.com I now sent them to accountsreceivable@largecompany.com. Now I get it, I honestly do, they have to plug all of these holes since there are so many more people working for the company. Each of these little holes is hemorrhaging money and wasted time and so they should be plugged. The area that specifically affects me as a developer is the fact that they have stopped treating me as "Matthew the Helpful Software Architect" to "Contractor Number Five". This has had wide ranging effects on my relationship with them, and I am sad to say that none of them are good. The biggest issue for me is the lack of loyalty I now feel from them which in turn erodes my loyalty to them. If I am treated as a developer that can be picked up and tossed away without concern for my contributions to the company - specifically the tech department - why should I go the extra mile for them? I would never do less than my best at work, but why should I waste my time mentoring a fellow developer when I have to send in a request for approval for billing those hours before I can actually talk to the kid about what writing good software means? Long story short, it's the contractors that bring in the bulk of new knowledge to a team because they have to constantly be learning to stay on top of their game.
As a result of these changes, I have started to look for different opportunities. In order to help prepare me for the world of contracting, I thought I would pick up The Nomadic Developer and see what the book had to say. I was drawn mostly by the tag line "Surviving and Thriving in the World of Technology Consulting" because it really seemed that the author gets what consulting is about. Consulting is both incredibly freeing by making you your own boss but in turns can be some of the most stressful living you can imagine. Overall, I think the book is an excellent read for those people that are currently employees and are considering being a contractor. The writing style is great and I looked forward to reading the sidebars from the contributors talking about their experiences specifically relating to the text you are reading. There were some key parts of the book that I did feel applied to me especially and which I will delve into further in future blog entries:
Chapter 4: Getting in
Chapter 5: What you Need to Ask Before Joining a Technology Consulting Firm
Chapter 6: Surviving
Chapter 7: Thriving
Chapter 9: Avoid Career-limiting Moves
Chapter 11: An Anthology of Sage Advice
You can find Part 2 of the review here.
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