IniTech

Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent

Demographics
Company and location
IniTech is a private technology company providing SaaS (software as a service) solutions, network engineering, training, technical support, and web development to over 40 multimedia and publishing companies across the United States and the Caribbean. The primary network operation center is located in Statesboro, Georgia. Statesboro is a small rural community with a population of 28,422 in 2010. Sixty percent of the population are college students attending either Georgia Southern University or Ogeechee Technical College.

As a result of the large student population, the median age of residents is 22 years old. Given the large student population, the median household income is much lower than the state average. In 2009, the median household income was less than $18,000.

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent

The unemployment rate is 12.8%. Below is a chart of the top employment industries. As one would expect, there are a high number of educational and service related jobs.

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent

The ethnic makeup of Statesboro is predominantly caucasian. The second largest group is African American with 41 percent of the population. There is also a small population of Hispanic, Asian and Native Americans.

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent

Seventy eight percent of the population of Statesboro over the age of 25 have at least a high school level education. Thirty-one percent have a Bachelors degree or higher. Nearly 15% of the population have earned a graduate or professional degree.

Staff details
The IniTech staff is diverse in age and experience. The Statesboro staff is comprised of 8 full time employees and 8 Georgia Southern University interns, currently pursuing Information Technology or Computer Science degrees. The median age of the staff is 26.5 years old. All of the full time, nonstudent employees have been employed with IniTech for a minimum of 4 years. The director of IT just celebrated his 36th year of employment with the company. Nearly 70% of the staff are studying for their first degree, while 25% have achieved at least a Bachelors degree. The staff is predominantly

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent
male, as is typical for the IT industry. According to a report by the U.S. Department of Commerce, despite nearly half of the U.S. workforce being comprised of women, they are far less likely to work in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematical professions.

Learners
One of the many services that the IniTech staff provides is software training. The training consists of self-paced videos and quizzes hosted on an learning management system, followed by remote training sessions performed via web conferencing software. Due to the nature of the training, it would be near impossible to give detailed demographics for the learners. Despite being scattered across the United States, there are some commonalities among the trainees. All are adult learners. Most work for one of seventy community newspapers and niche publications in small to mid-sized towns. These include daily, non-daily, arts and entertainment weeklies, shoppers, military newspapers, and magazines. In addition to print publications, many are also responsible for

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent
online presence, social media, marketing, and studio broadcasting. Given the large number of publications, the trainees face deadlines daily providing the potential for high stress levels. The addition of required training to the constant deadlines creates a unique time management challenge. The trainees come from a variety of educational backgrounds and skill levels. Typically they can be divided into four groups. The administrative group includes publishers, general managers and accountants. This group is typically the most educated and highest paid group. The sales group is comprised of retail and classified sales personnel. The education level of the group may vary from high school diploma to masters in marketing. This group is typically compensated on a commission basis. The production group includes graphic designers, pre-press employees, and webmasters. Similar to the sales group, the education level of the employees in the production group is varied. The compensation is dictated by the regional market. The final group is the property administrator group. Populated by entry level technical staff, the property admins typically have no formal IT training. Mentored by the IniTech staff, the property administrators assume the responsibility of first line support. Compensation is competitive to market standards. Below is a map and list of the property locations where IniTechs learners work and live.

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent

Administrative Filter
IniTech corporation is consistently Intelligent in the administrative filter. The staff has proven processes for implementation and support. There is a stable project management process in place for planning. Significant budget resources are dedicated to the implementation of technology. IniTech is dedicated to the growth and development of their employees. Policy Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Clearly defined written policies are readily available. Resource/Infrastructure - Stage All necessary hardware is readily available to employees. Planning

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent

Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All projects are managed with Basecamp online project management software. Participants of are notified of project updates via email. Assigned items on to do lists relate to milestones on the project calendar. Participants subscribe to the project calendar, which integrates with their Outlook calendar. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage The Basecamp software enables all project participants to access every detail of the project from anywhere internet access is available.

Budget Behavioral - Integrated Stage IniTech often proposes the purchase of new products for testing and is therefore tasked with the additional responsibility of convincing the corporate financial officers of the validity of such purchases. Planning process & review is extensive but in multiple occasions, there has been no action after completion due to budget constraints. Resource/Infrastructure - Integrated Stage High availability of innovative technology but, dependent on corporate approval. Administrative Information Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All IniTech staff have are knowledgeable in a variety of technology. Full time staff serve as mentors to college interns, grooming them on the art of communication, presentation, political correctness and corporate policy. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage IniTech executives maintain an open door policy with all staff members, providing a comfortable environment where employees are encouraged to be proactive, often brainstorming and offering alternate solutions.

Curricular Filter
IniTech should be considered as Integrated in relation to the curricular filter. Although they have made positive steps, there are some key components that lack the maturity to be considered intelligent at this time. Electronic Information Behavioral - Intelligent Stage There is a high level of support from executives for the implementation of the LMS. Corporate mandated 100% compliance prior to "Go Live" of new software implementations. Resource/Infrastructure - Islands Stage IniTech chose an open source LMS that performed well in a sandbox testing environment. The system is less than 1 year old and still being populated. Due to issues discovered with the software once in production, the IniTech staff is now vetting a new LMS. After testing is complete, the current material will be migrated to the new LMS. Assessment

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent
Behavioral - Integrated Stage Open "book" quizzes encourage students to interact with the software. The goal is familiarity with the application through guided exploration. Resource/Infrastructure - Integrated Stage Certification program in place based on departmental function. This includes recognition by corporate executives upon completion. Ideally, the assessment process would be more interactive. Curriculum Integration Behavioral - Intelligent Stage IniTech follows a flipped classroom model of training. The students are given a schedule of live training dates and related online assignments. Prior to the live training, students are expected to complete the related online assignments, including assessments. This model allows the learners to arrive at the training with a basic level of familiarity on the subject matter and pointed questions. Requiring pre-training preparation has proven to be the most efficient use of trainers time. Resource/Infrastructure - Islands Stage Open Source LMS is less than 1 year old and still being populated. The open source software has proven to be problematic. The team has uncovered bugs in the code. This has required IniTech programmers to redirect their focus from assigned projects to troubleshoot the LMS software. Teacher Use Behavioral - Intelligent Stage The IniTech instructors are fully engaged with the LMS. The instruction is structured assuming the required pre-training assignments have been completed by the students. Although the instructors may reiterate important points of the online training, the goal of the live training is not to review the training in detail but to build upon it. Resource/Infrastructure - Islands Stage The open source LMS lacks some automation features initially advertised. Bugs in the system have caused the teachers to implement manual procedures to accomplish some tasks such as maintaining the gradebook. Student Use Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Although the training is dependent on the new LMS, this is a new method for the students. Prior to implementation of LMS students received training via an ecomm system where the instructor would demo material while students followed along on handouts and took notes. Prior to that, all training was done live on site. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage As in any deadline driven environment, time is an ongoing concern. The IniTech online training and assessments are structured in a manner considerate of the time constraints that the students face. Training videos are limited vary in length but do not exceed 15 minutes. This allows the learners to complete learning modules when they are between projects.

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent
The LMS content available is device independent and accessible 24/7. Although the LMS is not fully populated, the available online courses are detailed enough to be beneficial for training newly hired employees.

Support Filter
IniTech has reached the Intelligent maturity level regarding the support filter. Support is one of the companys core competencies. The processes and technologies incorporated are stable. Familiar to the executives, staff, and end users, the procedures rely heavily on technology. Stakeholder Involvement Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Small private company supporting multimedia customers across the country necessitates involvement Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage All access 24/7 via ticketing system, mobile devices, VPN and RDP Administrative Support Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Clear understanding of the role technology plays in the success of the company Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Tech support ticketing system with integrated email support is in place for immediate reporting of issues. Training Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Whenever possible, the IniTech staff uses support incidents as teaching moments. This benefits the customers employee should the same problem arise in the future. Teaching the customers employee also benefits the IniTech staff by eliminating the need to address the same simple issues repeatedly. Philosophy - Instill confidence through education...a well educated employee is a happy employee. A happy employee is a productive employee. Resource/Infrastructure - Integrated Stage External training is highly encouraged for the instructors. It is often unclear as to the best method. Many sources in the private sector that promise training provide certifications for mere attendance. These certificates are a disappointing expense, as there is little to no educational value. Technical/Infrastructure Support Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Customers employees open a support incident via an email. The IniTech support personnel monitors the ticketing system, assigning the ticket to the appropriate staff member. The staff member contacts the client and works to a resolution, escalating the incident to a senior team member if needed. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage The IniTech staff utilizes remote desktop protocol, remote assistance and LogMeIn to

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent
connect to computers. When collaboration is required, the IniTech staff utilizes a software KVM to control a shared computer that is connected to a centrally located projection unit. KVM software is an application which allows the control of multiple Windows systems using one keyboard mouse. Multiple network operation centers are in place allowing for nearly 100% up time.

Connectivity Filter : Intelligent Stage

IniTech has reached the intelligent stage of maturity in the area of connectivity. Total connectivity is not only available but expected. It would be impossible for IniTech to conduct business without complete connectivity within the confines of the network operation center and beyond, to all properties within the company. Every aspect of their business is dependent upon the ability to connect internally and externally.

Local Area Networking (LAN) Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All staff are connected to the LAN via Active Directory. Authentication to the domain provides role based security access to all company equipment. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Every company computer is joined to the corporate domain with Active Directory. Active Directory uses specialized servers called domain controllers to authenticate users credentials and authorize access to hardware based on predefined security roles. District Area Networking (WAN) Behavioral - Intelligent Stage Given the largely remote client base, the ability to connect to any device in the company is mandatory. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage All locations are tied together via site to site virtual private networks, allowing single sign on access for domain administrators. Remote vpns provide employees access to the corporate intranet when off site. This allows complete connectivity regardless of location or time. Internet Access Behavioral - Intelligent Stage High speed internet is necessary to perform all functions and is therefore critical. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Multiple internet service providers are present in the network operation centers to ensure properties have 100% access to all hosted software and services. Communication Systems Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All staff understand how to use available technology to stay in touch with other team members and customers.

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent

Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage IniTech utilizes email, instant messaging, VoIP, company supplied smartphones, as well as web based communications to stay connected internally and with customers.

Innovation Filter
Intelligent innovation is key to IniTechs existence. Emphasis is placed on the implementation of new technologies while maintaining the integrity and consistency of all comprehensive technologies. IniTech avoids implementation of new technology for the sake of new technology. They are unwilling to jeopardize their customers operation by replacing mission critical devices with the next great thing. Standard operating procedure dictates no new technology is approved for production without passing a rigorous testing process and complete documentation. New Technologies Behavioral - Intelligent Stage IniTech is a technology company. By definition, their business is to seek out innovation that will improve their own performance and the efficiency of their customers. Innovation is not merely encouraged, it is essential to the success of the company and its employees. A primary portion of employees annual review is based on the incorporation of new technology and innovation. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage The IniTech president encourages the use of new technology, thus the staff has frequent access to new technology for testing. Through a loan program with a major hardware distributor, the staff is also exposed to the most cutting edge technology available. Below is a diagram based on Everett M. Rogers technology adoption lifecycle. The model was developed to explain the diffusion of new technology in various cultures. In regards to internal testing, IniTech typically falls in the early adopters range of the technology adoption lifecycle, neutralizing the risk to their customers. This allows for thorough testing of new technology prior to recommending implementation to their customers, who are thusly able to adopt as part of the early majority and remain ahead of the curve.

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Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent

Diffusion Of Innovation.png

Comprehensive Technologies Behavioral - Intelligent Stage All mission critical components undergo an extensive testing process before going into production. Resource/Infrastructure - Intelligent Stage Documentation of all technology devices, procedures and processes are readily available in the IniTech knowledgebase. This allows for ease of knowledge transfer.

Given the dedicated budget, integrated technology and forward thinking throughout the ranks of the company, the overall maturity level of IniTech is intelligent. With the exception of the developing curricular filter, IniTech meets or exceeds the behavioral, resource and infrastructure standards consistent with that of a mature company. Technology is not at the forefront of their business; it is the totality of their business. The executives, staff, and customers go beyond engagement to entanglement. Innovation is perceived as a daily process by employees on all levels. There is constant discussion and brainstorming about ways to improve operations. Failures are not to be hidden or used to shame employees. They are seen as opportunities for growth. Successes are continually reexamined to ensure that the company does not become too comfortable and stagnate.

References

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IniTech
Technology Progress Survey melissa st. laurent
Beede, D., Julian, T., Langdon, D., McKittrick, G., Khan, B., & Doms, M. (2011). Women in stem: A gender gap to innovation. Economics and Statistics Administration Issue Brief, 4(11). Retrieved from http://www.esa.doc.gov/sites/default/files/reports/documents/womeninstemagaptoinnovation8311.pdf City-data.com. (2012) Statesboro, Georgia (GA) profile: population, maps, real estate, averages, homes, statistics, relocation, travel, jobs, hospitals, schools, crime, moving, houses, news, sex offenders. Retrieved from http://www.city-data.com/city/Statesboro-Georgia.html

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