Thanks for starting this, Chris!
I have 2 things to contribute (you all decide if this can be truly considered
a contribution).
My disclaimer is that I'm not an information/IT professional. I'm an educator.
And the education supervisor for my institution on track for museum
administration. But I'm a wanna-be geek and strong proponent for how powerful
technology can be for education (and other areas in a museum). Also, I've only
been in the museum field for a few years now. In that time and from various
conferences, etc, I've heard a lot of the same complaints expressed today from
the other museum staff positions.
First point, which some folks touched on, but to reiterate... systems people
(which many of you are) should be able to relate to this. If there is a
problem, one avenue for troubleshooting is looking for the common denominator.
If you tend to have a problem with (many) others, and they tend to just have a
problem with you, the common denominator is YOU. So consider that the problem
is not THEM; the problem is YOU. What are you doing that is causing a problem
for others?
Another possibility is that you and others have a problem with your
administration. So the common denominator is the administration; they are the
problem. In your assessment, can you influence that problem to solve it? If
not, then LEAVE. As was pointed out today, technology isn't going anywhere
(humans have been depending on it for thousands of years now). Those who don't
adopt functional, reliable technology won't be around for long (relatively).
While natural selection is taking its course, go work for someone else. (I do
realize it's never so simple to just leave your job, but if you're not even
considering it, you're also playing your part in natural selection.)
Second point is relative to the whole generational argument... let's just wait
for the Greatest Generation and the Baby Boomers to die off, and then
everyone will embrace the technology. And then we'll never have
misunderstandings between the information professionals and administration
again.
I don't know my history well enough to say for sure, but after some reflection
to this, my gut-cognitive reaction is hogwash!
Are you telling me that there are not folks of older generations who grew up
with whatever technology that they took for granted but their older generations
found incomprehensible; and who do not today comprehend the possibilities for
new technology?
When I started as a freshman in college, my father thought it ridiculous that I
should have my own land line phone in my dorm room. When he went to school, he
had a pay phone on his floor and that worked fine for him. I have never spent
any more time talking on the phone than I have to, but it seemed ludicrous to
not have a telephone in my own room (never mind the answering machine I later
secretly purchased second-hand). Today, I'm already internally conflicted over
what I'll do when my now 4 year old asks me for a cell phone when he's 6. On
the surface, I find the request ridiculous. But then I remember my request for
a phone in my own dorm room...
So what I'm wondering... is it not the case that new technology is always
emerging? And while the name of the technology is always changing, the basic
concept remains the same. Tech proponents will have to work to convince those
who are technologically conservative (i.e. the majority of the populace) that
the technology is worth adopting.
So you can wait for the Great Generation and the Baby Boomers to die out to
implement today's technology (which will be outdated by that point), but then
you're going to have to convince the Gen X'ers and Millenials to implement what
is new at the time they are the administrators.
I'd advocate instead that we do what many folks suggested today--we get better
at communicating the value of technology to decision makers (just like we
communicate the value of education, collections, conservation, etc.).
Thanks again to Nik and the panelists for a great session,
tim
Tim Gaddie
Programs Manager
www.minnetrista.net
From: mcn-l-boun...@mcn.edu on behalf of Chris Alexander
Sent: Wed 11/7/2007 7:33 PM
To: mcn-l at mcn.edu
Subject: [MCN-L] Follow up to Honeysett Director, IT Session
Hello,
As a first time attendee of the MCN Conference, I have to say that I was very
fascinated by the conversation going on about the relationship between IT
Professionals and their Directors. I am fortunate because a little over a year
ago the director of the San Jose Museum of Art made a decision to embrace
technology and created the position which I currently fill.
Piggybacking of some of the discussion about communication, I wanted to offer a
little info about a situation that arose recently. Around the one year
anniversary of my position I was approached by our Marketing Director who
mentioned to me that I need to be a little more