Should I make a career switch and join the tech industry?
5 questions to think about
Jeraldine Phneah
February 02, 2024 • Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes
Hey all, Happy lunar new year in advance! 🧧
After my recent post on going all in, I received an email from one of the subscribers about making a switch to the tech industry.
Here is a condensed version of his question:
QUESTION:
I am fine with my role in accounting and auditing, but tech, data science and AI has always fascinated me.
There are some downsides that I am unsure how to best handle. Namely career progression and endgame, sustainability of jobs due to disruption.
What other questions should I consider before I decide to go all in?
This is my answer:
Working in the tech industry is a rewarding experience. There is generally a lot of autonomy for most roles.
One of the underrated aspects is the quality of the people. In high growth companies, you often get to work with a higher proportion of people who are driven; intelligent; open to trying new things and progressive.
Having said that, there are a few things to bear in mind.
1. Do you have genuine interest in the subject itself?
I would advise one to take some courses to start with first and explore the extent to which you enjoy what you do.
This is because the industry and the outstanding companies move incredibly fast, you'd need to keep learning new things all the time.
In my current role, I always have to take time outside of work to complete certifications. This is because the company and sector is moving super fast. I need to stay ahead of the change.
If one does not have the intrinsic motivation to invest in learning, they'd become average at best abd this will ultimately impact progression
2. How are you going to deal with the instability that is part of this job?
The instability of the industry is something you have to accept and get used to. I cannot guarantee that I myself will never get laid off again. No one can.
Layoffs are something you cannot prevent. They are due to poor judgment by the leadership team when it comes to making business decisions.
The best protection is really emergency funds and also living below your means. They will serve as a buffer when it comes to taking risks like these.
It is also the end of 10+ years of 0% interest rates in the tech industry. It is important to understand what higher rates mean for tech jobs and how can one prepare for this shift?
3. What are you going to do to stand out?
What I am observing now is that there are many companies here with tech teams in Vietnam; India and Indonesia.