IT Skills

3 Key excerpts on "IT Skills"

• 

  eBook - ePub

  The Management Implications of New Information Technology

  • Nigel F. Piercy, Nigel F. Piercy(Authors)
  • 2018(Publication Date)
  • Routledge

    (Publisher)

  Chapter 2

  Information Technology in Engineering Production and Production Management

  Denis R. Towill

  INTRODUCTION

  Information technology (IT) is the modern name for the means by which we collect, store, process, and use information (Zorkoczy, 1982). Furthermore, it is not confined to hardware and software, but involves man in target setting and assessment criteria. It is built around the scientific, technological, engineering, and management disciplines used in information handling and processing, and at the present time is generally regarded as relating to computers and the interaction between man and machine. However, many of the basic ingredients needed within IT pre–date the microelectronic revolution. For many years effective management of manufacturing engineering has required the collection, generation, communication, recording, manipulation, and exploitation of information. A motivating factor in the new IT is the hope that the principles, practice, and terminology of information handling can be treated in a united, systematic way.

  Engineering production and production management are concerned with the effective use of people, products, plant and processes in modern manufacturing industry. This, in turn, is achieved by the proper selection and implementation of policies and plans. However, all six factors interact with each other, which partially explains the operational complexity which presently seems unavoidable. As we shall see, it is assisting the introduction of an integrated systems approach to problem solving in modern manufacturing industry which makes IT such a potentially powerful production management tool.

  The interaction problem can be best illustrated via the Venn diagram shown in Figure 2.1, in the type of display originated by Bestwick and Lockyer (1982). IT can help make each of the six cells independently more effective, but it is in the interactive zone where by far the biggest contribution may be expected. There are particular problems in the ‘people’ area, which are receiving exhaustive study under the heading of ‘dialogue engineering’ (Sime and Coombe, 1983).

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - ePub

  Information Technology

  An Introduction for Today's Digital World

  • Richard Fox(Author)
  • 2020(Publication Date)
  • Chapman and Hall/CRC

    (Publisher)

  1 Introduction to Information Technology In this chapter, we introduce the field of information technology (IT), cover definitions, explore the components that make up IT, and look at IT careers. The learning objectives of this chapter are to be able to: •  Define the different uses of the term IT •  Explain the types and roles of the components of a computer system •  Describe and differentiate between types of IT careers •  Describe the skill set required to succeed in IT 1.1      DEFINING IT Information technology (IT) is an umbrella term. It is used to describe careers that use computers; to describe systems of hardware, software, and data; and to describe the staff of an organization who takes care of computer systems. Let’s look at each of these in turn. The term IT has often been used synonymously with any career that uses computer systems. In the 1970s through the 1980s, just about any tech-oriented career was placed under the general label, IT. This included, for instance, programmers, system analysts, mechanical engineers, graphic designers, radiologists, and anyone who used a database. Today, just about every field of endeavor uses computer systems to some extent, from accounting to zoology, and so this use of the term IT is no longer useful. But careers in IT are still broader than what we might think. Table 1.1 provides a list of “IT” careers as found in such popular websites as itcareerfinder.com, allaboutcareers.com, and careerizma.com. The list in Table 1.1 is far from complete. Careers that are more closely tied to IT as it is used today include forms of computer administration. Computer administration includes system administrators, network administrators, and database administrators. We also add help desk and computer support specialists to this list

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book
• 

  eBook - ePub

  U.S. Engineering in a Global Economy

  • Richard B. Freeman, Hal Salzman(Authors)
  • 2018(Publication Date)
  • University of Chicago Press

    (Publisher)

  Table 4.5 shows that participants’ impressions of the general importance of professional knowledge and skills remained relatively constant over time, but the relative importance of technical knowledge and skills declined with twenty fewer mentions after working for four years. Respondent engineers were less likely to mention math, logic, science, problem-solving, and visualization skills as crucial for their work. They were just as likely to mention content knowledge and software skills, and like engineers in the Workplace Sample, provided specific examples of knowledge and applications once in a job. The pattern suggests that engineering students may mistakenly overemphasize the relevance of broad (versus specific) technical knowledge and skills to engineering practice.

  This supposition is supported by responses that interviewees gave when asked to define engineering as students. Seven described engineering as problem solving, and three explicitly emphasized that engineering entailed the application of math and science.

  Engineering is the applied use of science and technology to solve problems. (Technical Public Institution, Engineering Physics major, junior year) Engineering is the art of figuring out interesting problems that need to be figured out using math and science. (Suburban Private University, Computer Science major, junior year) Engineering is just coming up with solutions to problems using math and science. (Technical Public Institution, Petroleum Engineering major, junior year)

  Table 4.5   Comparison of important knowledge and skills (Longitudinal Sample, n = 9)

  	Number of participants who reported skill/knowledge as important
  	Junior year of college	Four years postgraduation	Difference
  Technical knowledge and skillsa	9	6	−3
  Math skills	8	1	−7
  Logic skills	5	0	−5
  Science skills	4	0	−4
  Problem-solving skills	3	2	−1
  Technical skills (general)	2	1	−1
  Visualization skills	1	0	−1
  Content knowledge	2	2	0
  Software skills	1	1	0
  Total no. mentions	26	6	−20
  Professional knowledge and skills	8	7	−1
  Context knowledge	3	0	−3
  Creativity skills	3	0	−3
  Teamwork skills	2	0	−2
  Social skills (general)	1	0	−1
  Self-directed learning skills	1	1	0
  Business knowledge	0	1	+1
  Documentation skills	0	1	+1
  Self-motivation skills	0	1	+1
  Working with people	1	3	+2
  Communication skills	2	5	+3
  Total no. mentions	13	12	−1

  a

  Sign up to read

  Learn more about book