2005 Career Planning Guide

A handbook to help IT workers plan their next moves, at three career stages.

By Mitch Betts

April 18, 2005 12:00 PM ET

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Computerworld - My own career plan is called "stumbling forward." I just walk through career doors that, through pure luck, happen to open at the right time. It's worked OK for me, but it won't work in the challenging world of IT, where up-to-date technical and business skills are so important and job loss from outsourcing is a constant threat. You need a real plan.

So Computerworld is offering its first guide for IT professionals at different phases of their careers. We took this approach because the challenges and strategies are very different depending on whether you're just getting started in IT, stalled out at midcareer or moving toward semiretirement.

In this special report, you'll also get Johanna Rothman's step-by-step plan for taking charge of your IT career, plus tips on how to avoid common employee blunders.

I've been collecting career tips myself over the years, and here are a few of my favorites:

If you want to get promoted, do the things that people one level up tend to do.
Be better prepared at meetings than anyone else.
Never, ever wear a Hawaiian shirt at a business function.

Mitch Betts is Computerworld's executive editor. You can contact him at mitch_betts@computerworld.com.

2005 Career Planning Guide

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Read more about careers in Computerworld's Careers Knowledge Center.

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