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My new job
Oct. 3rd, 2008 10:39 pmOn Sunday I was anxious. Very, very, anxious. Perhaps not as anxious as a fiance about to meet the future in-laws, but not far off.
At the end of the first week, I'm much more relaxed. This has been helped by my first attendance of the mor-e-ale group, which comprises hardy souls dedicated to the lifting of spirits on a Friday evening. Even before the pub, I was pretty settled in. Everyone has been welcoming. I have a pretty good grasp of how things work and ideas for what needs to be improved.
There are some challenges involved. For one thing, as a section head I'm one step removed from managing people who actually do stuff. So when I want to change things, I have to work with the team leaders, who are fully occupied with everyday tasks. Another of my goals is to track and adopt the good ideas being pursued by IT staff in the various schools of the university, rather than re-invent everything from the centre. It's not immediately obvious how to do that effectively. And finally, I want to improve the way we manage projects. This is not directly my jurisdiction, so I will have to convince various colleagues to try new approaches rather than instigating those changes myself. All of which I knew before I took the post; now I just have make things actually happen.
At the end of the first week, I'm much more relaxed. This has been helped by my first attendance of the mor-e-ale group, which comprises hardy souls dedicated to the lifting of spirits on a Friday evening. Even before the pub, I was pretty settled in. Everyone has been welcoming. I have a pretty good grasp of how things work and ideas for what needs to be improved.
There are some challenges involved. For one thing, as a section head I'm one step removed from managing people who actually do stuff. So when I want to change things, I have to work with the team leaders, who are fully occupied with everyday tasks. Another of my goals is to track and adopt the good ideas being pursued by IT staff in the various schools of the university, rather than re-invent everything from the centre. It's not immediately obvious how to do that effectively. And finally, I want to improve the way we manage projects. This is not directly my jurisdiction, so I will have to convince various colleagues to try new approaches rather than instigating those changes myself. All of which I knew before I took the post; now I just have make things actually happen.
