Technology that fixes process

One of my favorite places to work with is Hanover College.  Over the years I've been able to partner with them on a number of technology initiatives.  When they were needing a new, more cost effective way to monitor and control student print activity, and give students more access to information and resources, I was able to work with Hanover on a number of projects, including follow me printing. This is where you send a job to a virtual print queue, and then where ever you go, you can release the job there.  It really helps on a big campus, especially for students who may be working in a dorm room and who want to pick up that job at the library or student center later.  I also put in the cost accounting and control of print jobs for students, where a student uses their swipe card to release the job, and so they can be charged back for the prints they make.  We used integration of active directory with key fobs for copier access with the help of Dr. John Collins, the head of IT, who actually wrote the scripting to combine the two systems.  The same system also helped with implementing their green initiatives to limit print usage and enforce campus print policy. 

I think this is why moving into Process Optimization is an easy transition from IT, because the correct use of technology leads to efficiency.  I always tell my clients, "If what  your doing on the computer isn't making your job easier, then the computer isn't doing its job."  I avoid "technology for technology's sake", but often times leading people to the right technology or even making them aware of what things exist to help is a large part of discovery.