A Booming Industry
Computer Software Jobs
Aren’t Limited To Writing Apps And Code.

While “computer software engineer” landed on U.S. News & World  Report’s “50 Best Careers” list for 2010, jobs in this industry  extend beyond writing lines of code. Here are three professionals in  various positions who demonstrate the breadth of jobs available in  this booming industry.

By Amanda N. Wegner

General Electric—
New Media Proof-Of-Concept Projects

It was nanotech that brought Li Ye Chen to General Electric (GE).  During the first semester of his freshmen year at Cornell University, Chen found a great mentor in his nanotechnology class. “One day I asked her what she thought of my résumé, as I was looking for a summer internship. She helped me a bit with it, but more important, she said I should apply at GE for an information technology (IT) internship. I ended up interning at GE’s global research center after connecting with some great folks over there,” he recalls. And he’s been with the company ever since.
As a program manager for GE’s digital technologies & collaboration team, Chen leads digital IT programs that combine deep data analytics with intuitive user experiences to help GE businesses be more competitive. “Data is one of the most crucial elements that enable businesses to run effectively, and helping business leaders understand this data in a visual, intuitive way adds tremendous value,” explains Chen, who is based in Shelton, CT. He also runs new media proof-of-concept projects, which explore how GE can help businesses be more effective.
Having a hearing disability since the age of six, Chen only has 10% auditory function. Given GE’s focus on open communication and collaboration, Chen requires the assistance of a translator and special equipment to work efficiently. “I use a combination of video relay services and in-person sign-language interpreters to ensure seamless communications,” says Chen. “Most of the time, however, my cochlear implant is sufficient for small or one-on-one meetings.”
Each day brings a new opportunity to learn and explore new technology, making seamless communication a vital component of Chen’s work. “GE’s tremendous breadth and depth across a vast array of technology and service areas attracted me to it and make it a great place to work,” states Chen. “More specifically, it’s the opportunity to constantly learn new things through exposure to the different  business and functional areas as an IT leader. I had great experiences leading projects that support many different business areas, such as marketing, healthcare, energy, and security.”
Each day also brings the opportunity to work with people who are fiercely passionate about advancing the field. “I love working with some of the most passionate people on new and emerging technology solutions that will help various GE businesses and drive growth,” he declares. “The solutions we drive make a big impact for our company and customers, and the technologies that we develop to accelerate the future are truly on the cutting edge—sometimes a first in the industry.”
To thrive in this industry, Chen says skills and experiences in mobile, user experience, Web, and analytics technologies are helpful and in demand. But over the long run, the ability to adapt to changing industry demands, drive digital innovation for your businesses, and creatively solve problems is even more important. To that end, he suggests, “be flexible and have an insatiable hunger to learn new things and try new technologies. Large-scale technology projects will still be the core of the industry, but increasingly, many successes will come from small but effective proof-of-concepts and a willingness to do something different.”
What might that look like? Chen condenses it down to more mobile, social, connected, and predictive. “Mobile technologies are everywhere these days and will only be more pervasive as hardware and software innovations appear, sometimes in unlikely places—for example, augmented reality and ‘reality mining,’” reports Chen.  “Related to this, we’re becoming increasingly more connected and  social, with the likes of social search or recommendations. We may see the rise of social currencies, for example. And finally, artificial intelligence and predictive algorithms will be the glue that ties a lot of data together and enable ever more personalized user experiences.”

McAfee—
Keeping People, Children, And Companies Safe

Over the last 20 years, Shari Ahlberg has watched McAfee grow from an adolescent company to a mature one. “When I first came here, the company as a whole was very adolescent in its process, tools, and systems,” remembers Ahlberg. “I’ve watched it grow through the years.  It is now a mature company, one with common systems and structure and a keen eye for customer service and employee satisfaction.” Since 1992, Ahlberg has worked her way up the ranks at McAfee, a solely owned subsidiary of Intel that offers virus protection and Internet security products and services for residential customers and businesses. Today, she is the senior director of worldwide technical support operations. “My team,” she says, “is responsible for a number of tasks for worldwide support and drives all projects that deal with support.”
Ahlberg’s team analyzes systems and tools that customers and support agents use to ensure that customers have the best possible experience with its products. One part of her team, for example, innovates support products, such as a tool that helps customers diagnose their problem online and agent productivity tools that allow support staff to identify issues faster. She has a team for labs around the world where team members replicate software issues and determine how to best address them. “The work is fast-moving and fun,” exclaims Ahlberg.
There’s a real focus on support from managers and within the team environment at McAfee as well, which was critical to Ahlberg when a freak accident left her paralyzed 14 years ago. “I am a paraplegic,” she notes. “In July 1998, I was on a four-wheeler and fell into a five-foot hole covered with grass. When I landed, I knew I was  paralyzed.”
She was transported by Med Flight to Mayo Clinic and went through rehabilitation there. “The whole time,” she recalls, “I remained a McAfee employee. The company was extremely caring, supportive, and  understanding.”
Ahlberg works hard to bring these same qualities to her leadership position.
“Management is about leading and being able to engage, identifying strengths, and areas of improvement. I work to support my team to help them be their best,” she comments.
For individuals seeking a management track in computer software, these skills are often more important than the technical aspects.  “It’s my job to make sure we move in the right direction. The technical skills are always a plus, but in a management position, it’s about building leaders, and driving people to reach their goals and become stronger,” she advises.
Following an acquisition in February 2011, McAfee now has the power of Intel behind it to build a stronger, wider scope of security products. But a company is only as strong as its employees. “The people make it a great place to work,” says Ahlberg, who plays competitive wheelchair tennis with other professionals in the Dallas- Fort Worth area in her free time. “In order to do that, you have to have a great culture. Here, we work for a good noble cause: To keep people, children, and companies safe. Yes, it’s a high-stress environment, but our people take our cause seriously, they live and breathe the brand. They believe in it. And that makes it a great place to work.”

Verizon—
Deep In The Heart of IT

When Joe Warrington first posted his résumé online, there was no LinkedIn, Monster.com, or Indeed.com. Instead, he posted his résumé to IT newsgroups, which helped him land a job at what is now Verizon about 18 years ago.
“At the time, putting a résumé online was a whole different game,” recalls Warrington. “It was more newsgroups and that sort of thing, so I put my IT résumé out on some boards, GTE saw my résumé and gave me a call.” (In 2000, Bell Atlantic acquired GTE, then rebranded as Verizon.)
Warrington is a technical manager with Verizon’s open system design and engineering team. Working “deep in the heart of IT,” Warrington and his team make sure both new and updated software and hardware are operational through certification, testing, and documentation. For instance, if a new version of an operating system becomes available, Warrington’s team tests it to make sure there are no issues, then bundles it and makes it available for new servers and servers already online. Warrington’s team works with five major platforms: HP, AIX,  Oracle Solaris, Windows, and Linux. “We work hard to make sure anything new integrates with technology already deployed,” states Warrington, who was injured in a car accident at age 16 and is a  paraplegic.
Based in Florida, Warrington started his Verizon career in development and was originally attracted to the company, in part, because of its training program. When he first started, he spent three months in training before moving to a development area, where he wrote and maintained programs.
“It was really wonderful,” remembers Warrington. “It’s what a lot of people aim for, what they look for once they get out of school.”
Warrington has made his way up in the company, including stops in automation, service support, and IBM open systems; he oversees a team of 14 in his current position. Thanks to the nature of his work and the work environment Verizon offers, Warrington’s disability is a nonissue. “As strange as it might sound, my disability presents little challenge in an IT environment. I spend so much time in Webinars and teleconferences; it has little impact on my ability to do my job. Plus, Verizon encourages and allows employees to telecommute when appropriate. Here, you get a good work-life balance,” adds Warrington, who also has a private pilot’s license.
Warrington offers a wealth of advice for individuals seeking a career in computer software: “You need a good education; a degree is generally required for many IT positions. It also helps to get a certification in the area where you have an interest. Almost all vendors have a certification program, and that helps set you apart from those in the same job, even if they have more experience. If you’re vendor certified, then I know that you know that environment.” Given the collaborative nature of the work, it’s important to be a team player. In fact, it’s extremely important. This work is difficult and demanding from the mental aspect, and you need the support of the other folks on your team.
A commitment to training, a team environment, opportunities for advancement, and cutting-edge work are all key reasons why Warrington has worked for Verizon for almost two decades. “The team I work with is great, dedicated and always there for each other,” concludes Warrington. “Here, you have the opportunity to explore different positions, you so don’t have to leave to change careers. And across the board, the work is fresh. We get to work with the latest technology, which makes every day enjoyable and challenging.