From: Scott M Vermillion (scott_ccie_list@it-ag.com)
Date: Sat Mar 28 2009 - 21:58:43 ART
I think the service provider space may be among the last on earth
where you can just be a routing & switching guy/gal. What I find
interesting is that upon learning I'm a CCIE, prospective clients
automatically assume that I know every single product in Cisco's
lineup like the back of my hand - whether it be an FWSM, an ACE, an
ASA - you name it! Furthermore, they are of the belief that I am
fully versed on every bug ID for every version of every type of
software in Cisco's history as a company and that I can instantly be
conversant in any of them at the drop of a hat. I think this must
stem from the days when most CCIEs were Cisco employees and most
people's experience with them was as part of an account team.
It's generally expected, in my experience, of a consulting CCIE that
you know and know well all server operating systems, Apache, Oracle,
all major security products (whether Cisco or otherwise), a good bit
about voice, and absolutely everything under the sun to do with
network management platforms. In only perhaps one third of cases or
less am I called upon to do anything that even remotely leverages my
true CCIE skill set. Most people outside of the "CCIE community" have
absolutely no idea what the cert is really about (which IMHO distills
down to "underlying technologies and advanced networking concepts" and
*not* products). They simply associate those four letters with "IT
God" and "General IT Product Expert." It isn't particularly
reasonable or realistic, but it is what it is...
On Mar 28, 2009, at 6:38 , darth router wrote:
> Or you can always get out of enterprise work and go the service
> provider
> route. Plenty of routing/switching there, and a lot less end users
> to deal
> with on that level. The Network Engineer of today is becoming the Net
> Engineer/MS admin/help desk guy all rolled into one.
>
> On Sat, Mar 28, 2009 at 1:52 PM, Tony Edwards <tonyedwards.rs@gmail.com
> >wrote:
>
>> Hi GS,
>>
>> I am just wondering whether any one going through same situation as
>> of
>> me...
>>
>> - Still dreaming & dragging my feet on still allusive RS IE ###.
>> Intention
>> is still there but unable to focus and drive home the desired result
>> , Primarily because of diversified technologies requirements from
>> Boss at
>> work.
>>
>> - which is not at all bad thing as my employer is using me on various
>> projects such as RS WAN & LAN , Data Centre technologies such as WAN
>> Accelerators , WDM SAN + IP Tel or UC + Wireless + NW Management
>> systems
>> such as CW or ACS ..etc.
>>
>> - Even though I am enjoying these sorts of technical challenges at
>> work ,
>> the biggest problem I am going through right now is having to deal
>> with
>> divided Loyalty between my old love RS and my new love UC.
>>
>> - Hence am unable to do justice to neither of IE lab exam prep/
>> focus, I am
>> afraid.
>>
>> - For example , I can see my Christmas coming to me already in 2009
>> with 3
>> x
>> major upcoming projects such as UC 5 to UC 7 migration , Microsoft
>> Exchange
>> 2007 Unified Messaging Voice Mail deployment and MS OCS MOC
>> deployments
>> knocking my door.
>>
>> - So Instead of getting Fluent or consolidate my RS technologies
>> skills
>> towards my unfinished RS Lab exam , I am now studying & working on on
>> Microsoft UC technologies.Since they fall under MS banner , I tried
>> to push
>> them to our server team as me being a comms engineer do not have
>> advanced
>> exchange server or exchange 2007 UC skills.
>>
>> - But the answer came back that , since I do maintain end to end
>> Data &
>> current cisco IP Tel platforms, they reckon that I am their best
>> bet to
>> manager their Microsoft UC environment as well , which I know
>> nothing about
>> till now.
>>
>> - Now the Question is that , I can see the trend of increasing
>> expectations
>> from employers on Cisco Network engineers on upcoming MS UC as
>> well. Are we
>> seeing this as a future road map of overlaying MS & Cisco Skill
>> sets ,
>> particularly when UC field is going to be equally shared by these 2
>> vendors
>> with in Enterprise space ? And in these potentially recession
>> times , I
>> guess the best you can do is to keep your mouth shut and do your best
>> whatever the project your employer dumps on your plate.
>>
>> -In a way , I am existed to get my hands dirty on this new UC kid
>> in the
>> block.
>>
>> - But the biggest draw back is that , I am moving further away from
>> my
>> unfinished job of RS lab :-(
>>
>> - And recently , I am also began contemplating of dumping my old
>> love of RS
>> lab and instead run after Voice IE lab.
>>
>> - But the fact that Voice lab is lot more tougher to crack when
>> compared to
>> RS lab and also because I came very close on RS lab some 2 years
>> ago ,
>> perhaps , I am unable to let go my RS ## ambitions just yet.
>>
>> - At the same time , it will be tough to keep working on advanced &
>> interesting Voice projects @ work and come home and dust off my RS
>> books
>> and
>> racks and pursue that old love :-(
>>
>> any advise guys ?
>>
>> tony
>>
>>
>> Blogs and organic groups at http://www.ccie.net
>>
>> _______________________________________________________________________
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>
>
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>
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