The title says it all, how do people regard plain in-sight mod's (and hidden ones) in the current Information Technology Industry?
At A Glance Author anonymous Contact [email protected] When It just happened My experience thus far, has been that many people pretend to have an understanding and a tolerence for mod'd folk when they actually are just doing that, pretending.
Now my understanding is that in todays society mod's are becoming more acceptable... to a certain extent. For instance an ear piercing or eyebrow piercing are fairly common place, and accepted. Whilst a full facial tattoo might be frowned upon.
Now let me give some background examples, to help understanding from my point of view:
- My meeting for acceptance to a technical college, at the time I was sporting a few eyebrow piercings, a small bridge and a new labret. My opinion of the meeting was for an understanding of the technical requirements while taking the course... but the topic of dress code did come up (and discussion of my piercings with the instructors to ensure they didn't have any problems)
- After completion of the course, and on the job hunt. For the most part finding interviewers and such accepting. Although the more corporate shops (READ = future shop etc) have a simple line for dress code and make you follow it. As opposed to a small firm or consultantancy office where they are flexible and sometimes curious.
- Job Interview with a particular fellow, I remember going for a drive to explain some of the work required. He mentioned needing to learn a thing or two about a certain product, so I figured BME was a good place to start. I posted an ad looking for tutoring style help and got a reply. After telling my possible employer, he wanted to know where I had found this contact... I actually was talking to him on the phone at the time as he surfed to BME, he sounded fairly surprised and also very skeptical. It turns out the job only lasted a week, due to un-related circumstances. But his reaction was that of a very closed mind person, and surprised me quite a bit... considering that he was taking a leap by wanting to hire me.
- Current job of sorts, small business, nice friendly couple owns the store(s). Now here is a strange situation, as I no longer have any visible mods. My first thought would be of unaccepting, since this is a small town. I am also curious as to how a sudden tattoo or piercing would affect our working relationship, since it is currently very productive and vibrant. I would anticipate a period of hesitation and discomfort on their part, until they get used to the fact that it DOESN'T make me into a monster.
- A story told by a friend, who's mother worked for a large software company. The tale was such that, the current advertising campaign for the company was geared towards the younger generation of software buyers. So they decided to hire a few young people (full of mods) to demonstrate how open-minded the company is towards this sort of thing. But we all know the truth is that those people would have had a much harder time getting hired had this campaign not been taking place.
- Gamers/Computer folk being labeled as 'hackers'?
Yes its true, if you use a computer more than 2 hours a day, and have piercings, tattoos or other mods ... the generic is that you are a hacker. Or up to some other no good activity. I have read a good many number of articles, such as this small snippet courtesy of webMRG.com
"A recent Vault.com survey shows that many managers believe tattoos and body piercings don't belong in the workplace.
Of the 500 respondents who are managers, 42 percent said they would think less of someone with a tattoo or piercing. Fifty-eight percent said they would be less likely to hire a tattooed or pierced job candidate. Interestingly, 44 percent of the managers said they had tattoos or non-ear piercings themselves.
Advice: Cover the body illustrations and leave any non-traditional body hardware at home when interviewing for a job."
Now does that seem fair to you?
This is taking back from the days of color segregation, no offence intended.
So from my small experience, it is hard to pinpoint the general feeling... and that would be true anyways! You can't simply say 'this industry hates mods' because that would be impossible.
It's hard to generalize the I.T Industry as well, since that can range from small shops to in-house setups. It is safe to say that the trend is swinging towards acceptance, as opposed to a few year. But don't expect to walk into an IBM branch office and secure a job (without loosing the metal).