It is really easy to have an us vs them mentality. It doesn’t help you.
For example in my IT career many times I have worked in places that said things like “We are Microsoft shop” or “We an Apple shop”. That meant that they only wanted to use those technologies and nothing else.
The truth is that no company can do everything well. Few companies honestly do what they are popular for doing well.
I have always been able to be employed by not being a vendor cheerleader. Yes in some companies they didn’t want to hear my ideas of the competition, but that is ok. If they want to spend more money and complicate their life I am happy to get paid to help them do so.
We don’t know enough about any business to dictate what they should do. We can suggest things. We can even share how other companies have used certain technologies and the advantages from doing so. Ultimately what people choose is their choice and they are not bad people because they choose something that we might not have chosen.
You will rarely hear me write the word bad here. I don’t think that bad/good are helpful ways to describe things. It implies a morality which we can’t push on other people. I like thinking of things in terms of what real, practical and concrete things can it do for the company. Not in vague terms of needing to go with the “leader” just because people jumped on that bandwagon.
For example, in the past I used a MDM called JAMF and it is an amazing MDM. I really liked it and seriously considered paying thousands of dollars to go through their education and get credentialed so that I could make a living with it.
However upon further reflection I realized that Intune was gaining market share and even though in some ways it wasn’t as good as JAMF for Macs, it no doubt would be one day. Companies often try to reduce complexity, so eventually it would be pushed out. This is what I have seen in the last several years. I have frequently helped companies move from JAMF to Intune and I expect that to continue.
Now am I saying you should avoid JAMF? Not at all. Just that the marketplace dictates the skills that people have, and more people have Microsoft skills than skills like JAMF or others. I can’t tell you what is right for you. I do know that I am glad that I had that JAMF experience and it has helped me with companies who are using Intune.
If I had been arrogant and in the past said “Intune is less capable than JAMF for macOS which is true” then I wouldn’t have had the opportunities to help the companies I have. You focus on where the market is headed, not on what you personally like.
Don’t say the competition is bad because before you know it, you are working for the competition.