[124377] in North American Network Operators' Group
RE: Finding content in your job title
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (George Bonser)
Wed Mar 31 02:45:43 2010
Date: Tue, 30 Mar 2010 23:45:04 -0700
In-Reply-To: <4BB2BE2C.9000901@ibctech.ca>
From: "George Bonser" <gbonser@seven.com>
To: "Steve Bertrand" <steve@ibctech.ca>,
<nanog@nanog.org>
Errors-To: nanog-bounces+nanog.discuss=bloom-picayune.mit.edu@nanog.org
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Steve Bertrand [mailto:steve@ibctech.ca]
> Sent: Tuesday, March 30, 2010 8:15 PM
> To: nanog@nanog.org >> nanog list
> Subject: Finding content in your job title
> How does the ops community feel about using this designation? Is it
> intrusive or offensive to those who hold real engineering degrees? I'm
> content with 'network manager', given that I still do perform (in my
> sleep) numerous system tasks and have to sometimes deal with
front-line
> helpdesk stuff.
I don't think it matters so much what you call yourself, but what job
role are you filling in the corporate org chart? You might not be a
degreed engineer but if you are serving as the company's "Network
Engineer" then that is what you are. I would say that would go as long
as the title is on a company business card and not a personal card. I
would say that I would use the term "engineer" on a personal card only
if I were an engineer in my field of practice by certification or
degree. In a company, though, my title is the role I fill within the
organization.
I tend to prefer the "architect" designation mainly because it describes
what I really do. I design the network, specify the equipment, get it
all running, and am then happy to turn over the day to day operation to
someone else provided there is a someone else to do it. My title within
my organization is Senior Network Engineer but I personally see my role
as Senior Network Architect and is what I would put on a personal card
and is how I "self identify".
George
