InformationWeek

December 8, 1998

I am a Director of IS for a midsize insurance company. I'm 47 and have been with the company in various positions for 25 years. I've been in my current position for 8 years and am making about $71,000 annually. I have responsibility for running our enterprise network and providing support as well as implementing projects to upgrade the infrastructure. I'm not sure what education I should pursue in order to advance my career--should I be pursuing my MSCE certification or pursue a degree in computer science? Would an associate's degree in computer science be a plus, or do I need to look at a B.S. or Master's degree? Considering my age, and the fact that I've been in my organization for so long, am I wasting my time?

Before you venture to take additional courses and/or pursue certification, take a hard look at your current options. Have you exhausted all possibilities for advancement in your current company? Since you have significant tenure, use your in-house experience to your benefit. If there are open positions, find out why you are not being considered. If looking internally is not an option, exhaust all possibilities externally: what other insurance companies are commutable? Perhaps you can leverage your heavy industry experience and management capabilities in the IS community.

More Questions:
I've been offered the position of software developer. Is this a positive career choice? What about the long term?