[Info-ingres] So we advertised for a new DBA...?

[Roy Hann]

Martin Bowes wrote:

> I'm curious.
> 
> We (aka Oxford University) advertised for a new DBA. The position was
> offered with a salary of up to £47,722pa, full time, 3 years fixed in
> the first instance. The advert did mention we are mainly Ingres on Linux
> but with other engines (Postgres, SQL Server) and platforms.
> 
> Not one person with Ingres DBA experience applied.
> 
> Why? Seriously, I was disappointed.
> 
> Does anyone have any thoughts they'd like to share on that?

My first guess is that the places you advertised don't have the reach
you hoped. The most "target rich" places to advertise--where the Ingres
DBAs would once be expected to hang out--have been left behind by
technology trends. Who still uses NNTP groups or mailing lists?
Furthermore, as you and I have discussed many times re marketing IUA
events, only a tiny minority of Ingres users ever looked at forums
like this. I have talked to hundreds of Ingres users over the years
and I can probably count on the fingers of my hands the number I
encountered "in the wild" who had ever looked at any kind of
Ingres-specific forum.

One day we should try to do a head-count here...

As for the notion that they're all retiring, I disbelieve that.
Sure, Ingres has been around long enough that some are retiring but that
was true 20 years ago too. But you and I both have a way to go before
retirement age.

Paul's suggestion that the role of DBA is no longer really a thing rings
true. I have a whole long rant I could do on THAT subject but I
have to head for the airport shortly.

Roy