Valid points by all that suggested letting the network guy be the network
guy and just focus on managing.
One counter-point I offer is that if no one else in the group knows enough
about networking to cover for that network person at a base level (basic
troubleshooting and device configuration), then at least one other staff
member needs to learn more for breadth of coverage. That doesn't have to
be Damion as he is the manager, but he might assign the task to someone
else in the group.
If the network guy is "hit by a bus" or is simply unreachable, then
someone has to be able to do some basic troubleshooting and also know who
to call if they have any vendor support. You could argue that vendor
support is your backup and that may be just fine, but I would hope that
there is another staff member with ~some~ skills.
Proper network diagrams and documentation should also be available, but a
reasonable understanding of OSI layers 1-3 are required as well, which is
a primary concern for Damion and his group. I think that is worth some
time and money (just my opinion of course).
-Nate
On Sun, 22 Aug 2010, Brian Mathis wrote:
On Sun, Aug 22, 2010 at 12:03 AM, Shrdlu <[email protected]> wrote:
On 8/21/2010 8:23 PM, Joe McDonagh wrote:
On 08/19/2010 05:20 PM, Damion Alexander wrote:
I just added the networking group (better stated: person) to my newly
formed group of Sys Admins. I am pretty savvy with Systems, but I can
only play a network person on TV.
Could someone point me in some good directions to get up to speed on
networking (we use all cisco gear) so that I can truly support my
networking person?
I don't really see what the point of hiring a networking guy is if you
plan on kicking up your networking skills?
It seems like you should just hire a guy who knows networking better
than you and invest in upping your skills in other areas, maybe management.
I've been thinking this since the very moment I saw the post. Newly
formed group of system administrators, and networking group (one person
or not, it's still another section), sounds like reading the excellent
chapters on Tom's book about managing people, not about trying to
compete with the new guy in the group. Yes, I used a bad word, there. I
said "compete" which, no matter how good your intention, seems rather
like what's up.
If you have moved up to managing a set of system administrators, you
should be less concerned with your systems skill set, and more concerned
with things like how to form a cohesive group, and whether or not your
new group knows how to work together.
I'm just glad someone else said it first, is all.
I also was going to say this but wanted to have enough time to compose
a good message.
Being a manager is not about knowing more than everyone else (even
though many technical people incorrectly think otherwise), it's about
being able to trust your people in their own skills, and having enough
knowledge to ask the questions that need to be asked so they can make
sure to watch out for things they may not have thought about, and be
able to protect the business.
It's helpful to have a general knowledge of the area, so if you're
learning you should only focus on that. You want to be able to have a
conversation with the person, but you shouldn't be afraid to stop and
ask them to explain something. That will give you a sense of what
they really know (or if they are BSing you), and it also shows that
you respect their knowledge enough to let them explain it.
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