4 ms·

Oh come on! I am in mid-forties and not just did not have any problems getting interviews, but also did not have any problems switching jobs a few months ago. W

Oh come on! I am in mid-forties and not just did not have any problems getting interviews, but also did not have any problems switching jobs a few months ago. Where I work we can't find enough decent devs for any money. H1-B is just a memory at that point. Mind you, this is not Silicon Valley, the market is quite a bit smaller (north Denver metro). Someone is either feeding you bad information or you are extrapolating and imagining things. Where I work, we have a very good team of developers and being mid 40-ies I am right in the middle of the pack. BTW, having been on H1-B 10 years ago, I can tell you that "40-50%" is not true either. So, what the heck are you talking about?

kfcm 14y ago
Apparently you didn't read my comment all that well. Re-read, and catch the "there are locations" where the article would be correct. You are falling into the same trap as the author of the original article. Just because Denver metro (or the Valley, DC, Minneapolis or a couple of other tech/government centers) are doing well, you're extrapolating that the rest of the nation is the same. I know there are places where the beer flows like wine. I'm here to tell you in many--if not most--places where I roam (primarily in the midwest), that is not the case. Ageism is a serious concern, along with companies doing what they can to lower "human capital" costs while still extracting as much work as possible. Infrastructure is somewhat immune to this, as well as smaller towns (25-50K and smaller, some distance away from larger metros) where they can't retain or recruit younger workers as easily. As for being fed bad information, you haven't seen the look on friends' faces who've remained in tech when they talk about their concerns and experiences. 10-20% paycuts 3-4 years ago which have not bounced back. Two different companies recently resetting position titles from "Senior Position" to "Position II" for those with 15-20 years experience. Watching any open positions be filled with H-1Bs, college interns or recent grads at intern salaries. Hearing about apparent tech Nirvanas in other metros, and being unable to leave because they'd uproot their family. The look on their faces may not be fear for their future, but it is a deep concern/worry.
- rhizome 14y ago
  Of course "there are locations," there are always locations. It's hard to be an oil derrick worker in the middle of Manhattan, and that's not because the cost of living there is so high.
  - kfcm 14y ago
    That's been my point all along. There are always going to be locations where the beer flows like wine. But that isn't everywhere. New York state or New Jersey versus North Dakota right now might be a better analogy than Manhattan for a wildcatter. Sure, there are probably wells in NY and NJ, but the big money is in ND.
    - eru 14y ago
      So the advice is: Move!
- ramblerman 14y ago
  why is everyone else's evidence anecdotal?
  - kfcm 14y ago
    Just remember, scientific surveys are themselves types of "blessed" anecdotal evidence. But you're correct. Since getting on this thread, I've been thinking of developing an empirical model to back up my statements. I have a gut understanding from my observations and discussions of what some of the factors would be. Could be interesting. I'll have to see if I've time to do so.
rorrr 14y ago
> we can't find enough decent devs for any money I don't believe that for a second. For $500K/year you will have top 3% developers moving to your office tomorrow (unless you're in Iraq or some other messed up place). What that means is that your budgets suck.

kfcm 14y ago

Apparently you didn't read my comment all that well. Re-read, and catch the "there are locations" where the article would be correct. You are falling into the same trap as the author of the original article. Just because Denver metro (or the Valley, DC, Minneapolis or a couple of other tech/government centers) are doing well, you're extrapolating that the rest of the nation is the same. I know there are places where the beer flows like wine. I'm here to tell you in many--if not most--places where I roam (primarily in the midwest), that is not the case. Ageism is a serious concern, along with companies doing what they can to lower "human capital" costs while still extracting as much work as possible. Infrastructure is somewhat immune to this, as well as smaller towns (25-50K and smaller, some distance away from larger metros) where they can't retain or recruit younger workers as easily. As for being fed bad information, you haven't seen the look on friends' faces who've remained in tech when they talk about their concerns and experiences. 10-20% paycuts 3-4 years ago which have not bounced back. Two different companies recently resetting position titles from "Senior Position" to "Position II" for those with 15-20 years experience. Watching any open positions be filled with H-1Bs, college interns or recent grads at intern salaries. Hearing about apparent tech Nirvanas in other metros, and being unable to leave because they'd uproot their family. The look on their faces may not be fear for their future, but it is a deep concern/worry.

rhizome 14y ago
Of course "there are locations," there are always locations. It's hard to be an oil derrick worker in the middle of Manhattan, and that's not because the cost of living there is so high.
- kfcm 14y ago
  That's been my point all along. There are always going to be locations where the beer flows like wine. But that isn't everywhere. New York state or New Jersey versus North Dakota right now might be a better analogy than Manhattan for a wildcatter. Sure, there are probably wells in NY and NJ, but the big money is in ND.
  - eru 14y ago
    So the advice is: Move!
ramblerman 14y ago
why is everyone else's evidence anecdotal?
- kfcm 14y ago
  Just remember, scientific surveys are themselves types of "blessed" anecdotal evidence. But you're correct. Since getting on this thread, I've been thinking of developing an empirical model to back up my statements. I have a gut understanding from my observations and discussions of what some of the factors would be. Could be interesting. I'll have to see if I've time to do so.

rorrr 14y ago

> we can't find enough decent devs for any money I don't believe that for a second. For $500K/year you will have top 3% developers moving to your office tomorrow (unless you're in Iraq or some other messed up place). What that means is that your budgets suck.