A network engineer in search of greener pastures

State of the Tech Job Market

• Many argue the market isn’t “broken” so much as shifted sharply toward employers: fewer openings, more applicants, more selectivity.
• Others say it is broken for everyone: companies waste resources on churn and distrustful hiring that yields frequent departures.
• COVID-era over‑hiring is seen as having inflated expectations; current conditions feel like a correction.

Network Engineering, Sysadmin, and the Cloud Shift

• Strong consensus that traditional “rack-and-stack” networking/sysadmin roles have shrunk, especially at startups and cloud‑first companies.
• Cloud, managed services, Terraform, and “DevOps/SRE who also do networking/security” make dedicated network roles rarer and pushed toward big enterprises, telcos, and data centers.
• Several suggest the author is under-skilled or underselling skills for modern infra roles and should pivot toward DevOps/SRE/infra/security engineering.
• Some push back that physical infrastructure and “tinkerers” still matter, just outside FAANG and at lower pay or in non‑tech industries.

Degrees, Certifications, and Professionalization

• Multiple comments say lack of a degree is a real filter now when supply is high; cert‑only candidates face an uphill battle, especially for advancement.
• Others note degrees stop mattering much after ~30 if your work history is strong.
• Debate over whether software/IT should move toward licensing like medicine/law; many oppose licensing as protectionist “cartels.”

Hiring Processes, AI Filters, and Job Boards

• Automated rejection based on degree or clearance requirements is seen as expected, not necessarily “AI gone wild.”
• Some report AI/ATS filters wrongly auto‑rejecting strong candidates, even when they were directly invited to apply.
• Opinions split on tailoring resumes: some find it essential; others say it’s wasted effort in a flooded market.
• Frustration with Workday-style portals, duplicate data entry, SSN collection, and even required Loom videos; several abandon such applications.
• One commenter speculates multi-step forms plus resumes might also serve to train AI models.

Networking and the Hidden Job Market

• Strong theme: most good jobs never hit public boards; referrals/personal networks dominate.
• Advice: attend meetups, tech talks, conferences; lean on senior contacts; target specific companies directly.
• Several claim nearly all their roles came via reputation/referrals, not cold applications.

Diversity, Demographics, and Legal/Ethical Concerns

• Collection of demographic and sexual orientation data is viewed by some as discriminatory and uncomfortable.
• Others explain it’s legally mandated for larger/federal contractors and should be kept separate from hiring decisions, with “prefer not to answer” always available.
• Skepticism persists that, in practice, demographic goals might influence decisions despite official rules.

Labor Power and Immigration Policy

• Some advocate collective political action and stricter enforcement of prevailing wage rules for visas (e.g., H1B) to prevent undercutting wages and to protect domestic workers.
• Others note any “labor cartel” only works when workers have real scarcity/bargaining power.

Meta: Blog Typography

• Thread repeatedly criticizes the blog’s original font/contrast as hard to read, especially for dyslexic readers; some liked it as expressive/unique.
• The author reportedly reverted to a more readable font in response.