Creating a Training Program for Departmental IT Support Staff Kate Webster Karen Kral

University of Delaware  Land-grant, sea-grant, space-grant and urban-grant institution  21,000 students  3,400 faculty and staff

Early 1990s  Centralized servers → distributed computing  More faculty use of technology  Departmental investment  Need for customized support within departments

Campus Information Technology Associates  Employed by department  Work with IT unit  Currently 54 CITAs at UD

IT’s Involvement with CITAs  Define the job  Help recruit for the position  Provide orientation to IT at UD  Inform CITAs about current IT issues  Assess training needs

The New Millennium  Support: discipline-specific → operational  University IT standards  Informal interaction between CITAs and IT staff  Need to clarify IT/CITA partnership

Spring 2001  Announced Career Ladder for CITAs  Announced Training Program More precise job descriptionsMore precise job descriptions Defined IT/CITA relationshipDefined IT/CITA relationship To help CITAs become as self-sufficient and knowledgeable of IT as possible

Getting Started – June 2001  CITA survey What technical or organizational information?  IT staff brainstorming What topics do you need to learn more about? For which topics would you benefit by taking a training course? For which topics would you benefit by studying from a book? What would help you be more effective in your job?

Training Team  User Services and Help Center staff  Diverse group  Plan and implement a training program within that fiscal year

Areas of Interest  Orientation  Technical

Three Modules  Module 1: Orientation information  Module 2: Self-service training materials  Module 3: Formal training options On the webOn the web Includes standards informationIncludes standards information ManualsManuals Online trainingOnline training Customized, on campus, instructor-ledCustomized, on campus, instructor-led Off campusOff campus

Module 1: Orientation  Updated and reorganized IT web pages  IT Professionals Orientation IT OverviewIT Overview Getting Started for CITAsGetting Started for CITAs Help & ResourcesHelp & Resources PoliciesPolicies IT StandardsIT Standards IT Professional DevelopmentIT Professional Development

Takin’ it to the CITAs  Direct CITAs to essential information  Review for reinforcement  Restrict some resources to CITAs  Provide “perks” upon completion of Orientation module WebCT

Technical Skills Training  Skills assessment  No required training  Topics from brainstorming and survey  Variety of learning styles

Module 2: Self-Service Materials  Manuals  Online training  User Education resources VTCVTC OracleOracle Online manuals from SANSOnline manuals from SANS $200 allotment$200 allotment

Module 3: Formal Training  On campus – IT paid  Off campus – IT and department shared cost Windows 2000Windows 2000 SANS Security – included IT staffSANS Security – included IT staff

Results

Problems/Concerns  Minor usability issues  Non-participating CITAs those who need trainingthose who need training those who are already skilledthose who are already skilled  Limitations of department funding  Scheduling

Added Benefits  Improved IT-CITA and CITA-CITA interaction  Organized IT web pages for everyone  Better communication within IT  Increased morale among CITAs

The Future  Budget tightened  Narrowing focus for topics  More CITA input on topics  Scheduling  Training doesn’t solve all problems

Conclusion Successful project with many benefits Thank you!