Hiring, evaluating talent, managing DBA work, and workplace expectations.
36 associated posts35 primary posts
You want to hire a fantastic DBA or database developer.
You want someone who can hit the ground running, who you can trust to maintain your current system and tune it like a pro. Plus you want someone who can see key improvements, communicate effectively, and drive change in your system.
I'm not the most expensive consultant I know. In fact, I've recently hired not one, but two separate consultants that charged $1,000 per hour. One evening, Erika reported that the kitchen sink disposal wasn't working. I walked in and did what any geek would do - I rebooted it. I flipped the electric switch on…
My favorite engagement is when I'm brought in to help a good person who's overwhelmed. The manager knows his DBA is smart, but the DBA is just flat out overworked. Too many developers are slinging too much code on too many servers, and there's too many signs of smoke. The manager asks the DBA who he would pick if he could pick any SQL Server guy in the world to help out, and my email goes to Inbox Plus One.
Companies don't bring me in when things are going great and everything's working flawlessly, oh no. As a consultant, I've seen lot of ways that things can fail. If a tree falls in a forest and there's no one around to see it, the owner's probably going to call a consultant afterward to find out…
One of the cool things about working with an established product like SQL Server is that there's a ton of knowledge out there. The intertubes are chock full of advice about how to manage all kinds of problems.
Unfortunately, some of them are flat out wrong.
We nicknamed one of our favorite project managers "The Bus Driver." She didn't throw people under the bus herself, but she ran over many a reputation. If you didn't know what you were doing, you didn't want to be anywhere near her bus route, because she wasn't hitting the brakes on her project for any reason whatsoever. I loved her to death because she was predictable, and I knew what I was doing.
For us geeks, the hardest part about consulting isn't the technology. Technology's easy. I know when I poke SQL Server a certain way, it's going to respond a certain way. That part of consulting is predictable and reliable.
The hardest part is the people.
When you're hiring a Windows desktop administrator, here's the best questions to ask. Includes questions like, "What's a Windows profile? When would you delete one, and what gets deleted?" These are also good for environments where the sysadmins have to wear multiple hats, and they also touch servers.
Why do some interviewers insist on asking ridiculously impossible questions when they're interviewing the most junior candidates? I explain why you should use questions people can actually answer, and quit trying to hit the lotto.
Wanna be the best at what you do? Start paying attention to more than just "what you do." What Ken Block Does Ken Block is a rally car driver, which means he slides cars around dangerous obstacles at high speed with great precision. Thing is, though, lots of people can do that. Standing out in…
If you're hiring someone who will be storing data in a database, here's how to find out if they know what they're doing. Includes questions like, "Explain referential integrity and where it can be enforced," and "What's the fastest way to get a thousand records into the database?"
In the final part of my three-part series on how to get a junior DBA job (Part 1), it's time to talk about mentoring and training, and how they affect your salary. Ask About Mentoring and Training During the interview, ask how many other database administrators are on the team and what their seniority levels…
Looking for someone with more than a couple years of experience? Here's how to find out if they're bluffing. Includes questions like, "I'm a developer - explain why I need a unique key on my table." Of course, I don't include the answers - that would make it too easy for people to read this blog and fake it!
A good database administrator projects confidence - without being a jerk.
This positive yet firm attitude helps the DBA accomplish their job in tough situations:
When hiring a production DBA, I start by asking them, "In terms of file size, what's the largest database you've worked with?" In a perfect world, we'd only hire very experienced candidates, people who've worked with larger databases than we're dealing with. In reality, though, we can't always afford those candidates - if they're even…
When hiring a new IT worker, take a few minutes to give them a tour of the group's work environment. You don't have to go so far as to point out, "Here's the cube where you'd be sitting," but try to give them a general idea of what the typical work area looks like. At…
