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What kinds of daily challenges do you face as working in Information Technology?
Hello, my name is Raymond and I am interested in working as an I.T. I am asking what kind of challenges people face daily and what kind of solutions are there to learn.
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8 answers
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Nick’s Answer
Hi Raymond!
Information Technology is a huge field, but you can roughly split the problems you encounter into "human" problems and "technology" problems.
Technology problems are the most fun part of the job! They're where you use what you know about technology to figure out how to do something new, to fix something that's broken, or to make something better than it's ever been before. The way to solve these problems is to ask questions, research online or in books, and to try things to see if they work. Information Technology can be a lot like science sometimes, where experimenting to see what works is the best way to find success.
Human problems come from the fact that Technology that sits in a locked room with no one to use it doesn't do anyone any good. Some examples of Human problems could be an App that is hard for users to figure out, a disagreement over what the most important things to focus on in with a project are, or just plain needing to work with someone you don't like. These are often the hardest problems you face in Information Technology as they require a lot of Empathy to solve.
Information Technology is a huge field, but you can roughly split the problems you encounter into "human" problems and "technology" problems.
Technology problems are the most fun part of the job! They're where you use what you know about technology to figure out how to do something new, to fix something that's broken, or to make something better than it's ever been before. The way to solve these problems is to ask questions, research online or in books, and to try things to see if they work. Information Technology can be a lot like science sometimes, where experimenting to see what works is the best way to find success.
Human problems come from the fact that Technology that sits in a locked room with no one to use it doesn't do anyone any good. Some examples of Human problems could be an App that is hard for users to figure out, a disagreement over what the most important things to focus on in with a project are, or just plain needing to work with someone you don't like. These are often the hardest problems you face in Information Technology as they require a lot of Empathy to solve.
Annie Zemba, PMP
Principal, Technology Solutions Manager for FirstNet at AT&T
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Annie’s Answer
Hi Raymond! One of the biggest challenges I face each day is staying focused and on task. My ability to concentrate and channel my attention and energy into completing what I need to for the day starts with getting a good night's sleep, having a solid morning routine, and making a To Do list with must finish items. Without these, I find that I am at risk for getting overwhelmed and then I start to multitask and/or procrastinate leaving me feeling exhausted and unproductive at days-end. Rather than cede my focus and control to technology, I also minimize distractions and mute my email and instant messaging notifications because they both drain my productivity. I check both hourly so I can respond to time sensitive ones without getting sidetracked and overwhelmed.
In my day-to-day IT role, I do things like performing in-depth assessments of networks and/or application needs, providing network and/or application modeling, prototyping and simulation testing, and consulting with stakeholders and vendors to further clarify needs to deliver network and/or application functionality. A lot of assignments include design, development, documentation and testing of network hardware, firmware, or software products or systems, and development of new products, enhancements, and modifications of existing products. For all of these areas, Wojciech’s answer above encapsulates well the primary activities associated with each assignment. An overarching one not mentioned is understanding and managing stakeholder expectations and needs and checking in routinely because they change.
In my day-to-day IT role, I do things like performing in-depth assessments of networks and/or application needs, providing network and/or application modeling, prototyping and simulation testing, and consulting with stakeholders and vendors to further clarify needs to deliver network and/or application functionality. A lot of assignments include design, development, documentation and testing of network hardware, firmware, or software products or systems, and development of new products, enhancements, and modifications of existing products. For all of these areas, Wojciech’s answer above encapsulates well the primary activities associated with each assignment. An overarching one not mentioned is understanding and managing stakeholder expectations and needs and checking in routinely because they change.
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Wojciech’s Answer
Information Technology (IT) professionals may face a variety of daily challenges, depending on their specific role and the organization they work for. Some common challenges include:
Keeping up with technology changes and updates, and ensuring that systems and software are current and secure.
Troubleshooting and resolving technical issues, both for internal employees and external customers.
Managing and maintaining IT infrastructure, including servers, networks, and storage systems.
Managing and prioritizing multiple projects and tasks, and ensuring that deadlines are met.
Communicating effectively with non-technical stakeholders, such as management and other departments, to explain technical issues and solutions.
Managing and working with a team of IT professionals, including coordinating efforts and ensuring that everyone is working towards the same goals.
Ensuring compliance with industry regulations and standards.
Managing vendors and third-party service providers.
Managing and securing data, especially in the era of increasing cyber security threats.
Keeping up with technology changes and updates, and ensuring that systems and software are current and secure.
Troubleshooting and resolving technical issues, both for internal employees and external customers.
Managing and maintaining IT infrastructure, including servers, networks, and storage systems.
Managing and prioritizing multiple projects and tasks, and ensuring that deadlines are met.
Communicating effectively with non-technical stakeholders, such as management and other departments, to explain technical issues and solutions.
Managing and working with a team of IT professionals, including coordinating efforts and ensuring that everyone is working towards the same goals.
Ensuring compliance with industry regulations and standards.
Managing vendors and third-party service providers.
Managing and securing data, especially in the era of increasing cyber security threats.
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Bryce’s Answer
IT has many challenges but below are a few things to help overcome the challenges.
1. Technology changes constantly, embrace the ever-changing environment.
2. Find passion within an area of the industry and work to be a part of molding it's future.
3. Don't be afraid to find new areas of passion or add a hobby passion.
4. Every answer starts with "it depends" so try to have as much information as possible when asking questions and be prepared for the answer to be a conversation, not just an answer.
5. Find a mentor! Not just any mentor, someone who wants to teach, guide, and listen.
1. Technology changes constantly, embrace the ever-changing environment.
2. Find passion within an area of the industry and work to be a part of molding it's future.
3. Don't be afraid to find new areas of passion or add a hobby passion.
4. Every answer starts with "it depends" so try to have as much information as possible when asking questions and be prepared for the answer to be a conversation, not just an answer.
5. Find a mentor! Not just any mentor, someone who wants to teach, guide, and listen.
Updated
Ankita’s Answer
Hey Raymond! IT job brings a lot of opportunities of learning and as others said it is a huge field, so there is no defined set of challenges. But to simplify, there are not any challenges that you can not overcome if you are open to learning and asking for help when needed. IT community is extremely open and people are super helpful. Plus the internet is your friend if you are in doubt anytime to find any learning resources. There are common challenges - Technology changes, Repetitive work/projects after a few years of experience, and coordination with non-tech peers but as said there is always an opportunity to learn new in IT which keeps it in demand across the globe. So if you are passionate about technology and learning, there is a solution to every challenge and overall IT is a great career. All the best and hope that helps!
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Mary’s Answer
The best and fastest way to learn is to work in challenging environs, provides you great opportunity to solve problems or learn to resolve but also work as a team. There are lot of challenges. involved:
System issues
Code issues
Logical issues
People Management Issues
etc
If you have an open mind to learn, unlearn and relearn in any environment resolving problems will be like a daily puzzle that you want to keep doing.
System issues
Code issues
Logical issues
People Management Issues
etc
If you have an open mind to learn, unlearn and relearn in any environment resolving problems will be like a daily puzzle that you want to keep doing.
Updated
Jimil’s Answer
With IT you can move toward Administration, Development, Project Management, Analytics, Engineering, Data Science, and many other fields. Depending on which one of these positions you choose to pursue, there may be any variety of issues. As an Engineer/Developer, you are focused on writing code and tackling technical problems that require systematic thinking, like math. While you won't be necessarily doing math, you will be applying concepts and using logic to code and solve problems. They tell you what they want the code to do, you google it, and you write the code. With admin positions you will be more focused on signing into peoples computers in order to put in your password so they can download basic programs like a python compiler or something else that isn't already a default permission (even though it should be). As an admin you might not be coding, but you may run into problems when setting up hardware for people like computers, monitors, updates, and things of that nature. If you choose to do admin for data centers, there is another laundry list of issues that you could encounter since you may be attempting to update software for thousands of PCs at the same time. Understanding how to access servers and use linux commands will serve you best in this type of atmosphere. Another roadblock you may encounter in any of the other positions that I listed could involve dealing with people. The less you code and do administrative duties, the more you will be dealing with people and convincing them to do things. Any job in IT will likely be less people oriented and more computer focused, but a Project Manager for IT is an example of a position that is not computer centric but it is still considered an IT related position.
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Francisco’s Answer
The challenge to learn and adapt to new technologies.
The challenge to face the unpredictable because sometimes issues or problems arise that we have no warning about.
You need to be able to communicate and collaborate between departments.
The challenge to face the unpredictable because sometimes issues or problems arise that we have no warning about.
You need to be able to communicate and collaborate between departments.