Teri

I posted this on the jobs forum - but not a single person has replied... so hopefully get further over here :-)

I am hoping some of you IT people can provide some insight. We are off to the Gold Coast / Brisbane. Living on Gold Coast but I am prepared to work Brisbane if thats where the jobs are. I am going to be applying for DBA/SQL Server positions (with DB design and implementation as well).

Anybody have some info on job prospects and salary to expect (4-5 years experience in above)? Also any advice on structuring my CV. I have "ability" to do web programming / database intergration - have done quite a few ecommerce applications - but in all honesty don't enjoy it and don't think I am as good as some of the other programmers around, so was thinking that I don't want to highlight it too much, rather just mention it but focus on my speciality - database side of things. Is this a good / bad idea? Afraid it will come off as a jack of all trades and master of nothing...??

Also - how are the IT interviews conducted? i.e. how do they verify your skills? Are you required to do a test and if so, how did you find it? Any other advice re: interviews?

What is the work ethic, environment like over there... stressful/cut throat or nice?

Are the quite a few females in your IT departments - or is it mostly male?

Love to hear any other advice you can offer...

Thanks T

wongstonn

Can't speak about the Brisbane scene specifcally but, you'll find that interviews are pretty much the same as in the UK. In my rather limited experience, reference checks have been by phone to save time.

Neil

Teri

Is that all they do, go by what your old employer verifies? I find that so often there are people that get employed who say they can do something but then cannot, that I thought "testing" was becoming more common.

What part of IT are you in?

Thanks T

wongstonn

I'm a project manager, and had to go through an interview with the agent, and two interviews with the employer. The logistics of getting references long distance are not so good because of the time factor. So a phone call to references is not unusual. I heard of this happening to other people too. Be aware that regardless of reference collection, many people find the job search process longer over here than in the UK - though there will always be exceptions.

Sandra

Not in Brisbane sorry this is not specific to your skills, I came over originally on a transfer but have since gone out on the 'market' I am a 'old' peoplesoft developer but not a techie.

My advice - tailor your CV for each job that you apply for. (Obviously take copies and remind yourself what you said). I have needed more detail on each specific job I can do then went for interview and explained my skills in each area. Like Wongstonn my references have all been followed up with phonecalls and email, and it does seem longer than the UK but that might be my experience only. I took advice from other consultants in my field and agents. PS not one bloody agent ever got me a job just crappy interviews but again my personal experience (the world over?)

Pyschometric (spelling?) testing seems to becoming more the norm unless contracting.

Also it is usually a three month trial period for perm positions and they can let you go in that time very easily. Don't be put off, go for what you are good at and if you will win through.

Cheers

Teri

Thanks Sandra

Are there many females or is it mostly male?

Atmosphere? People - relaxed or hectic?

Thanks T

Sandra

Mixed in all areas, will admit that at times there does seem to be more males but that is changing and lots of companies have no issue with women running the show . PeopleSoft here (before the Oracle buyout) went out of the way for decent staff of any sex.

Relaxed or hectic - as a consultant have worked around a few companies in IT and it just depends on the company ethos. Honestly I do not believe in an Aussie style just company policy. I feel more relaxed working with companies that have an overseas branch/outlook. It allows me to bring in ideas that I find the smaller companies have not got the time for.

I think you are going to be fine being yourself - that counts in any job in any country.

rapitts

I guess the first thing to say is Brisbane isnt much of an IT market, I would have a look at a few of the job sites and see what the demand is at the moment, give yourself something like 3-4 months as a buffer zone for landing that job.

Salary range for 4-5 years, maybe looking at $45-50k I would guess, Sandra is correct that you will need to model your cv around the job position you are applying for, agencies dont mind receiving various versions, its the norm here, also go into some detail in your CV.

Also you may need to fall back to your web programming as some agencies will probably be looking for 6+ years for a DBA/SQL but double check the job sites (most want a 100% match against the job description).

Good luck.

JackTheLad

If you are thinking of living in the Gold Coast, I would not recommend the daily commute to Brisbane for work. It will get too tiring after a while. We live 23km south of Brisbane and the commute is just the max we can take. Perhaps you may want to decide where to live once you know where you're most likely to find a job. There are obviously a lot more IT jobs in Brisbane than in the GC.

You say you have 4-5 years experience as DBA in SQL Server. Have you got any certification? If not, it may be worthwhile getting certified, if you can, before you come over or apply for a job. If you are certified and very experienced, the salary range can vary from $50k to 80k. Have you got Oracle or other database experience as well?

Interviews and work environment are similar to IT industry in the rest of the world, but I find atmosphere much laid back here in Brisbane than in places I've worked. Of course it all depends on the organization.

For government and large corporation jobs, there are often "selection criteria" you need to write a couple of paragraphs for. Click on some jobs in the following link to get a feel of what to expect:

http://www.jobs.qld.gov.au/occupatio...ludeSubOrgs=on

Lots of people may say to you the Australian CVs are very different from the UK ones - but it hasn't been our experience. Both hubby and I got jobs using CV formats we've had for years.

Good luck,
Mrs JTL

BenandPam

Not sure if this helps but ,my company are currently recruiting for java / .net developers and we are based out of sydney, melbourne and brisbane - though we do work at client sites all over the country.


As far as the recruitment process goes - well its a bit like in the uk - =the process varies from employer to employer - I had all my interviews done in the UK office (that was a lucky break really) and a couple of calls with people based here.

As a company we would do a code review for developers after the first interview and before any subsequent interviews.

As for work ethic / environment - we are Agile enthusiasts here so our teams tend to be pretty driven but fun places to be and we have a good mix of men and women in all the teams (though the majority of IT employees are male - no surprises there though huh). If we are based at one of our own home offices and not meeting with clients then there is no dress code (although you'd have to be pretty brave to wear your bikini to the office) and when we are out on clinet site our dress code is driven by the client's requirements and own standard of dress.


Hope this helps,

Pam.

p.s. if you think you might be intereste in working for us send me a PM and I will let you know a little bit more about the company, our website and recruitment process

Teri

Thanks for that. I know the drive from GC to Brisbane may not be ideal, but I think I will cope for a while. Currently I sit in bumper 2 bumper traffic for a good 1 to 1hr30mins each day. When I was on the GC last year, I had to go see a client in Brisbane and purposely returned to GC during rush hour - and must admit it was nowhere as bad as what I am use to.... hopefully this was not just a good day. Anyway - don't have much choice - hubby's work is on GC and child is also in at GC school.

Good advice to get certified - have already gathered all the information. I started out in Oracle, but then we moved over to SQL Server and never moved back. I (maybe I am wrong) feel that if you are experienced with one DBMS, that cathing up on the other is not too bad (2 weeks should do it) because at the core - the language and methodology is the same?? Well at least that is what I found when switching from Oracle to SQL Server - but then again that was about 6 years ago. All in all you could say I have 7 years DBA experience.

When you say "laid back" do you mean in work pressure (i.e. not much working after hours etc.). Or dress code/formalities. Or colleague relations - i.e. colleagues are nice and friendly to work with instead of arguementative - know it all kind of attitude / or gunning for you.

Thanks so much for you help!

JackTheLad

If you are used to heavy traffic and long commute it'll probably be okay for a while. You never know you may find a DBA in the GC or nearby, and may not have to do the commute, but it's good to know you're prepared for it.

I'm sure you'll be fine with 7 years' DBA experience. For you to pick up Oralce again, it really should be piece of cake. The new interfaces only make the job easier for you. But do try getting certified if you can, as the companies/organizations here don't know you, and the only thing they can check is your certifications, in addition to references from previous employers.

When I say "laid back" I mean everything - work pressure, dress code, people, etc. However everyone's experience is different. People I know at consultancies do work longer hours and have to dress smarter. I'm in application support for a government department, and haven't had to work more than 40 hours a week since I've been here. I think my impressions have more to do with the nature of my job, and are not necessarily representative of all the IT jobs here.

Hope this helps and again, all the best.

Mrs JTL

alwilco

Brisbane is heaps better than the GC - jobs are hard to find on the GC as everybody wants to live there!
Brisbane's IT market is fairly flat but there seems to be more activity recently. The main IT employers in Brisbane are state government agencies.
(I was looking for a SQL DBA only yesterday for a short term job!)
Good luck, Alex (Unisys PM)

DevMountain

My simple advise is to be honest and relax.

I have conducted a lot of interviews recently and the best people are the ones who are not overly nervous (i.e. if you are confident then you are hiding noting) and don't bullshit! Aussie BS-meters are very good!

A dogs life

Ah yes but, ha ha, reverse psychology . Companies set up in the Gold coast and use that as a lure to attract people to come and work for them with the stuff about living on the gold coast and working for them as the ideal lifestyle.

I've seen a few job adverts like that, mostly games development companies offering the opportunity of surfing at lunchtime etc...

But obviously, yes there are alot more jobs in Brisbane than the Gold Coast. Just as there are lots more jobs in Melbourne and Sydney than there are in Brisbane.

ADL