May 6, 2002
(Computerworld)
Being employed by a nonprofit organization might seem to limit one's commercial aspirations. But IT staff at the City University of Hong Kong would argue that there are plenty of attractive benefits.
IT workers at the university cite the high levels of freedom and fertile learning environment as compelling reasons for their decision to seek and maintain employment there.
"There is a good degree of freedom involved, both in terms of being able to actively pursue our interests and freedom from the burden of profit," says Ben Ma, a consultant at the department of computer engineering and IT at City University. He says the healthy team atmosphere at City University is much more constructive than the typical office environment where he has worked in the past.
"For most workers, salary is still the major [factor]. But for people who work here, the main factor is the academic and technological freedom," says L.M. Cheng, an associate professor, also in the university's computer engineering and IT department. Staffers are encouraged to pursue their interests and to research and test their theories using the university's resources, says Cheng. He says the availability of library material and access to research fellows and professors are unique resources of the university.
Cheng says opportunities that the corporate sector doesn't offer are key aspects that attract and retain IT staff at the university. "Staff have access to technology that is not necessarily available commercially. Plus here, there is less constraint on budgets for new technology investment," says Cheng.
Working at a nonprofit organization hasn't been a negative for Ma. "The wages here are not that high, but it's compensated by better job security, less staff turnover and less pressure to achieve sales targets," notes Ma.
"Typical companies in Hong Kong have a mix of staff, each with different levels of technical and business skills, each with their own agendas and objectives," notes Ma. "The university provides staff with common goals and encourages a team effort to achieve those goals. This is not always the case in a commercial environment."
Commercial applications of the university's research projects are becoming more common, says Cheng. The university has increasingly worked on collaborative projects with world-class companies and implemented commercial projects based on university research. For example, TeleEye was founded in 1994 by researchers at City University to develop advanced visual monitoring systems. TeleEye Holdings Ltd. was recently listed on Hong Kong's Growth Enterprise Market. Cheng says this demonstrates how IT staff can directly benefit from the work they do at the university, including profit sharing or shares and options from successful commercial applications.
Winnie Lai is a reporter at Computerworld Hong Kong.