resource center
  See your link here
|
or
Other Careers Stories
|
|
|
|
June 19, 2006 (Computerworld) -- When it comes to enviable IT assignments, it's hard to beat Adam Grand's job as a project manager at Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. (No. 7) in Miami. Grand regularly travels to Europe to install leading-edge technology on Royal Caribbean's luxury ships. In May, he finished a three-month assignment aboard the Freedom of the Seas, the company's newest and largest ship. He installed some of the most advanced technologies ever placed on a cruise ship -- wireless and Internet applications, BizTalk tool sets and radio frequency identification (RFID) systems.
"This is just something you don't find yourself [doing] on a daily basis. Your desk becomes the ship. You're not bound to the same location day after day, and the technology is very attractive," Grand explains via satellite phone aboard Freedom on its maiden voyage across the Atlantic.
Nice work if you can get it -- but what about the other 354 IT employees who stay ashore to keep the systems running? Don't they have any fun?
"It's a challenge," says Gregory Martin, IT manager. "There are definitely some areas [of IT] that people like or don't like," he says, such as maintenance, hardware support and the dreaded after-hours, on-call phone duty.
It's a common concern among IT managers. How does a company expose tech workers to the latest technology while maintaining and improving current systems? These Best Places reveal how they keep the lights on without dimming IT employees' enthusiasm.
Martin has found several ways to appease Royal Caribbean IT workers who are hungry for new technology. The company's Unite program gives all IT employees a chance to earn the coveted shipboard assignments. Staffers are nominated by their managers based on their performance. "They set up PCs, verify the network is working, and they get out of their normal 9-to-5 for a week and a half," Martin says.
Managers regularly post internal messages announcing opportunities to work with new technologies. For instance, the data warehousing team recently sent out a request for IT staffers interested in learning new extract, transform and load tools. Employees also rotate maintenance roles every nine to 18 months to avoid burnout.
"Over the next three years, 30% to 50% of our technology is being upgraded or changed," which will give more employees a chance to engage in new technology, Martin adds.
|
Print this Story |
|
Send Us Feedback |
|
E-mail this Story |
|
Digg this Story |
|
Slashdot this Story |
See your link here
|
Editors' Picks
See results from our survey of more than 5,000 IT pros, and use our Smart Salary Tool to compare your pay with IT workers in similar jobs across the U.S.
After weathering layoffs or pay cuts, your IT staffers may need some help getting motivated. Try these strategies for employee renewal.
No Windows geek or PC support pro should be without these must-have utilities -- and they're all free.
Get the latest news, features, opinions and more on key technology issues.
hot topics
Get the latest news, reviews and more about Microsoft's newest desktop operating system.
special report topics
General Mills, Genentech, San Diego Gas & Electric, University of Pennsylvania and Monsanto top the list.
|
|
March 7-9, 2010 |
CIO
Computerworld
CSO
DEMO
GamePro
Games.net
IDC
IDG
IDG Connect
IDG Knowledge Hub
IDG TechNetwork
IDG Ventures
IDG.net
InfoWorld
ITwhitepapers
ITworld
JavaWorld
LinuxWorld
Macworld
Network World
PC World
The Industry Standard
Copyright © 1994 - 2009 Computerworld Inc. All
rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium
without express written permission ofComputerworld Inc. is prohibited. Computerworld and Computerworld.com and the respective logos are trademarks of International Data Group Inc. |
