| September 2006 |
| By Jennifer Bullock |
“Help!” – This is one of the more common subject lines on the many emails I receive from my customers.
As an IT Analyst for a department within a large firm, I am responsible for translating the software and data needs of the Legal Department into requirements and specifications that the Software Engineers convert to actual solutions. My job requires me to sometimes act as a detective to ensure that I capture all of the requirements to meet my customers’ needs.
My three primary tasks can be grouped into the following categories: Customer Service and Support, Project Management and Analysis, and Product Management.
Having a strong and effective working relationship with my customers is vital to being able to provide a high level of service and support to them. By building mutual trust and respect with one another, my customers feel confident that I am providing the best and most efficient solutions available. Through prioritization and time management, I am able to bring to them the best level of support possible. Being well versed in SQL has also enabled me to quickly provide data results to my customers without having to request assistance from a Software Engineer. This helps immensely to reduce the turn-around time for solutions. Equally vital is an advanced knowledge of the departmental applications to provide front-line troubleshooting to determine the source of a potential issue quickly, then route it correctly to the proper area for repair.
As Project Manager, I manage legal projects for my customers, from initial planning through implementation. Because I am the Analyst SME for my department, I also handle the requirements gathering, analysis, research, testing and documentation. I meet with my customers regularly to gather this information and guarantee that IT is meeting their needs. I also interact with other areas in IT, such as Data Engineering and Network, to ensure that my department’s best interests are represented. I am responsible for weekly project metrics and statistics, which allow management to quickly determine whether my project is on course. I utilize Primavera TeamPlay Project Manager to manage my projects and communicate with the members of my project team to ensure that our project will be successful.
My third primary focus is that of Product Manager. I am responsible for managing the life-cycles of all of the Legal Department’s products. This includes planning for upgrades of the software, database, etc. I maintain monthly metrics that measure the amount of down-time the application encountered, as well as the number of issues and requests for the application. This information is tracked in a central database and is visible to the entire IT division. Relationships with other platforms are tracked, allowing better communication throughout IT. In other words, if a patch needs to be applied on the database server, the affected applications can easily be located and the Product Manager can be contacted prior to the planned outage. This provides an overall better level of service for the customers.
By helping to provide data and software solutions to the Legal Department, my job enables my customers to be better equipped with the information they need to represent the legal needs of the firm. At our company, business dress is required Monday through Thursday, with Friday set aside for Business Casual attire. The work hours are flexible, with the start time generally ranging from 7am – 9am and the end time ranging from 3pm – 6pm. Each IT area works out their support times to ensure proper coverage. Our benefits include health and dental insurance, 401K, and a profit sharing plan. We receive 9 paid holidays per year and 15 days of vacation.
Do not be afraid to start in a related, but perhaps not your desired position in IT. It is more important to get your foot in the door and establish your reputation as a dedicated employee. In time, your efforts will be noticed and you’ll be able to transfer to your ideal position. Being an IT employee definitely requires flexibility and a willingness to always learn new concepts.
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