A Career in Consulting for Computer Science Majors(ppt)
A Career in Consulting for Computer Science Majors
Vince DeGiulio
Accenture - Associate Partner
Purdue CS ‘87
Types of Consultants
Application Programmer
System Administrator
Technical Specialist
IT Consultant/Analyst
Application Programmer
Description
Hired Guns of Programming - Contractor
Many Languages/Tools
Project Types
Application Development
Application Maintenance
Project Duration: Several Months to Years
Clients: Usually Large Companies
Demand: Always High, but Requires Periodic Re-tooling of Skills
System Administrator
Description
Provide Technical/User Support
Project Types
Set up/Maintain LANs, PCs, User IDs, etc.
Install Software
Support Help Desks
Project Duration: Years or Multiple Clients at Once
Clients: Large and Small Companies
Demand: High, Increasing as Companies Look More to Outsource Support Functions
Technical Specialist
Description
Expert in Specific Technology/Product (ie. Web Development, Object Oriented)
Project Types
Application Development/Maintenance
Performance Reviews
Product Sales Support
Project Duration: Days to Few Months
Clients: Large and Small Companies
Demand: High when Specialty is Hot
IT Consultant/Analyst
Description
Client’s Partner - True “Consultant”
Solve Business Problems through Technology
Project Types
Business Application Development
Technology Strategies
Project Duration: Many Months to Years
Clients: Usually Large Companies
Demand: High
Consulting = Variety
Technologies/Vendor Software
Industries/Clients
Applications
Geographic Locations
Responsibilities
People
Technologies/Vendor Software
Technologies Change - Only Limited by Yourself
Not Limited to Your Companies Products
Your Degree Suited for this Variety
My Experiences
Different DBMS (Oracle, DB2, Sybase, Teradata, MS-Access, IMS)
Different Platforms (Mainframes, Servers, PCs)
Different Languages (HTML, C, Visual Basic, COBOL, Vendor Specific)
Industries/Clients
What’s an Industry?
Type of Work can Vary by Industry
Can Change Industries/Clients Frequently
My Experiences
Insurance/Financial Services
Government (Federal & State)
Light Manufacturing
Distribution & Logistics
Transportation
Travel
Healthcare
Applications
Transaction Processing (i.e. Order Entry)
Knowledge Worker (i.e. EIS)
Database Systems
My Experiences
Patient Administration
Inmate Inventory
Unemployment Check Processing
Customer Information
Underwriter Decision Analysis
Logistics Network Analysis
Vehicle Tracking
Fleet Management
Geographic Locations
Opportunity for Travel
Domestic/International
Work Where Clients are Located
My Experiences
1/4 Career is Chicago and Suburbs
3/4 in Other Cities (Minneapolis, Springfield, Washington D.C., Miami, Atlanta, Louisville)
Responsibilities
Don’t Stagnate in Same Position Forever
Can Increase Authority Quickly
My Experiences
Programmer 1.5 Years
Analyst/Program Designer
Supervisor
System Architect
Team Leader
Project Manager
People
Meet Many Different People
Working with Different Groups of People from Year to Year
New Bosses Periodically
My Experiences
Many People throughout Consulting Field and Industry
People throughout Country
Met Some of Best Friends
Consulting Opens Doors
Jobs at Clients
Many Take Jobs at Clients
Allows Observation of Company Before Taking Job
Head Hunters
Always on Lists of People to Call
Contacted Constantly
Always Other Jobs Out There
Consulting Opens Doors
Non-Technical Career
Easy Transition to Management Consulting
Analytical Skills Applicable to Solving Business Process Problems
Support Functions at Technical Firms (i.e. Sales, HR)
Own Consulting Firm
Many Consultants Form Own Small Firms After Gaining Experience
Why I Chose Consulting
Didn’t Want to Program Forever
Looking for Advancement Opportunities
Looked at Long-Term Money vs Short-Term
Got Bored Easily
Saw People Sitting at a Desk that Looked Too Comfortable
Consulting - Not For Everyone
Hard Work/Long Hours
Requires Flexibility
Involves Travel
Requires Personal Skills
Clients Don’t Like or Trust You - At First
Last Advice
No Perfect Job Exists
Know What Is Important to You
Think Long-Term

A Career in Consulting for Computer Science Majors(ppt)