SolarWinds IT Pro Day Survey 2021

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* 3. What size is your organization?

Small (1-100 employees)

Medium (100-1000 employees)

Large (1000+ employees)

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* 4. Do you work in the public or private sector?

Public

Private

Both

I don’t know / unable to say

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* 5. Had you always planned a career in tech/IT, or did you enter the field via another career/path?

I'm a "lifer." I trained for a tech career, got a job in tech, and have been here the whole time

I went to school for something else but landed in tech (almost) right out of school.

I skipped college/university entirely and jumped straight into tech out of high school.

I started off in a completely different field/type of work and pivoted to tech later.

None of the above

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* 6. If you’re someone who didn’t start out your career in tech/IT, how would you rate how challenging the transition to the tech/IT world was? Select one.

N/A - I started my career in tech/IT

Extremely challenging

Somewhat challenging

I didn’t find it very challenging—there were many transferable skills

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* 7. The past year has been a learning curve for all tech pros. What technical skills do you believe you have learned or built on this year that will help enhance your career in the future? [Select all that apply]

Programming languages

Databases

Automation

Network management

Troubleshooting

Security

Cloud platforms

Other (please specify)

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* 8. What non-technical skills have you practiced in the past year that you believe will help enhance your career in the future? [Select all that apply]

Project management

Leadership/management skills (budgeting, resourcing, negotiation, decision making, hiring)

Communication (public speaking, written documents, etc.)

Innovative or creative problem solving

Collaboration (listening, teamwork, networking, etc.)

Confidence

Business acumen

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* 9. What are some of the skills you find useful at work that have been developed by lessons learned at home or in general daily life? [Select all that apply]

Time management, e.g., prioritization or organization

Teamwork

Communication skills (verbal and non-verbal)

Problem solving

Interpersonal skills, e.g., patience, flexibility, adaptability

People management skills, e.g., training, mentorship

None of the above

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* 10. Do you believe you’ve gained skills, either from hobbies/interests or “side hustles,” that help you in your day-to-day role as a tech pro?

Yes

N/A - I don’t have many relevant hobbies/interests

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* 11. Share some of your hobbies/interests/side hustles that have helped you grow as an IT pro

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* 12. What was the biggest positive lesson you learned about yourself in the past year? [Select all that apply]

I’m more capable than I realized

I work great in a team

I perform better as an individual contributor

I have leadership skills

I love what I do

I’m proud of what I do

N/A - none apply to me

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* 13. How would you describe your level of responsibility?

I have a large amount of responsibility

I have a healthy amount of responsibility

I have the bandwidth to take on more responsibility

None of the above

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* 14. Are you expecting your responsibility to increase at work over the next year?

Yes, I’m expecting my responsibility to increase

I’m expecting my responsibility to stay the same

No, I’m expecting my level of responsibility to decrease this year

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* 15. Do you feel you have new opportunities for career growth at work this year?

Yes, I feel I will have many opportunities to develop my career this year

I feel there will be a few opportunities to develop my career this year

No, I don’t think there will be very many opportunities to develop my career this year

None of the above

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* 16. After a tough year in the tech/IT world, how motivated do you feel to succeed at work this year? Select one statement you most agree with.

I’m extremely motivated. I’ve set myself goals and I want to achieve all of them. Let’s do it!

I’m fairly motivated and looking forward to seeing what I can do.

I’m content with what I currently do. My motivation at work has not changed.

I’m not as motivated as before. I’m tired.

I’m burnt out. I’m not very motivated and could do with a break.

N/A - None of these statements apply to me.

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* 17. How do you expect IT operations in your business to evolve in the new normal? [Select all that apply]

Accelerated adoption of next-generation IT operations solutions

Implementation of new tools and processes for security, compliance, and risk

More collaborative technologies

Increase in deployed monitoring solutions for greater visibility

Bigger IT teams

More training for IT teams

Increase in budget and resources for IT

Decrease in budget and resources for IT

Other (please specify)

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* 18. What’s the biggest challenge you and/or your company expect you will face this year? [Select all that apply]

Shifting to full return-to-office

Shifting to a hybrid workspace

Burnout

Cyberthreats

Increased/unmanageable workload

Lack of leadership support

Managing legacy/new cloud-based application

Implementing new products/services

Technical skills gap

Struggle to hire for specific roles

Something else (specify below)

Other (please specify)

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* 19. What do you believe is your biggest opportunity at work in the next year? [Select all that apply]

Being part of the decision-making processes

Project management (overseeing a big project, implementing new tool/solution company-wide)

Pay raise

Promotion

Continuous education, gaining new skills and certifications

Training or mentoring others

Other (please specify)

SolarWinds IT Pro Day Survey 2021

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* 1. Where are you based?

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* 2. Which of the following roles most closely aligns with your daily responsibilities/tasks? Choose one.

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* 3. What size is your organization?

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* 4. Do you work in the public or private sector?

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* 5. Had you always planned a career in tech/IT, or did you enter the field via another career/path?

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* 6. If you’re someone who didn’t start out your career in tech/IT, how would you rate how challenging the transition to the tech/IT world was? Select one.

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* 7. The past year has been a learning curve for all tech pros. What technical skills do you believe you have learned or built on this year that will help enhance your career in the future? [Select all that apply]

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* 8. What non-technical skills have you practiced in the past year that you believe will help enhance your career in the future? [Select all that apply]

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* 9. What are some of the skills you find useful at work that have been developed by lessons learned at home or in general daily life? [Select all that apply]

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* 10. Do you believe you’ve gained skills, either from hobbies/interests or “side hustles,” that help you in your day-to-day role as a tech pro?

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* 11. Share some of your hobbies/interests/side hustles that have helped you grow as an IT pro

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* 12. What was the biggest positive lesson you learned about yourself in the past year? [Select all that apply]

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* 13. How would you describe your level of responsibility?

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* 14. Are you expecting your responsibility to increase at work over the next year?

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* 15. Do you feel you have new opportunities for career growth at work this year?

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* 16. After a tough year in the tech/IT world, how motivated do you feel to succeed at work this year? Select one statement you most agree with.

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* 17. How do you expect IT operations in your business to evolve in the new normal? [Select all that apply]

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* 18. What’s the biggest challenge you and/or your company expect you will face this year? [Select all that apply]

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* 19. What do you believe is your biggest opportunity at work in the next year? [Select all that apply]

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* 20. Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey. To claim your THWACK points, please enter your THWACK username (not email address) below.