COP 4910 Frontiers in Information Technology Lecture 8

COP 4910 Frontiers in Information Technology Lecture 8 Semester Wrap Up Hal Stringer 1

Agenda • Grading Status – Grades to be turned in by Monday – Grades available on Polaris Friday, August 6 th – I’ll be in my office Monday from 11: 00 to 12: 00 noon if you want to find out how you did before then. • Recommendations for Next Class • Keys to IT Success • Helpful Hints 2

Recommendations for Next Class • Clearer difference between products and technologies • More Presentations – Two Winning 1 -Like Presentations • Change Mini-Report Structure – – Current View of General Research Area Alternative Future Technologies Technical Details (1 or 2 Technologies) Business / Implementation Issues • Other suggestions? 3

Seven Keys to IT Success • This course tries to address seven different aspects of information technology in some fashion: • Explicitly – – • Technology - exposure to new things Business / Implementation - impact of technology on an organization Research & Self-Directed Learning - keeping current, finding answers Communication Skills - sharing your ideas Implicitly – Teamwork - be honest & direct with group members – Self Motivation - give 110%, have confidence in your work – Problem Solving - how can I make something work • Hardware, Software, Project, Process • Being a techno-whiz just isn’t enough in the long run! • Master all seven of these areas and you will be a success in any organization. 4

Helpful Hints in Your IT Career • Always Ask Questions – Don’t wait for users to come to you – If you don’t know -- ASK SOMEONE WHO DOES! • Understand Your Impact on an Organization – Know your company’s business & structure – Are you affecting 1 or 1000 employees? • Think, Test, Plan, Implement, Verify • Be Able to Clean Up Your Own Mess – Guess what can go wrong before you change anything • Don’t Assume the Obvious – First guess is usually wrong – Failures don’t follow a normal distribution 5

Helpful Hints in Your IT Career • Be Flexible – DP/IT is not a 9 to 5 world – Be prepared to handle something new all the time – Don’t put off any work you can get done today • Be Nice – Treat People with Respect – You are in a support role. • Your users bring in the money that pays your salary. – Tolerance for poor behavior is not what it use to be – There’s always someone smarter than you • Be Professional 6

Thank You and Have a great summer break! 7