It isnīt all doom and gloom...some dot-comīs are doing quite well, thank you very much. Look around at the dot-com survivors, because itīs where you just might find your next IT job.
Some dot-comīs have closed their doors and others have been forced to lay off workers, but what about the rest? Online giants like Yahoo! and AOL Time Warner probably arenīt going away anytime soon (though buyout could be a possibility). Their business is ecommerce and they will survive by attracting new and returning visitors to their website. Okay, think about what that means . . . they need to market their products and services, and have systems on the backend to handle their business model. These companies may be able to do without some of their sales folks, but supporting the technology is not an option. The website is at the core of their business, which means content must be refreshed on a regular basis, and the systems must be functional. This translates into high-tech jobs.
Recent events have proven that traditional brick-and-mortar businesses may have more consistent success over time, but it does not mean that all dot-comīs will fail. This is survival of the fittest, and some of the successful dot-comīs are standing up to the pressure. Before jumping on board as an employee with one of these dot-comīs, keep in mind the additional risk you will be taking on in such a volatile industry today. However, if your eyes are open to this, it could also be a time of great opportunity for high-tech career advancement.
If you want to become a dot-com employee, and not a dot-com statistic, you need to do your homework and research a company before joining their ranks (i.e. look before you leap). How has the company dealt with recent events in the industry? Does their stock appear to be volatile? Has it been downgraded recently? Is the company stable, or have top executives been replaced? These are questions you can generally answer for yourself by visiting their corporate website, in conjunction with a check on Yahoo! Finance for the ticker symbol. By doing this research, you will be better prepared to decide if you even want to be in this game, or would be better off waiting it out until the economy stabilizes.
Yahoo!, AOL Time Warner, eBay, Travelocity, Expedia, Ameritrade, NextCard, EarthLink - these are just some of the stronger dot-comīs that are still in business and looking good (or as good as can be expected in todayīs climate). A review of their website and current job openings will show they are continuing to hire talented individuals, especially those with technical skills. Opportunities exist for those job functions which are required to continuously improve an ecommerce website and to sustain their supporting systems - Software Engineer, Web Developer, HTML Coder, QA Engineer, DBA, UNIX Administrator, Business Analyst and more. This an actual sampling of job openings taken from the corporate websites of those companies listed above.
This isnīt to say that if you are currently employed at a more traditional company, you should leave for one of the dot-comīs mentioned here. No, thatīs not the point. If you are satisfied with your job, enjoy the working environment and you see opportunities that will further your career, why would you want to leave? Especially if you really need a stable income. On the other hand, if you hate your job, are currently out of work, or are at a point in your life that you want some excitement, you might want to spend some time doing a little research. Definitely donīt join a start-up with no funding or little-known VC backing in todayīs market unless youīre ready, willing and able to embark on a wild ride. There is also no guarantee with the companies listed above (and the others not listed) that your job will be secure.
Joining a dot-com is, and always has been, a risky proposition. Employees looking at IT jobs in this industry must learn to minimize risk and know what youīre getting into before you get into it.
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