Thoughts? In mid-30s in tech field and looking for advice for next phase in career

[Anonymous]

I have a software engineering degree and am currently leading a 8 - 12 person team that involves onsite and offsite staff. I've basically built this team from the ground up (including hiring and managing the majority of them) and have been wanting to jump to the next thing for a while and am finally ready for it (great team, horrible unsupportive management). I have a good feel for project management as well (part of my role was also securing funding by going to sponsors, finding new internal use cases, making sure the project remained relevant re. business the organization's business case, etc.). Being that age discrimination is a concern in tech (particularly software) I want to figure out how do I transition to my next phase. I'm considering transitioning to a cyber business area because that seems to be more current and more applicable to just the federal domain. Either that or medical. Once I switch (assuming it is internal to where I work) I suppose I need to start climbing the ladder again. I guess my general question is 1.) are there general guidelines to stay marketable and 2.) are their any domains that are more transferable commercially than others? I work for large UARC so we have a very broad technology base so I'd like to take advantage of that. I'd consider moving to a different company or purely commercial but my husband is working for a startup so I'm trying to focus on more stable or long term options for right now.

TIA.

[Anonymous]

Most folks on these boards seem to be lawyers or lobbyists, I fear engineers are few and far between.

I would look at medical potentially as there is a lot of opportunity to low hanging fruit since most medical records and systems seem stuck in the past.

By cyber? I think you mean cyber security? I think this is less marketable outside of DOD/NSA and other TLA security agencies. Sure other agencies and companies all pay lip service to security but never a growth industry. Now with china and all there may be real work to be done, if w tak it seriously. But with sequester thrashing DOD budgets its kinds and unknown.

With medical tech, it often blooms most when cost cutting is most Cervantes because it is seen as boosting efficiency and reducing errors.

And I think we are similar age (late 30s) and I am in a more junior position as I have no team to manage, but when I hear cyber I think of early 90s information superhighway and the like. I think this is especially true in Silicon Valley where ageism is the more entrenched, so portability is an issue.

[Anonymous]

Oh and no on will understand UARC, I didn't and I know people who work at APL! Is there even another one in the area besides that one?

[Anonymous]

I went through this and the best thing? Clearance and solutions architect. Not including corporate executives they get paid the most and can focus on the fun creative stuff. Management can be done by a large pool of people but competent and clear able architects are hard too find.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, APL is the only one local. There are loads others tho, most notably JPL in Pasedena (CalTech) and Lincoln Labs (MIT) in Boston. Thanks for the thoughts, PPs. I just started freaking out this weekend about not changing a couple of years ago because I was gun-shy because I was pregnant. So much for leaning in. Le sigh.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I went through this and the best thing? Clearance and solutions architect. Not including corporate executives they get paid the most and can focus on the fun creative stuff. Management can be done by a large pool of people but competent and clear able architects are hard too find.

Definitely over the last 10 years, clearance architecture jobs were a solid lead, but with the winding down the 'War on Terror' and Sequestrations special pinch on DOD, do you think going forward it is a good plan?

And no portability: Silicon Valley couldn't care less about security (though they should!); NYC Tech might care, but they only really respond to real money loss not simply perceived risks (hence 2008 and the resulting crash/depression the Fed is still stimulating to get us out of).

Not bashing, just curious when you made this job shift and if you still think same environment exists or if market has shifted?