For Jennifer Paschall, keeping up with the daily changes in technology
is a constant challenge.
Paschall has been in charge of building and managing systems for Johns
Hopkins University Medical Service Plan for the last two years. She's
also responsible for five full-time programmer analysts, as well as several
contractors. In short, she has her hands full.
"One challenge I think all professionals in health-care systems management
face is adjusting to the ongoing industry and regulatory changes," she says.
"The systems need to continuously change."
She adds that it helps to have clients decide which are the really important
requests. That way, she can figure out how to best use the available resources.
The dynamic nature of technology offers a constant challenge for Paschall.
In many cases, there's no need to reinvent the wheel. She says solutions
can be found by "usually applying the same technology in a slightly different
way."
Paschall says she believes better solutions using different technology
are sometimes overlooked. That's why she tries to make sure she and her
staff keep their skills up to date.
"I need to apply my own time to learning new technical skills and encouraging
the staff to do the same," she says. "Or perhaps open doors for allowing time
on the clock for technical growth."
Paschall uses many different skills in her job. She says she enjoys using
her problem-solving, creativity, organization and communication abilities.
The road to her current career began with a major in mathematics. She didn't
decide to pursue a profession in information systems until after her first
year.
"I did not have much previous computer experience, but took several introductory
classes and really enjoyed them," she says.
She adds that the math seemed to be very theoretical. The computer skills
had lots of practical applications.
Paschall enjoys writing a program to make the computer do something. She
loves seeing the results immediately. "This appealed to me and I stuck with
it," she says.
The most exciting thing for Paschall is "seeing the results of a program
or system that we developed, and hearing from customers that it is easy to
use, saves them time or money or increases their revenue."
Paschall says she has "found success in following problem-solving skills
for most situations, whether technical or not. These skills are certainly
needed in this field. They can probably be applied to most professions and
even personally."
And she has a piece of advice for students: "When presented with a problem,
first you need to investigate what the real problem is. Then, you should consider
several alternatives to solving the problem and determine the costs, risks
and benefits of each."
Paschall recommends getting feedback from peers and interested parties
on all options. "Present all information to the decision-maker, but make it
clear what your recommendation is, and why."
Brian Marshall is a human resources assistant vice-president at a company
that develops broadband wireless technologies. It employs several systems
architects.
"Systems engineers are in such demand, they can contract themselves out
and be based almost wherever they want to be based," he says. "Get attached
to a consulting organization and be sent around North America or around the
world on assignments."
In order for someone to be a systems engineer, they have to have a variety
of experience.
"Generally, network engineers have to have been a software developer before
getting into systems design. To design a system, you have to understand the
components of a system. You also have to understand the network protocols,"
Marshall explains.
"It's not so much the quantity, it's the variety of knowledge
and skill that makes them unique, and therefore particularly valuable."
Gary Cohee is a developer. He says he likes his profession for many reasons.
"Probably the foremost is that I love working with computers!"
Cohee says the pay is good and there are excellent benefits, such as vacation
and health, "since the field is so competitive."
He also enjoys the creative freedom. "What it all comes down to, though,
is that you have to love what you do to be happy at your job."
Cohee would encourage students to select a career in this field. "But only
if you genuinely find the field interesting. By all means, give it a try."
He suggests starting out by taking an introductory programming class and
working up from there.
"The important thing is, and I'll say it again, if you don't
get excited about it, then it's probably not the career for you. If you
don't like it from the start, like any other career, it's not going
to grow on you."
Cohee's average day is eight hours, including a 45-minute lunch. On
the average, Paschall works about nine hours a day.
Paschall says she would certainly encourage all students to take introductory
classes in computers or computer programming to see whether it suits them.
"There are many different types of jobs in the computer industry, but in
general I think you need to be detail-oriented to excel in a systems career."
Cohee says when you're working your way up the ladder in the computer
field, be careful of programming "sweatshops."
"Many people out of school don't realize how easy it is to burn yourself
out. Don't forsake your personal life for the good of the company. That
applies to all professions.
"It's OK to be a geek, but try to keep up on current events and sports.
It's good to have something to talk about around the water cooler."
A career as a systems analyst offers great opportunities. "These are the
people designing the big telecommunications networks of the future," says
Marshall. "They've got interesting work. They're in
high demand. What more could you ask for?"