Part 3 – Professional Associations and User Groups
We already know how to prepare outstanding resume. We’ve also learnt about value of mentors and coaches in your career development. This week lets discuss why you should become an active member of industry associations and user groups.
Should you keep learning?
Simply put – yes. You should always be looking to learn as you progress in your career. That may mean attending additional courses, upgrading your qualification or simply just staying up to date with the software you use and how you can be of value to your employer.
Two great ways to keep on learning and being involved in your industry are your local professional association and user groups.
Professional Associations
Professional Associations are the support line for your career development. They often hold professional development seminars and conferences and are a great opportunity for you to network and develop professional relationships with peers.
In Australia, we have a number of professional and business associations for the GeoSpatial Industry including the Surveying and Spatial Sciences Institute (SSSI), Spatial Information Business Association (SIBA) and Mapping Sciences Institute, Australia (MSIA).
There are plenty of others so search for your local association in your region and join.
User Groups
User Groups are also a great way to learn and meet people that use the same software (ESRI, MapInfo, Intergraph) or in the same industry sector i.e. mining or utilities. You will often find these groups are often free or very low-cost and give you the ability to ask the tricky technical questions to people in the know. They can also be a great social outlet outside the work environment but still enabling you to keep learning.
The key is to be involved. Attend the networking sessions, join a committee, and connect with your peers. You never know who you might meet or where that next great opportunity might come from.
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Google is filming yet another country in Asia. Now besides Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Macao, Singapore, Thailand and Bhutan where the project is at work or completed the Street View will be available also in Cambodia which will become 51st country on the planet to embrace Google’s mapping service.
Cambodia is surely not following the way of Germany to forbid as much as possible this kind of services in order to ensure privacy. Google says to be closely working with the Ministry of Tourism of Cambodia, the APSARA Authority (ANA), and the Phnom Penh Municipality to make the program happen.
What’s important from perspective of ‘couch archaeologists’ the project will not only cover major cities but also Angkor Wat – the famous huge temple from XII century.
