T-SQL Tuesday #028 – Is it really specialization?

This is the first time I've participated in T-SQL Tuesday - I hope to do so more often...

I can recall several years ago being a jack of all trades kind of guy. I was doing development, security, server support, workstation support, database support, and even working with the physical time clocks. I was actually quite happy – I even moved my family close to the job so that I could be home more often.

While I was there, I realized something. There are a LOT of jack of all trades people out there. With this realization – I looked at the IT horizon and decided I would either specialize in Information Security or SQL Server. Both areas of specialization play to my natural personality traits – persistent pursuit of truth and knowledge combined with complex problem solving skills. For my next position, I decided I would put out my resume and whichever job I was hired for first (security or DBA) I would make that my specialization. Fortunately, I landed a full time DBA job. I have taken that role very seriously and have enjoyed the knowledge and experience gained.

That being said, the more “specialized” I get, the more I realize I’m not specialized. I’m a jack of all trades, it’s just that the trades that I’m a “jack of” are just less common. When I chose to be a database professional (or it chose me), I came to realize that there were developers, engineers, and DBAs. My desire for automation lent itself to the DBA role of those three, further specializing my career. As a DBA, I found myself doing SSIS, SSRS, SSAS, and the Database Engine. I decided to further specialize in the database engine. In the general IT space, this may seem specialized, but in the SQL Server space, this is not.

Even at this level, there is much more specialization to be had even within the database engine. There is HADR (mirroring, clustering, replication backups), Performance (indexes, OS, query tuning), Monitoring (Agent, Alerts, logs), Security (auditing, permissions), and Logical Design. I’ve met several professionals who I would consider to have been specialized even within this area as you start to dive into the storage engine, the query optimizer, memory management, connectivity, etc.

To me, specialization isn’t about finding a niche, it’s about recursion. It’s about chasing your passions to places your current peers may not travel to. Once there, it’s about recognizing where within this now reduced area of expertise you can further pursue your passions and distinguish yourself amongst the new peers only to find a whole new set of challenges and specialties to pursue.

I expect that one day, I will be forced to settle in an area whether it be by my own lack of ability to pursue the next level or by environmental factors, but until then, the journey continues.


About Kyle Neier
Husband of a magnificent woman, father of 5, SQL Server geek, IndyPASS Vice President and Food Guy, DBA automation zealot, amateur Powershell evangelist. Follow Me on Twitter

Delivering Three PTI SQL 2012 Firestarter Webcasts

I have been given the opportunity to deliver a few webcasts about some of the new features of SQL Server 2012 over the next couple of months for Perpetual Technologies.

You'll get to hear me share the greatness that is SQL Server during the following sessions:

2/16/2012
Throwing T-SQL 2012 Enhancements Against the Wall
Just like your grandma tested spaghetti to tell if it was done, we'll be throwing several of the new T-SQL enhancements against the wall to see what's good and what falls off. We'll silence the lion's RaiseRror by throwing some meaty exceptions. We'll bring together the old lovers "Coalesce" and "+" for one last jaunt before they are banished by the Concat function. We'll even open the window on some of the new aggregate and analytical functions as well as some other t-sql enhancements introduced in SQL 2012.

3/8/2012
SSIS 2012 – New and Improved
SQL Server Integration Services has been used by many a DBA through the "Import and Export Wizard" or through the use of Maintenance Plans. However, SSIS has been adopted by many organizations as the platform of choice for moving data to and from disparate data repositories. SQL 2012 introduces several enhancements to SSIS for both the administrator and the development team. These enhancements will be explored as we compare and contrast SSIS in previous versions with SQL 2012.

3/29/2012
Extended Events – The Death Knell of SQL Trace
Extended Events has been around for a couple of versions of SQL Server, but beginning in 2012 has an important role – replacing SQL Trace. We'll dive into how to use Extended Events just as you would use Profiler to create a trace. We'll also be exploring the new APIs and Powershell enhancements that make Extended Events a 2012 feature to be learned, loved, and utilized.

Over this same time frame, my colleagues will be delivering webcasts on topics such as MDS, DQS, Reporting Services, and Analysis services:

2/9/2012
Utilizing Knowledge with Data Quality Services in SQL Server 2012
Data operations are not only about getting data in and out of a given system but also ensuring that the data is suitable for usage. We've all heard of the phrase "Bad data in, bad data out" and what good is data to us if we cannot ensure that it is correct. Most of the time we write lots of code within stored procedures and functions to compensate for our lack of a system that can help us out with this part of the data food chain. Lucky for us, Microsoft SQL Server 2012 comes with a product known as Data Quality Services (DQS), whose main goals are not only improve your data quality but also to make it much easier to implement and maintain. In this session, we will be looking at what it takes to get DQS up and running in your environment, how to set up Knowledge Bases, and how to utilize the system with tools like SSIS and Master Data Services.
Presented By: Arie Jones

2/23/2012
Enhancements to Reporting Services in SQL Server 2012
Reporting is one of the best ROI features of any business intelligence project because it allows the end user to view the results of all of your hard work. In SQL Server 2012, Microsoft has provided a couple of useful upgrades to our tried and true Reporting Services framework. More importantly, is the release of Power View (formerly known as Project Crescent) which allows you end users to visualize, interact, and perform sophisticated analyses on their own. In this session, we will cover all of the upgrades involved in the new version of SSRS as well as demo some of the slickness of the Power View tool.
Presented By: Shaun Watts

3/1/2012
AlwaysOn – Way to get your 9's?
We are always being told 9's, 9's and more 9's, but when implementation time comes to take action, technology/budget limitations get in the way, especially in the High Availability and Disaster Recovery (HA/DR) technology space. Clustering and Mirroring are great and meet many of our needs, but there are some things we have wished for, such as a mirror database that is usable. AlwaysOn solves this limitation by merging both Mirroring and Multi-Node Multi-Subnet Clustering (True Geo-Clustering Support!!!). AlwaysOn also allows the replica database to be used in a Read-Only capacity, so we can use it for reporting purposes. (Imagine that!) Join us in providing a warm welcome to this new functionality with extensive demos of setting up, configuring and testing AlwaysOn and all of it in an effort to afford the 9's we are always being asked.
Presented By: Warren Sifre

3/15/2012
PowerPivot & BISM in SQL Server 2012 OH MY!
PowerPivot is one of Microsoft's self-service Business Intelligence tools released with R2 but it was a serious v 1.0 type of environment. Now with its second release Microsoft has ramped up the capabilities and given us a new toy known as the BI Semantic Model. In this presentation we will delve into all the new goodies and show you how these tools will change the way that you develop and implement your business intelligence offerings.
Presented By: Hope Foley

3/22/2012
SSAS 2012 – What BISM Means to You!
The data revolution continues and with revolutions come evolutions. Implementing and using SSAS has always been synonymous with cost and expertise. With the newest evolution of the SSAS platform from UDM to BISM there is an enhanced focus on data proliferation amongst the non-BI specialist of the world. The new BI Semantic Model introduces new components such as the Tabular Data Model and Vertipaq, which allows for quick SSAS DB creations with the intent on having widely available content originating from a Pivot source. We will discuss the impact the BISM will have in the BI architecture as well as review some of the new options within SSAS Configurations.
Presented By: Warren Sifre

You can click here or visit http://www.pti.net/Firestarter/ to sign up.