Pros and Cons of a Career in PeopleSoft Development
PeopleSoft developers specialize in the implementation and maintenance of Oracle PeopleSoft software solutions. Read more about the pros and cons of a career as a PeopleSoft developer to help you decide if it's a good fit for you.
| Pros of Being a PeopleSoft Developer |
|---|
| High earning potential (median salary of $96,000, as of May 2014)* |
| Excellent job growth (projected 22% from 2012-2022 for all software developers)* |
| Possibility of working remotely* |
| Opportunity to work in many industries (manufacturing, IT, education, etc.)** |
| Cons of Being a PeopleSoft Developer |
|---|
| A bachelor's degree is usually required* |
| Long hours are common (almost 25% worked more than 40 hours a week in 2010)* |
| Work is highly detail oriented and can be repetitive and tedious* |
| May have eye, back and wrist pain from long hours at computer* |
Sources: *U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, **Various job posts (March 2012).
Essential Career Information
Job Description and Duties
PeopleSoft is a company owned by Oracle that provides software solutions to corporations, in areas such as enterprise performance, financial, human capital, supply chain and customer relationship management. Working as a PeopleSoft developer can be considered a very specific job choice. In this profession, your expertise is often concentrated on this specific software application. However, the trade-off is you can choose from among several industries to apply your expert knowledge. PeopleSoft developers are needed in healthcare, manufacturing, education and any other industries that use Oracle PeopleSoft software solutions.
The duties of a PeopleSoft developer may vary depending on the area of specialty, such as financial management or customer relationship management. However, some common duties you may have in this role involve analyzing a company's business needs and designing software applications to meet those objectives, developing technical design specifications, integrating software applications into a company's existing platform, performing quality assurance tests to resolve any design flaws and making recommendations that can maximize the use of the software. In addition to these functions, you may spend significant time generating custom data reports, assisting with payroll functions, troubleshooting software problems and providing technical support to end-users.
Job Prospects and Salary
Although estimates specifically tailored to PeopleSoft developers weren't readily available, employment for all software developers was predicted to increase at a much-faster-than-average rate of 22% between 2012 and 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Within this time period, an estimated 222,600 new jobs would be added. The BLS also reported that the best job opportunities would likely be available to developers with working knowledge of the latest programming languages and tools.
According to the most recent data available, as of September 2015, Payscale.com reported that the annual median salary for a senior application developer specializing in PeopleSoft was about $101,000.
What are the Requirements?
Most employers require that applicants have an undergraduate degree in a field such as computer science, mathematics or software engineering, according to the BLS. However, a master's degree is sometimes preferred for jobs that have more complex duties. The industry in which you plan on working can also determine the type of degree you choose or the courses you take. For example, an employer in the human resources or financial industry may look for candidates with a degree in management information systems and completion of business courses. On the other-hand, an employer in the scientific or medical industry may desire candidates with a degree in biology or life science, as well as training in computer programming.
Useful Skills and Qualifications
In addition to completing a related degree program, you are often expected to have knowledge of computer programming languages and technologies like hypertext markup language (HTML), JavaScript, structured query language (SQL), Microsoft SQL Server, UNIX operating system, PeopleTools and PeopleCode. To be successful in this profession, you must also have strong analytical, creative, communication and problem-solving skills. These skills are useful when dealing with issues like fixing software glitches in a timely manner, making design changes and explaining technical terms to lay persons.
Job Postings from Real Employers
Most employers are looking to hire PeopleSoft developers with experience using a variety of Oracle/PeopleSoft software programs. Completion of a bachelor's degree program was also among the top requirements. Following are some job postings for PeopleSoft developers that can give you an idea of what education and skills employers were looking for in March 2012:
- An information technology company in Michigan seeks candidates with three years of experience in PeopleSoft and PeopleTools software. The minimum education needed for this job is a high school diploma or its equivalent, but the company prefers individuals who hold a bachelor's degree.
- A staffing firm in Ohio is looking for applicants with a bachelor's degree and at least five years of experience with PeopleSoft applications, some of which include PeopleSoft HCM 9.0, PeopleTools 8.49 and E-Recruit.
- A manufacturing company in Illinois seeks a candidate with a bachelor's degree and 2-5 years of experience in PeopleSoft Financials to be part of a 24-hour on-call team handling PeopleSoft Financials batches. Candidates should also possess experience with PeopleTools 8.49 or higher and Mainframe OS390.
- A university in Texas is looking for candidates with 2-5 years of experience and a bachelor's degree, preferably in computer science or information management, to provide maintenance and technical support for all PeopleSoft applications. Applicants must also possess at least three years of experience with PeopleTools 8.9 or higher, strong verbal and written communication skills and customer service abilities.
How to Stand Out
On way to stand out is by becoming an Oracle Certified Professional. According to Oracle, these certifications among the most sought after designations in IT. Obtaining this credential can validate your expertise and distinguish you from other job applicants. Some areas that you can become certified in include MySQL 5, Oracle Forms and PL/SQL, Oracle Database and PeopleSoft Enterprise. To become certified in one of these areas, you must pass the corresponding exam. Some exams are available online, while others must be completed at a testing site.
Other Career Paths
You can be the middleman between software developers and end-users as a computer programmer. In this role, you would use programming languages like C++ to write programs designed by a software developer. Writing programs allows a computer to execute a software program so it can be functional for end-users. A bachelor's degree is often required to become a computer programmer, but some employers also hire professionals who only hold an associate's degree. The median annual salary for computer programmers was around $73,000, as of May 2011. Although the BLS projected that jobs for these professionals would increase 12% from 2010-2020, outsourcing of many positions was also predicted.
On the other hand, the BLS projected faster-than-average employment growth of 31% for database administrators from 2010-2020. As of May 2011, these professionals also earned a median annual wage of about $75,000, which is higher than the salary of computer programmers. As a database administrator, you would create databases to organize and store data. A bachelor's degree in management information systems (MIS) or a similar field is typically required to enter this career field, though some employers prefer to hire individuals who hold a Master of Business Administration (MBA). You can also obtain Oracle certification to stand out in this profession.
