Jul 2 2008
Life after getting your CCIE
A few years after getting your CCIE (ie once you’ve recovered) you start wondering where to go next in your career. From my research there doesn’t seem to be an obvious next step. Some folks opt to go down the route of another CCIE, where as some decide to move into management.
I guess this is the point you have to ask yourself, which part of your job do you really enjoy. Here is a list of what I think are the main areas that a CCIE could be involved in. Id be interested to know if I’ve missed anything off the list.
1-Designing new networks based on proven technology.
2-Designing new networks based on unproven technology ie cutting edge stuff. these roles require a lot of perserverance. Early adopters especially need to be aware that cutting edge technologies can be full of bugs. Having an openmind in these situations can really help resolve issues. Whether you’re working for the vendor or end-user, these roles require a lot of energy and drive and the hunger to explore all possibilities. These roles can be very satisfying and rewarding and usually put you at the head of the game.
3-Product development ie stringing together various technologies to create products for service providers to sell. Similar to the above role, these roles can involve working with imature technologies but not always. These roles require good documentations skills, the ability to define flexible processes and usually the ability to train other members of staff how to provision that which you have developed.
4-Pre-sales – Usually requires a good high level understanding of technology, good visio skills, an understanding of the sales process and good presentation skills.
5-Post-sales -These roles require solid technical skills as well as the ability to train staff.
6-Advisory roles ie consultants – ie requires the ability to conduct a network analysis and advise an upgrade path. Consultants need to be able to sift through the plethora of technological options available on the market and identify those with longevity as well as scalability and match them to funds available etc.
7-TAC – ie support roles- for those of us who like to dig deep.
8-Technical leads – usually require a good understanding of applications as well as network. These can be quite challenging roles. Leads need to be multi skilled who can clearly articulate current progress/issues to upper management, implement quaility controls to ensure consistency across the new rollout as well as oversee any technical issues which may arise.
9-Team leaders – these can vary depending on company – some Team leader roles are very non-technical.
10-Teaching – These roles require great communication skills as well as technical understanding.
11-Mentoring – can be very rewarding when you see others progress.
12-Architecture – A lot of these roles are hands off. These roles usually require a good understanding of hardware its limatations and ability to scale etc. These roles can be exciting but requires some good decision making skills. if you’re going to recommend a company purchase 1000 Cisco 3750 switches for a local loop unbundling project, then you’d better be sure you’re you’ve got the right features, port densities and back plane speeds.
Im sure there are more roles out there for CCIEs.
comments welcome
