Wcre 2010 isaak

Thoughts on the State of the Computing Profession Jim Isaak IEEE Computer Society President

Our Impact on the Future
IT and Computing will continue to have a profound impact on our future
As professionals
For our locale
For Humanity
Moore’s law – 2x every 18 months
Even more in storage capacity
Our Challenge is Creative Capacity

Applied Innovation is Essential
The world needs great ideas Focused on serious challenges
Energy, Health Care, Quality of Life
Transition of business models Cloud Computing, Open Source
How do we enable innovation?
The Computer Society is at the leading edge

My area of Research
After 20 years working with IEEE and ISO standards (POSIX)
I started to consider “why do these diverse, and often competing professionals show such dedication?”
Changing companies to stay involved
Non-Engineering answer: Social Capital

Social Capital is the Foundation
Financial capital grows from positive returns on investment – and can fund future enterprise
Social capital grows from the trust that emerges from collaboration
“ It’s not what you know, it’s who you know”
“ The old school tie”, “Old boys club”, …

Limited multidisciplinary research in these areas
A few papers published in the area of Social Capital development in Standards
The results go well beyond standards
A wide search of the literature
Corporate longevity
Innovation
Potential negative impact as well
Implicit exclusion
In-appropriate collaboration

“ Social Capital”
Value of relationship(s)
Developed over time
Often while collaborating
You can draw on social capital:
Could you help me with this problem?
Would you like to join our research team?

Professional Society Impact
The simple story:
We facilitate the exchange of information
Via publications
Via conferences
Via local programs
Via committee meetings at all levels
Helping you maintain technical awareness
Contacts and mentors
As the Computing Professionals we need to learn and leverage Social Capital

The not so simple story:
Interaction => Innovation
If you read and listen you improve
When you write & present you develop greater understanding
If you interact with others
You see a different view
You find new paths to solutions
You uncover new problems and questions

Interaction => Innovation
Interaction with your peers helps you find solutions to today’s problems
Someone may have already developed a solution, or provide key insight
The wider the scope of your interactions the greater the potential for exceptional insight

Getting out of “the box”
When you reach beyond your peers
Dialog with customers, suppliers
Interchange with professionals in other fields
You enter a new level for potential innovation

Cross- boundary Spanning
It’s not just that you interact
Innovation builds on diversity
In the research, this is called cross-boundary interactions
From one department to another
Between companies, or universities
Spanning competitors, cultures

Dimensions of diversity
Gender, nationality, age
(Einstein in 1905…)
Also fields of work
Bio-Tech
Nano-technology (physics, chemistry…)
Health informatics
Green I.T. (power, virtualization…)
Management – business models

A “Star”
When an individual connects with an ongoing boundary spanning relationship they are likely to become a “Star”
Another term for this is the “goto” person
“ If you need information about … then goto ….”

Examples
Delegate to a standards activity
Regular attendance at a conference
Participation in professional society leadership
Local professional activities
Regular interaction with customers, or suppliers
Adjunct teaching – connecting with faculty, and students

A most valuable asset
Boundary spanning stars who have developed social capital as a result of their work with relevant outside persons
- Innovation and insight
- They can reach out for answers When they don’t already have them
- Their contacts, have contacts it is truly a ‘network’

Back to our Professional Societies
We provide key opportunities here
Local leadership roles
Chapter program committees
Speakers
Events
And national and international as well
Standards, Conferences, Journals

Beyond Innovation
Your network assists your innovation
But there is still more
Team work skills
Leadership opportunities
Cultural awareness
Career Awareness – what’s next?

Your Career
90% of job hires are via the network
Today’s professional is likely to change careers (not just jobs) 3 times
The job you hold in 10 years is likely to not exist today
Search Engine Optimization
Cloud architect
Footprint analyst

The Bottom Line
Get Involved … encourage your colleagues to get involved
Improve Innovation & problem solving
Develop & maintain skills
Team work, leadership, career
Your future depends on it
The future of your employer

Points of concern
Communicating the value of professional involvement, particularly to industry
Assuring the pipeline- Pre College attraction
Teachers & parents value our fields
Is perceived income an issue?
Impact on Humanity
Reaching beyond EE/IT

A quick note on the state of the IEEE Computer Society
First year of member growth in a decade
Mostly students (collaboration w/IEEE)
Also Affiliates (ditto) and Full members
Increased retention
Member survey -> significant improvement
58% of members satisfied or very satisfied
84% indicate likely to renew
Staff down from 126 to 94 – costs minimized
Creative action – Corporate Affiliates Program

Thank you Questions? Check out the 2010 Award Event www.computer.org/portal/web/csmediacenter/2009-cs-awards

Wcre 2010 isaak

by Jim Isaak on Mar 04, 2011

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