It's System Administrator Appreciation Day, so give yours whatever they ask for

You won’t find it on the United Nations’ official list of Very Special Days. It’s not one of Australia’s public holidays.

But today, Friday July 27^th, has been designated the 19th annual System Administrator Appreciation Day.

The organisers of the day suggest that “This is the day that all fellow System Administrators across the globe will be showered with expensive sports cars and large piles of cash in appreciation of their diligent work” but then admit that “a nice token gift and some public acknowledgement” is probably more realistic.

“Let’s be honest,” the organisers write, “sometimes we don’t know our System Administrators as well as they know us. Remember this is one day to recognise your System Administrator for their workplace contributions and to promote professional excellence. Thank them for all the things they do for you and your business.”

That’s sound advice given Sysadmins’ vital role in advising the business about the technology and suppliers that will actually deliver outcomes, or the stuff that will drag on the bottom line rather than offer a chance to improve it.

And of course Sysadmins also offer endless assistance. Sure they may first ask “have you turned it off and then turned it on again” a little more than is either necessary or polite, but they mostly do offer useful help in the end.

One more reason to celebrate: good SysAdmins know where the bodies are buried, making acknowledgement of their special day of the year a handy insurance policy of sorts.

In case ideas on how to celebrate the day don’t immediately come to mind, we asked our own Sysadmin what she wants for her special day. She offered the following advice:

• Don’t call me today;
• If you must call me today, turn your computer on and off again before calling;
• A cake would be lovely, thank you very much.

So what are you waiting for, people? That bakery down the road closes any minute now. And that weird thing your computer's doing that looks like it could be malware can wait until Monday. What could go wrong over the weekend, after all?