What It's Like to Work at Delta Technology Inc.

Computerworld -

Interviewee: Walter Leddy, developer of MYOBTravel.com, a travel planning and reservations site that will cater to small businesses with up to 50 employees. The site is tentatively set to launch by August.
Company: Delta Technology Inc., the information services arm of Delta Air Lines Inc. and a wholly owned subsidiary of the airline
Main location: Atlanta
Number of information technology employees: 2,000; five on the MYOBtravel.com project
Number of employees (end users): 70,000
Tenure in current position: About one month
Last position held: Worked as a developer on Delta's Gate & Boarding team. "We analyzed (the gate staff's) work processes and decided they needed new workstations and software . . . so they could spend less time behind the computer and more time actually communicating with passengers. We put in Windows applications that let them monitor seat inventory in real time and allocate seats using a Visual C chart and an interactive passenger list."
How common are career moves within the company? "There's a Web site available to everyone in the company, where new jobs are posted, and you can move laterally that way. Or you can bring it up in your biannual review like I did."
Workday: "I might not be the norm, but I get in about 7:30 a.m. and stay until 6:30 or 7:00 p.m. We have a 10-hour day, four-day week option here, but I work five days. My projects are usually cutting-edge, and you just have to do what it takes to meet the deadlines."
What has the payoff been? "This is my fourth year here, and I've always tried to put myself in the position of learning a new skill set every year. I started as a business analyst in electronic ticketing, and I learned to build SQL databases. For Gate & Boarding, I learned C++ and object-oriented programming, and then I was promoted to technical lead. By the end, I was handling project management, responsible for rolling out a new component of the airport renewal project. For this project, I'll be learning Java."
Bonus programs: An employee stock purchase plan, annual bonuses based on merit and companywide performance and spot bonuses.
Decor: "When we rolled out our new Gate Information System, we did a simulation with life-size cardboard cutouts of celebrity passengers. . . . I have Ted Turner in my cube."
Any windows? About 50% of the staff have windows; one side of the building overlooks the airport runways.
Dress code: Business casual. "There are very few renegades; it's a fairly