Remember your Technical Integrity

It has been an interesting week on the Twitter. Having been fed up with the recent FUD storms of late (ACI/NSX and Nutanix/VMware) I spat this tweet out.

I pushed this tweet out as a reminder to friends. This blog is something that 140 characters cannot express.

Technical integrity is something that solely sticks with you. It makes up part of you, your online and real world personas AND what people perceive. I am pretty proud to say whilst working for an aforementioned vendor I have been able to stay true to a tenant of my own. Technical integrity transcends any technology. Knowing what you can do, deferring to betters or others who can do things suited to the customer are part this. Being in technical pre-sales for me this is very important. I am sure the sales guys can sell the business the dream but set the reality and the technical expectations. This doesn’t look like Powerpoint anymore Toto. This is especially important as people speak. Our world is connected more than ever. Both digitally and within geographies. I work in Melbourne, Australia and the IT market is connected. Socially people are cross pollinated. If you say you can do something you better deliver otherwise people will hear about it. Your technical reputation would take a hit. This also has an impact on your career.

Career is an interesting point. You’re your career. Your career is far more important than any one technology or solutions. The career is what will provide for you and your loved ones for many decades. The plan is that you hopefully work doing something you enjoy and forge your professional reputation based on the quality of your work. Spinning FUD and promulgating mistrust is something that can erode the value of your position. It can also make you un-hireable having very opinionated views and stubbornness (right or wrong) from a perception of you real life due to an online persona or facade.

This doesn’t apply to those people who don’t care. They will sell the vision, the dream, no matter the technical deficiencies. Those people probably don’t read blogs.

So if you read this and I am in your meeting know that my technical integrity is on the line with everything I saw and do. I am not going to risk that for anything.