Survey

Do you perform any type of regular exercise (30+ minutes two or three times a week)?

Yes
No

Results from last issue's survey question: Are you satisfied with the ergonomics of your primary workstation?

There were 39 responses. 35 said "Yes" and 4 said "No."

Department Profile

Beginning with this issue, its in bits will occasionally publish a Department Profile in place of the Staff Profile.

Here's a look inside the "Application Support, Database Administration, Integration & User Experience Team" (ASDAIUET—Phew! That's the longest acronym ever...). It's an organization as diverse as the name is long!

I wanted to take a few lines to give everyone an overview of my team, and bring you all up to date on the changes we've introduced in the past several weeks.

Our team consists of three major groups: Application Support, Application Integration & User Experience, and Database Administration.

The Application Support team is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the applications we provide to our customers across the University. Pinnacle and Remedy are primary, but we also support the Infra Change Management system, DocuShare, Journyx, Pathworks, and others.

The Application Integration & User Experience team is responsible for technical leadership to IT Services and clients campus-wide for implementing technology solutions that need to connect to the campus infrastructure (such as the campus-wide file system, Web services, information registries, and the campus security suite). This team is also responsible for ensuring that IT Services products and services deliver the best possible user experience.

The Database Administration team keeps the information flowing by supporting the Oracle Databases for Remedy, Pinnacle, DocuShare, and more. We also offer database administration as a service and have many customers around the University taking advantage of our offerings.

Until recently, all of the folks performing these services reported directly to me. This was not a structure that promoted efficient operations, and it needed to be changed. Beginning in January, Anne Pinkowski took over the management responsibility for the Application Support team. Anne has only been with Stanford since July of 2006, but she has made a significant impact with our clients.

Also in January, Donna Cummings was hired away from the Project Management Office (sorry, Joyce) to take on the role of Configuration Management Analyst, and manager of the Application Integration and User Experience team. Donna's work in the PMO introduced her to many of our customers and most of IT Services before she transitioned, so she was able to hit the ground running in her new role.

The Database Administration team, Dick Guertin (SPIRES system support), and Scott Wildy (Monitoring) will continue to report to me.

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at any time.

- Bryan Wear
Shared Communication Services; Application Support & Database Administration

Staff Happenings

Comings and Goings

It is my pleasure to announce that Mary Ann Woodall is the successful candidate for the second (of two) Computer Resource Associate positions in CRC. Mary Ann joined us on March 19 and her office is in Laurel.

Mary Ann worked at the Stanford Blood Center for over three years doing basic desktop support, writing procedures to test database application functionality, and maintaining the blood donor database records. Mary Ann obtained her B.S. in Computer Science from San Jose State University in 2002. She has a strong customer service focus and understands the technical steps needed to support them. We are very excited to have Mary Ann on board as the CRC family grows.

Welcome, Mary Ann!

- Karen Zack
Client Support; Computer Resource Consulting

its in bits welcomes more detailed employee news submissions from all staff. Please submit to itsinbits-submissions@lists.stanford.edu

Tech Briefings / Tech Express

Tech Briefings

Fridays
2–3:30 p.m.

Turing Auditorium

April 6: Network Troubleshooting Tools

Networking uses a number of tools to troubleshoot various networking problems. This class presents a brief introduction to these tools and how they are used. Find out how to troubleshoot DHCP problems, network slowness, and other topics. Feedback is welcome as we have been updating the LNA Guide with a list of useful tools. The presenter will be Kent Reuber of IT Services.

April 13: WebEx at Stanford

Check the Tech Briefings home page for upcoming talks, specials, and last-minute additions.

Tech Express

Thursdays
12–1 p.m.
Turing Auditorium

April 19: Using Open Source Software and Other Freebies (aka Alternatives to MS Office)

Do you wish you had office applications at home? Is your department running out of funds because you're spending too much on licensing fees for tools like Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Access? Come to this Tech Express as our instructor, Mark Branom, demonstrates Open Source and other free alternatives. Topics will include OpenOffice.org, Google Docs and Spreadsheets, and Google Page Creator.

Check the Tech Express home page for future sessions and to subscribe to the mailing list.

Technology Training Courses

Upcoming Tech Training classes of interest to IT Services staff.

  • Thu, Apr 5, Word Level 2, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., $275
  • Thu, Apr 5, Web Design Level 1: The Basics, 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., $150
  • Mon, Apr 9, PowerPoint Level 1, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., $275
  • Tue, Apr 10, Excel Level 2, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., $275
  • Tue, Apr 10, Order IT Site Training (formerly IT Services Site Training), 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Free
  • Wed, Apr 11, FileMaker Pro Level 1, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., $275
  • Thu, Apr 12, Explore techport.stanford.edu (Open Lab), 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., $275
  • Thu, Apr 12, Introduction to ReportMart1, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., Free
  • Tue, Apr 17, FileMaker Pro Lite, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., $150
  • Wed, Apr 18, Access Level 1, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., $275
  • Thu, Apr 19, Adobe Acrobat: The Basics of Using the Full Version, 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., $150
  • Thu, Apr 19 & 20, Photoshop Levels 1 and 2, 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., $500

Sign up at http://axess.stanford.edu.

Classes with low enrollment may be cancelled one week in advance. More information on courses, registration, and training is available at the Technology Training Services site.

- Leni Silberman
Technology Training Services

IT Employment Opportunities

There were three new job postings for IT Services this week.

Req. #24599: Sr. Order Processor, 100% FTE, continuing position, Range 4P2, Suzanne Schiessler, hiring manager.

The Senior Order Processor works primarily with the following organizations: Installation and Maintenance (I&M) for creating and distributing daily workload packages and assisting technicians in the field regarding records and bible sheet location lookups, Facilities Engineering for cable orders, Systems Engineering for LEN adds and balances.

Req. #24595: Sr. Business Analyst, 100% FTE, continuing position, Range 3P5, Sam Steinhardt, hiring manager.

The Senior Business Analyst (SBA) conducts complex ongoing and “one-time” financial and business analyses to support policy and resource allocation decisions across IT Services, and to improve the financial performance of business units.

Req. #24696: Application Support Administrator, 100% FTE, continuing position, Range 4P4, Anne Pinkowski, hiring manager.

This position is responsible for the effective operation of Stanford’s Remedy-based applications including HelpSU, the University’s request tracking system, BenefitSU, and other Remedy applications. In addition, the incumbent will provide application support for the Journyx Time Tracking system, Infra Change Management system, DocuShare, Pinnacle, Pathworks, Sundial, and any software that the organization decides would be best administered by the Application Support team.

To view the complete listings or to apply for a position, visit the StanfordJobs web site at: jobs.stanford.edu.

There are other open Information Technology positions at Stanford. To see what other opportunities exist on campus, link to the full list of all open IT positions at Stanford

Quote of the Week

"In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt."

- Margaret Atwood

News

OrderIT Available Now

On March 27th, the new OrderIT site (formerly itservices.stanford.edu) became available to Departmental IT Contacts and other users. Almost immediately, we started receiving strong, positive feedback from the community. The ordering and billing service desk staff received one email saying “the level of service was fabulous. I asked my question and told her what I needed and she did it. Within three minutes I was able to access a phone number/subscriber to order a new phone for him.” Another client wrote, “[the] new site is pretty cool! :-)”

In addition to ordering telecommunications from Shared Communications Services (SCS), clients can now order Data Center services from Shared Application Services (SAS). All orders are checked for accuracy by the Service Desk. The Service Desk is also a one-stop shop for clients to understand the order process and review the status of the orders that they have placed.

Order Processing further refines SAS orders and in some cases with SCS orders, actually fulfills and/or schedules the SCS work for the clients. Order Processing creates Remedy tickets for the SAS fulfillment groups.

Billing Services now reviews all orders before they are closed. Pinnacle (the billing system) was enhanced to help synchronize it with Oracle Financials and clear data issues.

The order process and billing process are two of the fundamental business processes that impact the way that IT Services interacts with its clients. Both of these processes were improved and expanded during the Order Management Redesign project.

But the team isn’t ready to rest yet. The Order Management Governance group will oversee implementing further improvements to the system and the business process. One more session of the “Changes to Ordering and Billing” class will be held on April 4th at noon. Ongoing classes for new users of the OrderIT site are being held monthly, and an online version of the class is also available. Use the STARS training registration system to sign up for any of these classes. For a quick overview of the changes, you may also wish to review the Changes to Ordering and Billing infosheet. (PDF).

Ordering and Billing will continue to improve and evolve as part of the operational focus of IT Services. The project is over, but the oversight and ongoing enhancement has just begun.

Many thanks to all who have helped so far, and thanks in advance to those of you who continue to improve the process and help support computing and electronic communications at Stanford.

- Jay Kohn
  Shared Communication Services
- Steve Loving
  Client Support; Project Management Office

New Webmail Ready

The new Webmail service will go live on April 12 at 9:00 a.m. There will be a cutover period beginning at 6:00 a.m., but no interruptions of service are anticipated. User preference changes made during the cutover time will not be transferred to the new service.

The new Webmail service can be previewed by visiting the Webmail site and following the links to the beta test.

- Steve Loving
Client Support; Project Management Office

Cellular Support Moves to Movero

In an effort to provide better support for business cell service, Stanford has partnered with Movero Technologies to provide support and service for cell equipment. Movero assists with purchasing cell phones, service activation, SIM cards, and will help to resolve other equipment issues.

Orders for new phones will still be placed via OrderIT. In most cases, Movero will deliver the new cell phone by the next business day. If a cell phone subscriber needs an equipment upgrade, a change order is placed via OrderIT. Movero will deliver the replacement phone and assist the user with activation and set up. Cell equipment will be sent via DHL to the address listed in the Additional Service Information fields on the cellular order form on the OrderIT site.

To reach Movero support, cellular users can call 5-HELP (650-725-4357) and press 4 for cell equipment and support. Staff are available Monday through Friday from 5 a.m. to 5 p.m. A Movero support representative will walk through any problems or concerns. Alternatively, subscribers can submit a HelpSU request by selecting Request Category: Billable Services; Request Type: Cellular/Cell Phone.

We hope that this will provide a greater level of service to our Stanford cellular subscribers.

- Suzanne Schiessler
Shared Communication Services; Order Management

2007 Employee Survey Results

The data from the 2007 Employee Survey has been separated into workgroup packets and is being distributed to Directors and Managers starting this week. Each staff member will have an opportunity to review and discuss their workgroup-specific data as well as to see the IT Services-wide results.

The purpose of these meetings is to review the results, to discuss reactions, and to identify actions that will strengthen the workgroup and make IT Services a better place to work. Initial workgroup meetings should be completed by April 30.

Your Director or Executive Director can answer any questions you have about this process.

- Nancy Ware
Planning & Communication

2007 Client Satisfaction Survey is Underway

We have invited 1,200 members of the Stanford community (faculty, students, and staff) to participate in our annual survey. The survey asks participants to rate their satisfaction with our products and services, and provide us with an opportunity to influence our future direction. The survey will be open April 3–13, 2007. This is a confidential survey administered by an external firm, MOR Associates Inc. Initial results are expected to be available in May and will be discussed at our June Town Hall.

Any member of the survey team is available to answer questions that you or clients may have about this process. You can email questions to the survey team.

- The IT Services Client Satisfaction Team
Bill Clebsch, Jan Cicero, Jay Kohn, Chris Lundin, Nan McKenna, Jim Knox, Kathy Lucas, Nancy Ware

Server Replacement Policy

The Shared Application Services organization recently collaborated with the Finance department to establish a new Server Replacement policy within IT Services. This policy will help our organization maintain a server environment that contributes toward reliable and available service delivery. Going forward, IT Services plans to replace server equipment on a schedule consistent with industry best-practice. Currently, the server replacement threshold is defined as three years. Additionally, quarterly sever asset reviews will be performed to identify and plan for the replacement of equipment that is approaching its three year end-of-life status. This new process will also enhance our accuracy in budgeting and forecasting.

Thanks to Sam Steinhardt, Heather Flanagan, Barry Magsanay, and Nan McKenna for their contributions in establishing this new policy.

- John Freshwaters
Shared Application Services

Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day

On Thursday April 26, we will share the campus with several hundred 10 to 15 year-old girls and boys enjoying Stanford's annual Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day. This event is sponsored by Stanford's WorkLife office. Registration began on April 2 and ends on April 13. Detailed information about the day, including all the forms you need to register your daughter, son, niece, nephew, or grandchild is available on the WorkLife site.

IT Services will host an ice cream social that day beginning at 2:30 on the lawns outside Turing Auditorium. All staff members are welcome to attend (it is on your Sundial calendar). Make plans to meet the youngsters over some ice cream.

- Nancy Ware
Planning and Communication

About its in bits

A regular summary of IT business, news about personnel, and pointers to other information of interest to IT Services staff. Coordinated, compiled, and published by the Communication Strategy and Standards Team. its in bits is published on the first and third Wednesday of the month.

Submissions are due by Noon on the Friday before the scheduled issue, to itsinbits-submissions@lists.stanford.edu for consideration. its in bits is distributed via email to its-all-staff@lists.stanford.edu and the subscription list itsinbits-subscribers@lists.stanford.edu. People outside of IT Services can self-subscribe via mailman.

The next its in bits will be published on Wednesday, April 18, 2007.