Interesting Interview

I just listened to this interview Phil Gerbyshak gave to some students. It’s a good 45 minutes talking about working in IT, the current status of technology, and where it’s headed. He covered a whole bunch of stuff, in fact after listening to it, the first thing I thought was that I need a second listen to really digest all of it. On the other hand, the struggles to keep things secure and meeting their legal requirements while still allowing it to be usable is one that any of us who work front-line IT support recognize immediately.

He talks about hearing complaints about their Internet filtering every day. I hear those same complaints, and spend some time finding “creative” ways to get around it when the work requires it. I hear the complaints about the document management system and why the users have to worry about where they store documents and who has access to those locations, or why we have to “clean” pool laptops before another attorney can use them. It’s easy to forget the HIPPA regulations we have to adhere to as a firm that deals with medical cases when you have to struggle with document security or wait on a laptop, so we have to make sure there are systems in place to make sure we can’t forget them.

One of the other things that struck me was Phil’s desire that the helpdesk, and himself as the manager, are always extremely easy to reach. It’s an interesting attitude, and one I’ll have more to say about later in the week, in terms of balancing having users be a little self-reliant versus getting a reputation for not helping and thus not being called on when you’re really needed. To me, that’s maybe one of the biggest struggles of any helpdesk.

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