A question for members who work in Indian MNC's

[hotshot05]

If I join an Indian MNC(service company) and am allocated a domain(e.g mainframe or testing) which I do not like, will I able to jump to some other domain some years down the line?

If I am allocated a Testing profile but use my spare time to contribute to open source software or write programs to solve some problems and then release it for use by the public or participate in coding competitions, will I be able to use that in my CV to jump to a developer profile?

If I am working in the JAVA domain but after a few years don't enjoy it any more, will i be able to shift to using a new language? If I can show that I done some useful work in my spare time using the new language, will that be of any help?

Will there be a chance of joining a product company like Adobe, Paypal, Amazon after I have worked for a few years in an Indian services MNC? Or will that be a negative point on my CV?

I am an EE by education. After working for 3-4 years, if I study M.Tech in any computer related subject from IIIT, will it be of any help to my career?
I mentioned IIIT since they conduct their own examination. For IIT's and NIT's, I will have to give GATE and I don't think I will be allowed to give GATE in a stream other than the one which I studied during my graduation.

 

[Criminal]

Answer to all of your queries except the last one (higher studies) depends on the company you work for:

It'll be all YES if: the company has good set of core values and treat their employees as assets. Such companies promote open culture (not referring to open source programming) and listen to their employees.

It'll be all NO if it's a lala-type company, whose main interest is to earn money and nothing else. Most indian companies fall in this category.

Higher studies: Currently there is no demand for higher studies in IT. Check out the jobs section in major newspapers. Most of them will explicitly mention that Masters and PhDs not required! I can't say if the situation will change after couple of years.

 

[Onemufc]

In theory the answer to all your questions in Yes.

However in practice this is a big NO especially for service based companies.

 

[raksrules]

No. Simple. You will not be allowed to move across technologies. This is the bitter truth.

 

[Criminal]

^^ Come on, I have moved across totally different domains with full support of company leadership.

 

[hotshot05]

If I leave the company and join a new company, will I be able to jump to a new domain if I can prove my competence?

 

[raksrules]

^^ Come on, I have moved across totally different domains with full support of company leadership.

Yes and that is rare. You were probably lucky on that front. Its not always easy in most cases.

 

[Criminal]

No, I won't owe it to my luck.

 

[raksrules]

No, I won't owe it to my luck.

Ok you pushing for it and hard work also ok ?
Whatever be it, it is not always easy to switch technologies.

 

[Criminal]

^^ don't make up unnecessary statements on someone else's behalf. I wrote whatever I wanted to say in my first post... it depends on the company.

Switching technologies is very very easy but changing the domains altogether a different story... it's like one day you are a farmer and next day want to become a surgeon. Maybe you need to see how things work in other companies. I have worked in 5 different companies in 4 countries. Everywhere I went, I found Indian managers to have the worst mentality.

Do you think anyone in the world would care if OP wants to switch to some other language from JAVA?

If I am working in the JAVA domain but after a few years don't enjoy it any more, will i be able to shift to using a new language?

Anyone from computer science background would know languages are just a means to code or interact with a system (not just computer systems). If you know coding fundamentals then languages don't matter. And managers/LT with respectable credentials don't see any reason to keep someone tied to one particular language. One can never survive for too long in a service industry if he/she is not agile enough to learn different technologies, languages, skills etc. People are shuffled around projects a lot and it helps to know something other than just JAVA!

 

[raksrules]

I guess the OP mentioned 'Indian' MNCs so we are not talking about companies in other countries unless it is onsite through an Indian MNC. And Indian MNCs include the Indian managers which are the worst in my opinion too.

 

[mathrisk]

I have met people switching technology domain near 2/3 years of experience.
Two of my friends moved to testing from dev - one did some certification on testing.
But its hard to move otherwise - unless you switch company.

The shifting to different tech/domain involves two steps
1. Getting released from current project/assignment : dude, this is tough. Managers do not want to lose a 'resource' after 'grooming' for 2/3+ years in the current project.
2. Getting selected into project of your choice : if you do not have prior experience in the technology (or business domain), Managers do not feel comfortable taking a 2/3 year exp guy.

Switching the company nullify the first and about the second - you just have convince the interviewer. (Not always easy, but easier than doing inside. )

About about languages, JAVA, C# - well, its easy to learn a language. Most are just a bunch of syntax over OOPs. But what desired from a 'resource' are knowledge of frameworks - JEE stuffs, .NETs like WPF, WCF etc. - and its kinda tough to get a good hold of them unless you work on them as most of them are vast and some serves very specific requirements.

 

[hotshot05]

The company that I am talking about, its name starts with a C and it is a company which is registered in the USA even though it is an Indian company from all angles.

Any idea how they treat their employees?

 

[pradeep200417]

Ok here is my view point about shifting technologies.
Once you gain expertise in any thing, they don't easily let you shift, unless there is a dearth of good people in the domain of your choice. Then they might shift you.
So usually , unless you suck at wat you are currently doing, they wouldn't let you shift.
More often, I have seen, that instead of you choosing technologies, they dump technologies on you, If there are no projects on your current skill set and they cant afford to keep you on bench for long.
For example one of my friends who was working in C in his previous company for 4 years, was asked to work on PL/SQL when he changed companies.
Worst thing was there was this functional consultant with little coding knowledge, who was asked to work on Java.
I myself was dumped with a different tech when i shifted companies. I worked on one thing for 4 years and when i shifted, i was put on something else, since there were no skilled people working in that particular technology. It turned out to be good for me though.

Yeah, but sometimes i have seen people making domain/technology change, as their superiors were very understanding.
Language wise everything is almost same. If you can learn one language, other becomes simpler.

 

[axeman]

shifting technologies is easier if you do a relevant industry certification first.
myself, I was into networking heavily with cisco certs etc. wanted to move into the adjacent field so ended up doing one to move into audit and consulting, and then two major ones and some other obscure ones to move into core Infosec.

 

[booo]

when you are working for a service based company; you will be working for a client who sits in us and outsources work. now, your manager's duty is to please him in by all means that he has. So after you work for two years in a project, ideally you would become a senior resource to that project with lot of domain knowledge in that project. At this point in your life you feel that life sucks and want a change, the manager will never agree.
I mean, think from the manager's perspective, why would he move you out and get someone else who has no knowledge of the product in first place? what if the client gets mad?

though you can move from dev to test, a tester can never become a dev. we devs wont let it happen. simpal. just speaking my mind out.

 

[hotshot05]

For how long does a project continue anyway?
After it has been coded, tested and shipped to the customer, only a few people should be required for maintenance and testing. Right?

 

[Lord Nemesis]

In services based companies, moving from Testing to Dev is highly likely and rare. Such companies have a very rigid mindset about it. Working across technologies/programming languages is not so rare.
In Product based companies, I have seen White box testers move to Dev. I have also seen black box testers in their initial years of service move to Dev within same or other companies. In fact Microsoft hired a Black box tester from my previous company for a developer role. However, such changes are very rare after you get some years of experience. Movement from Tester to Product Manager role is much more common though.

Regarding the last part, Companies like Adobe and Amazon (don't know about PayPal) have a specific set things that they seem to use when calling people for interviews.

1. You have a suitable degree from a decent institution.
2. You have a matching skill set on your resume.
3. You are able to clear their recruitment process.

They don't really care that much where you have been working. Even your educational qualifications are more important than where you were working. Their logic is that the recruitment process itself is good enough hurdle that they can filter out any undeserving people.

As for Amazon, these days, they have been gaining a bad reputation for poor work culture and employee dissatisfaction. So I am not sure if it should even be bunched together with other biggies like Adobe, MS or Google. No one seems to be staying there for more than a year. I would caution you research and understand what you are getting into if you have any aspirations to join Amazon in future.

Yes, they pay good money, but everything else about them seems to be cheap. In return for the pay, they expect you to work like a donkey whenever and where ever they want without any sense of personal time or space. They don't care if you are sick, taken leave for your marriage or if somebody in your family died or any other emergency and they don't mind making you work in your personal time. When my company was hiring, we used to get a good number of applicants from who have been at Amazon for less than one year. Recently, I heard from one of the colleagues that his friend left Amazon after he was forced to work on the weekend day that his father passed away and had to perform last rites. His managers reasoning was that since the company is paying good money, his obligations to work are more important than his personal emergencies. When he expressed his wish to resign, the manager didn't even try to talk to him and told him that he can get in touch with HR and resign anytime he wants. I have heard similar bad experiences from several other former Amazon employees many of whom resigned from the company without even having any other offer in hand. Most of them had differences with their managers. They seem to be breeding bad managers.

 

[pradeep200417]

In services based companies, moving from Testing to Dev is highly likely and rare. Such companies have a very rigid mindset about it. Working across technologies/programming languages is not so rare.
In Product based companies, I have seen White box testers move to Dev. I have also seen black box testers in their initial years of service move to Dev within same or other companies. In fact Microsoft hired a Black box tester from my previous company for a developer role. However, such changes are very rare after you get some years of experience. Movement from Tester to Product Manager role is much more common though.

Regarding the last part, Companies like Adobe and Amazon (don't know about PayPal) have a specific set things that they seem to use when calling people for interviews.

1. You have a suitable degree from a decent institution.
2. You have a matching skill set on your resume.
3. You are able to clear their recruitment process.

They don't really care that much where you have been working. Even your educational qualifications are more important than where you were working. Their logic is that the recruitment process itself is good enough hurdle that they can filter out any undeserving people.

As for Amazon, these days, they have been gaining a bad reputation for poor work culture and employee dissatisfaction. So I am not sure if it should even be bunched together with other biggies like Adobe, MS or Google. No one seems to be staying there for more than a year. I would caution you research and understand what you are getting into if you have any aspirations to join Amazon in future.

Yes, they pay good money, but everything else about them seems to be cheap. In return for the pay, they expect you to work like a donkey whenever and where ever they want without any sense of personal time or space. They don't care if you are sick, taken leave for your marriage or if somebody in your family died or any other emergency and they don't mind making you work in your personal time. When my company was hiring, we used to get a good number of applicants from who have been at Amazon for less than one year. Recently, I heard from one of the colleagues that his friend left Amazon after he was forced to work on the weekend day that his father passed away and had to perform last rites. His managers reasoning was that since the company is paying good money, his obligations to work are more important than his personal emergencies. When he expressed his wish to resign, the manager didn't even try to talk to him and told him that he can get in touch with HR and resign anytime he wants. I have heard similar bad experiences from several other former Amazon employees many of whom resigned from the company without even having any other offer in hand. Most of them had differences with their managers. They seem to be breeding bad managers.

Amazon seems like very bad.

 

[hotshot05]

What are the things that I can do if I get assigned to Mainframes. I was reading about it online. Seems that most of the work is maintaining code which was written 20-30 years ago. Does Cobol, PL/I have much of a demand in the modern IT world?

What are options if one is assigned Mainframes in the BFSI domain? (Are mainframes used in any other domain? )