Finance Top Career Alternative for IT Execs

• 08/02/1999

If they had not opted for careers in technology, many IT executives would be busy tracking their firms’ budgets and capital expenditures, according to a recent survey of chief information officers (CIOs). When asked which field they would have entered if they had not pursued positions in IT, one in five respondents (21 percent) said accounting and finance. Teaching ranked second, receiving 15 percent of the response.

RHI Consulting, a leading specialized consulting firm that provides information technology professionals on a project basis, developed the survey. Conducted by an independent research firm, the survey includes responses from 1,400 CIOs from a stratified random sample of U.S. companies with more than 100 employees.

CIOs were asked, "If you had not chosen a career in technology, which field would you have been most likely to pursue?" Following are the results among the more than 1,200 CIOs who cited an alternate career in response to the question:

Among other careers mentioned by technology executives were music, transportation, politics and broadcasting.

"Both finance and information technology positions require math aptitude, problem-solving abilities and strong analytical skills, among other strengths," says Greg Scileppi, Executive Director of RHI Consulting. "As a result, these fields are likely to attract individuals with similar talents."

Scileppi added that, increasingly, training is a growing part of an IT professional’s job, which should appeal to those who may have passed up a career in teaching. "As companies upgrade software and install new systems, both one-on-one and group instruction is more common. Also, technology initiatives frequently require the ability to communicate complex concepts in non-technical terms, another quality associated with effective teaching," he said.

Visit RHI Consulting’s Web site at www.rhic.com.