New career advice forum for IT professionals

There are lots of online forums geared toward IT professionals, and certainly, plenty of websites dispense career advice (including CIO.com). But I was not aware of a standalone online forum specifically geared toward IT professionals’ careers until I found out about Ivy Tango.  

Ivy Tango is an online community where IT professionals can give and receive career advice. It launched mid-April 2009 and functions as a basic discussion forum where registered users can post career-related questions and answers. To register, you need only provide an e-mail address and come up with a password. As of June 1, Ivy Tango had 187 members and 157 posts. (I’m now a member, having registered as “Meridith.”)

Topics for discussion include résumés, job offers, compensation, benefits, dealing with recruiters, consulting and contracting, job boards, networking, social networking, relocation, immigration, and on the job issues (such as dealing with cranky co-workers).

Among the more spirited discussions, members are debating whether to take a job that’s being offered or to wait for a better offer; how to ask for a raise in a recession (a topic I’ve addressed); and whether to report an obnoxious HR person to a hiring manager. 

Ivy Tango was created by Project One, an IT consulting and staffing firm. For now, Ivy Tango is simply a PR vehicle for Project One; the company is not trying to make money off the forum, says Gary Zander, Project One’s president. 

“Our intent is not to use this [forum] as a means to generate direct dollars,” says Zander. “We’re doing this as kind of a public service. We’re constantly bombarded with questions from candidates who call us. We thought there was an opportunity to give back to candidates, to create an environment where they can pose questions and give advice to one another.” 

If Ivy Tango takes off and its membership grows, Zander says Project One might use it to get marketing and sales leads, but currently that’s not the company’s or the forum’s focus.

Give Ivy Tango a look. I’ve found members’ responses to questions to be helpful, practical and good-natured. Members seem genuinely interested in sharing their two cents and helping others–always a good sign in a forum. As Zander says, “This is the kind of thing where the larger it grows, the better it is for everybody.” 

I plan to post my numerous opinions on Ivy Tango. I hope I’ll find yours there, too.