Should I be concerned about my boyfriend is spending 60 to 70 hours per week on a data warehouse project?

Information Management Online, December 24, 2007

Chuck Kelley

Question: My boyfriend is a database administrator working on a data warehouse project. He claims the project requires that he works 60 to 70 hours/week. Since the project began, he seems distant and we hardly are intimate any more. I’m worried that he’s seeing someone on the side. Should I be concerned?

Chuck Kelley’s Answer:  First, let me say that I am not a psychologist, psychiatrist, social worker or counselor of any kind when it comes to relationships.  Just ask my wife! However, 60 to 70 hours per week a few times during major deployment times is not unreasonable. But, that would only be a week or two. I would be concerned that your boyfriend is going to kill himself due to overwork. My wife complains about me being distant during those same times. My suggestion is to ask him.

Chuck Kelley is an internationally known expert in database and data warehousing technology. He has 30 years of experience in designing and implementing operational/production systems and data warehouses. Kelley has worked in some facet of the design and implementation phase of more than 50 data warehouses and data marts. He also teaches seminars, co-authored four books on data warehousing and has been published in many trade magazines on database technology, data warehousing and enterprise data strategies. He can be contacted at chuckkelley@usa.net.

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