Disruptive Technology

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Disruptive Technology

• Gayle Langis
• Saint Josephs College
• November 5, 2008

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Saint Josephs College of Maine

• 4 year residential private liberal arts college
  located in Standish on Sebago Lake
• 1000 residential students
• 3,500 distance education students (GPS Graduate
  Professional Studies)
• 200 administration staff
• 125 f/t faculty
• 175 adjunct faculty distance education
• 5000 members of College Community

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Information Technology

• Director
• 3 - Network, Telecommunications, Infrastructure
• 2 - Database Programming and Administration
• 1 Trainer
• 5 Help Desk, A/V, Web Support
• 12 F/T staff supporting 5000 (approximately 1 of
  us for 400 of them)

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IT Our Responsibilities

• Telecommunications PBX, Traditional analog /
  digital lines VOIP, softphones,
  cellphones/smartphones/PDAs, etc
• Network infrastructure, hardware, software,
  security related apps email, internet, web
  services, etc
• Database ERPs SCAN/sis LMS Blackboard / Angel
  programming administration all other dept /
  custom databases data integration and interfaces
  these various databases.
• Training new employees faculty eLearning
  online course development day-to-day w/faculty
• Help Desk all calls / walk-ins full service
  support for all including student-owned computers
  / software A/V computer labs and smart
  classrooms. Everything that looks or acts like
  technology for the entire College community
  5000 strong!

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Disruptive / Back-door / often unplanned for
technologies.

• Against this backdrop, IT also handles and
  supports the emerging technologies and, todays
  topic disruptive technologies and the many
  challenges they bring.
• Characteristics of these technologies
• Typically new, often consumer marketed, and
  almost always, unplanned for - they are, rather,
  reacted to.
• Further advancement of consumer technologies into
  the workplace a blurring of business and
  customer focused applications is now called
  consumerization.

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Examples of disruptive technologies

• Skype and other consumer VOIP services (that are
  also able to handle video)
• Smartphones / PDAs cell phones that access
  company calendars, email, include camera video,
  IM/texting, and GPS
• Softphones traditional PBX phone functionality
  in your laptop or PC
• Web 2.0 applications blogs, wikis, social
  networking sites such as facebook and myspace
• Portable storage devices Apple iPhones iPods,
  flash memory devices
• Instant Messaging IMing
• Web mail for business purposes

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IT Concerns and Considerations

• Security is the greatest concern network
  breaches, network performance unintended
  consequences. Often the deal breaker
• User expectations of IT to support these various
  devices and services including training and
  integration with corporate applications
• Productivity employees watching YouTube,
  shopping at Amazon, etc. / must be balanced
  against same employees completing corporate tasks
  at home after hours. Lines are increasingly
  blurred.
• Policy development for good management practices

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Closer look at these technologies

• Skype
• Downloadable peer-to-peer (P2P) software to make
  free Internet phone calls includes ability to
  use video camera services as well
• Security risk to corporate network users connect
  directly not through a central server for
  communication. If one or both of callers are
  behind typical corporate NAT (Network Address
  Translation) firewall, Skype will reroute / relay
  the traffic using a Supernode. Skype can also
  change the ports used as needed, which prevents
  effective blocking.
• Bandwidth can become a concern when video is
  include.
• Students make extensive use of Skype faculty
  using in language classes, international business
  classes, etc.

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• SmartPhones and PDAs iPhones and iPods
• Frequently purchased for home brought to IT for
  functionality with college applications. Email,
  contacts, and calendar in great demand.
• Multiple brands and models different carriers.
  BlackBerrys, Treos, iPhones depending on type,
  server required. Support is difficult due to
  variety of equipment and user expectation of
  training as well. Most recent example is DST
  Daylight Savings Time which kicked in early for
  a number of users.
• Security concerns lost equipment

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• Softphones
• PBX phone functionality for laptops / desktops
  able to use anywhere
• (Corporate) users often uncomfortable with
  change and require extra training and support.
• Network assessment required for full
  implementation data and voice share same network
  facilities broadband required from home.
• Interesting concerns / occasional problems such
  as our faculty member in Sedona, AR dialing 911
  and having Cumberland County Sheriffs office
  respond to campus.

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• Web 2.0 applications blogs, wikis, social
  networking sites such as facebook and myspace
• Flexible and easy-to-implement, but how to
  effectively use?
• Does employer really want employees commenting on
  internal practices, etc? Can be done anonymously
  whos going to monitor?
• Productivity concerns career concerns MUST be
  careful that your after hours doesnt go online.
  Many a career has been derailed. Example
  Graduating education student (out of state)
  denied degree due to mySpace photo with what
  appeared to be alcohol.

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• Portable storage devices Apple iPhones iPods,
  flash memory devices
• Inexpensive, easy to use, and easy to lose
• Sensitive, confidential files / data can be lost
  identity theft concerns as well. (also,
  disgruntled employee)
• Policies need to be developed employees
  educated nearly impossible to ban or monitor.

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• Instant Messaging IMing
• Web mail for business purposes
• Email and IM exchanges NOT secured as messages
  transported over the Web and stored on ISPs
  server and/or email providers server
• Admissions, Advisors, Help Desk now all use IM to
  quickly reach and/or respond to students and
  other requestors.
• Employees often not careful about sending
  sensitive information legal considerations about
  storing corporate email as well.

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Concluding Thoughts

• Impossible to ban these technologies not really
  desirable to attempt to.
• Education is key for employees / students
• Managing end-user expectations about levels of
  support is critical
• Partnering vs controlling is direction of future

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Thank you.

• Questions?
• Comments?