1. What is the best way to set up a computer system that meets the technological needs of a clothing and accessory company?
2. How does your company work with third party programs or devices that are used by clothing companies (that you have no experience with)?
3. How can a computer system’s analyst best update a clothing and accessory company’s legacy systems to meet modern industry standards?
4. Since most systems have to be on 24-7, is there a way to a systems analyst can properly update or downgrade a system without having to shut it down completely?
5. Have you run into any situations where you’d feel that knowing something beforehand would have made it easier in that situation? Can you provide a specific example?
6. Oftentimes, updates or upgrades are not always perfect. Would you suggest an update or upgrade to a client when it was just released, or would you wait a while? Why?
7. Has there ever been a request from your clientele/employer that you were unable to complete? Why or why not and how did you deal with it?
8. What are some useful sources when keeping up to date with modern day software?
9. As a service provider, what methods do you use to ensure that your clients get the most out of your service?
10. Do you feel that obtaining certification would be more worthwhile than getting a degree in the current economy?
11. In what ways do you feel an EDI system helps a clothing and accessory company?
12. How often do you find a company that doesn’t deal with EDI and how does it compare to the ones that do?
13. What are some warnings that you feel would be appropriate in regards to companies relying heavily on 3rd-party programs?
14. Is there a particular type of EDI (AS2, IIE, etc.) that you feel is more effective in the industry; or anything in particular for the clothing and accessory business?
15. Is there any particular software that you feel would benefit a clothing and accessory company? Something that you could call essential to the business or operating the company.
16. What is your opinion of how the EDI industry is moving towards cloud computing? How have you been adjusting to it?
17. What are some myths that you have heard and corrected from the people you have worked with regarding computers?
18. Why does or doesn’t your company work with mobile EDI (Cellphones, etc.)?
19. What are some ways you assist the company you work for in efficiency or cost savings (such as using the same computer system to keep costs minimal)?
20. How do you feel about certification in comparison to getting a degree in this area of business?
21. Are there any books or sources that you would recommend to be useful in my research on systems analysis?
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Monday, May 20, 2013
Blog 25: Mentorship
L:
Total hours clocked: 200
Duties: Manage business, request help as necessary.
Contact: Robert Kellohen
Cell: 909-538-6652
I:
I have gained a lot of experience overall with working as a systems analyst and as an EDI service provider. The most important thing I have gained here is the knowledge of a customer base and how to deal with people-to-people interactions as well as knowledge about the EDI system that I did not know previously.
A:
What I've done helped me with my EQ because it has in some way or another lead me to all three of my answers. The first answer was found purely through mentorship and observation of the various companies we worked with. While the second two were also found through research, it was the mentorship that primarily exposed me to those two answers.
Total hours clocked: 200
Duties: Manage business, request help as necessary.
Contact: Robert Kellohen
Cell: 909-538-6652
I:
I have gained a lot of experience overall with working as a systems analyst and as an EDI service provider. The most important thing I have gained here is the knowledge of a customer base and how to deal with people-to-people interactions as well as knowledge about the EDI system that I did not know previously.
A:
What I've done helped me with my EQ because it has in some way or another lead me to all three of my answers. The first answer was found purely through mentorship and observation of the various companies we worked with. While the second two were also found through research, it was the mentorship that primarily exposed me to those two answers.
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Blog 24: Exit Interview Questions
(1) What is your essential question? What is the best answer to your question and why?
My essential question is "What is the best way to set up a computer system that meets the technological needs of a clothing and accessories business?"
My best answer to this question is to implement the EDI system. This is because the EDI system allows for the most optimum performance of a company dealing in this area–usually decreasing costs by up to 80%.
(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?
I simply observed the differences between companies during mentorship and noted the applications each one used in order to achieve optimum performance.
(3) What problems did you face? How did you resolve them?
The main problem I faced this year was obtaining research. I feel like initially I didn't know what was expected of the research I was supposed to get and that held me back from obtaining the research to the best of my abilities.
(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?
My most significant source is my mentorship with Robert Kellohen. This allowed me to see what happens while working in the industry and allowed me to come to two of my answers.
My second most significant source is Tech Republic. This website sent me constant newsletters regarding the tech industry and assisted me in providing a constant source of articles. The articles were better here mainly because they were not all from Tech Republic–they would link me to trusted external websites that I could also use as a source of information such as ZDNet.
(5) What is your product and why?
My product is that I have obtained experience in dealing with customers of this industry and knowledge that I did not have before even though I had felt that I was already familiar with this business. Through my independent component one, I learned how to wire serial cables which I had early-on believed to be an easy process of just matching the cables to one another. However, I was surprised to find out that each of the devices that used serial cables needed to be wired differently.
My essential question is "What is the best way to set up a computer system that meets the technological needs of a clothing and accessories business?"
My best answer to this question is to implement the EDI system. This is because the EDI system allows for the most optimum performance of a company dealing in this area–usually decreasing costs by up to 80%.
(2) What process did you take to arrive at this answer?
I simply observed the differences between companies during mentorship and noted the applications each one used in order to achieve optimum performance.
(3) What problems did you face? How did you resolve them?
The main problem I faced this year was obtaining research. I feel like initially I didn't know what was expected of the research I was supposed to get and that held me back from obtaining the research to the best of my abilities.
(4) What are the two most significant sources you used to answer your essential question and why?
My most significant source is my mentorship with Robert Kellohen. This allowed me to see what happens while working in the industry and allowed me to come to two of my answers.
My second most significant source is Tech Republic. This website sent me constant newsletters regarding the tech industry and assisted me in providing a constant source of articles. The articles were better here mainly because they were not all from Tech Republic–they would link me to trusted external websites that I could also use as a source of information such as ZDNet.
(5) What is your product and why?
My product is that I have obtained experience in dealing with customers of this industry and knowledge that I did not have before even though I had felt that I was already familiar with this business. Through my independent component one, I learned how to wire serial cables which I had early-on believed to be an easy process of just matching the cables to one another. However, I was surprised to find out that each of the devices that used serial cables needed to be wired differently.
Monday, May 6, 2013
Blog 23: 2014 Interview
1. Who did you interview and what house is he/she in?
Gabriela Murillo
West House
2. What idea(s) does she have for her senior project and why?
Business management, just interested.
3. What do you plan to do for your summer 10 hour mentorship experience?
Close family member does something similar and will work with him.
4. What do you hope to see or expect to see in watching the 2013 2-Hour presentations?
Something business related
5. Any questions relating to senior project I can help with?
-What is your topic? System analysis
-Does it really take up the entire year or just semester based? The entire year is spent on developing your topic
Gabriela Murillo
West House
2. What idea(s) does she have for her senior project and why?
Business management, just interested.
3. What do you plan to do for your summer 10 hour mentorship experience?
Close family member does something similar and will work with him.
4. What do you hope to see or expect to see in watching the 2013 2-Hour presentations?
Something business related
5. Any questions relating to senior project I can help with?
-What is your topic? System analysis
-Does it really take up the entire year or just semester based? The entire year is spent on developing your topic
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Blog 21: Independent Component 2
Literal:
(a) I, Brent Kellohen, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.
(b) Mentor: Robert Kellohen
(c) Reflected in mentorship log
(d) Completed mentorship hours, delivering labels, taking calls, etc.
Interpretive:
Each day I would come into the home office and assist with answering phone calls and performing basic office duties. Two of which are data entry into the computer system and the printing of labels through a Zebra Z4X model printer. Over my 30 hours of mentorship, I had to learn how to load and unload the supplies in the printer. This may seem rather easy at first, especially with the very clean design, but there were problems that I would run into caused by simple mistakes on the way. In my 30 hours I have printed over 2500 labels for various different clients.
The second main aspect of my mentorship was the data entry. I would have to perform data entry for over 200 entries at a time. You can already imagine how time consuming this can be–having to change line item quantities and the weights of their shipments one by one every time.
A third aspect in my mentorship was maintaining the health of the server. In the second photo, you can see the task manager of a windows computer running in the top right hand corner showing some amount of usage. It is part of my job to ensure that it is not overloaded so that it will continue to provide service to the customers that work with us. The second part I maintain in the server is the FTP server. Also in the second photo, there is a two identical boxes that are used to manage the FTP server and to view who or what is logging into the system. One of my jobs here was to maintain the FTP server status and ban any hackers that occasionally try to get into our system.
Over the 30 hours I worked, this large pile of labels and ribbon had run dry, and I was required to drive to Los Angeles and refresh the supply. Fortunately our supplier had extras on hand.
The last photo here is a workstation that is used to manage label designs for our clients. The system is actually hardly used because the clients we have do not usually demand for label format changes on a day to day basis; this explains why the desk appears to be so cluttered.
Applied:
The 30 hours worked supported my first answer and in some ways, my second.
My 30 hours worked applied to my first answer in the data entry section. The data I entered directly correlated with the need for an EDI system. I was able to get the amount of work done that would normally require two to three days time.
The way my 30 hours supported my second answer is through the printing process. The Zebra printer system is compatible with mainly the Windows operating system, and for that reason most of the clients I deal with use Windows. Another way to print labels is with a laser printer, but this method is not commonly used here in our office.
(a) I, Brent Kellohen, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.
(b) Mentor: Robert Kellohen
(c) Reflected in mentorship log
(d) Completed mentorship hours, delivering labels, taking calls, etc.
Interpretive:
Each day I would come into the home office and assist with answering phone calls and performing basic office duties. Two of which are data entry into the computer system and the printing of labels through a Zebra Z4X model printer. Over my 30 hours of mentorship, I had to learn how to load and unload the supplies in the printer. This may seem rather easy at first, especially with the very clean design, but there were problems that I would run into caused by simple mistakes on the way. In my 30 hours I have printed over 2500 labels for various different clients.
Inside label printer, had to resupply this multiple times.
The second main aspect of my mentorship was the data entry. I would have to perform data entry for over 200 entries at a time. You can already imagine how time consuming this can be–having to change line item quantities and the weights of their shipments one by one every time.
Secondary server monitor... and tissue roll.
Server (monitor currently off)
A third aspect in my mentorship was maintaining the health of the server. In the second photo, you can see the task manager of a windows computer running in the top right hand corner showing some amount of usage. It is part of my job to ensure that it is not overloaded so that it will continue to provide service to the customers that work with us. The second part I maintain in the server is the FTP server. Also in the second photo, there is a two identical boxes that are used to manage the FTP server and to view who or what is logging into the system. One of my jobs here was to maintain the FTP server status and ban any hackers that occasionally try to get into our system.
Label & Ribbons Supplies
Over the 30 hours I worked, this large pile of labels and ribbon had run dry, and I was required to drive to Los Angeles and refresh the supply. Fortunately our supplier had extras on hand.
Workstation
The last photo here is a workstation that is used to manage label designs for our clients. The system is actually hardly used because the clients we have do not usually demand for label format changes on a day to day basis; this explains why the desk appears to be so cluttered.
Applied:
The 30 hours worked supported my first answer and in some ways, my second.
My 30 hours worked applied to my first answer in the data entry section. The data I entered directly correlated with the need for an EDI system. I was able to get the amount of work done that would normally require two to three days time.
The way my 30 hours supported my second answer is through the printing process. The Zebra printer system is compatible with mainly the Windows operating system, and for that reason most of the clients I deal with use Windows. Another way to print labels is with a laser printer, but this method is not commonly used here in our office.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Blog 16: 2-Hour Meeting Answer #2
1. What is your essential question?
How can a computer systems analyst best update a clothing and accessory company's legacy systems to meet modern industry standards?
2. What is your second answer to your essential question?
Keep up to date with the technology and the market for the technology.
3. What are three details to support or justify your second answer?
4. What source helped you prove this answer is justified for your essential question?
Mentorship - I have observed that the clientele of my mentor has trouble connecting to his server because it is using outdated software. Although I have urged him to update it, he has ignored this fact and suffers slightly because of it.
5. What do you plan to study next with your second answer and why?
Computer usage in the workplace of a clothing and accessory company. It's important to observe how the users are taking care of the systems, etc. so that you can properly build the system to fit their needs. (Handicaps, habits, etc.)
How can a computer systems analyst best update a clothing and accessory company's legacy systems to meet modern industry standards?
2. What is your second answer to your essential question?
Keep up to date with the technology and the market for the technology.
3. What are three details to support or justify your second answer?
- Technology is constantly changing. In order to keep up with the modern industry standards, it is important to know what that standard is.
- Bugs, hackers, and viruses can infect computers that do not have a knowledgable user or a computer without adequate protection.
- Allows you to buy the hardware/software needed at a cheaper price, helping both you and your clientele.
4. What source helped you prove this answer is justified for your essential question?
Mentorship - I have observed that the clientele of my mentor has trouble connecting to his server because it is using outdated software. Although I have urged him to update it, he has ignored this fact and suffers slightly because of it.
5. What do you plan to study next with your second answer and why?
Computer usage in the workplace of a clothing and accessory company. It's important to observe how the users are taking care of the systems, etc. so that you can properly build the system to fit their needs. (Handicaps, habits, etc.)
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Blog 19: Senior Project and ESLRs
1. What ESLR have you excelled in most in your senior project?
Effective user of technology.
2. Please explain why you think you have excelled in this ESLR.
My senior topic is related to technology, and through it I have learned much more than I the amount that I already knew. Also since the topic is related to technology, I have had to use it throughout.
3. Provide evidence from your senior topic to support your claim.
Mentorship hours, photos from previous blog assignment.
Effective user of technology.
2. Please explain why you think you have excelled in this ESLR.
My senior topic is related to technology, and through it I have learned much more than I the amount that I already knew. Also since the topic is related to technology, I have had to use it throughout.
3. Provide evidence from your senior topic to support your claim.
Mentorship hours, photos from previous blog assignment.
Friday, March 1, 2013
Blog 18: 2-Hour Meeting Answer #3
1. What is your essential question?
How can a systems analyst update a clothing and accessory company's legacy systems to meet modern industry standards?
2. What is the third answer to your essential question?
My third answer to my essential question is to follow a system.
3. What are three details to justify your third answer?
Mentorship
5. What do you plan to study next and why?
I plan to continue mentorship with different clientele; up until now I have been working with just one main client and I would like to compare and contrast multiple work environments.
How can a systems analyst update a clothing and accessory company's legacy systems to meet modern industry standards?
2. What is the third answer to your essential question?
My third answer to my essential question is to follow a system.
3. What are three details to justify your third answer?
- Speeds up the updating process
- Makes it easy to identify and rule out anomalies
- Cuts costs on buying bulk
Mentorship
5. What do you plan to study next and why?
I plan to continue mentorship with different clientele; up until now I have been working with just one main client and I would like to compare and contrast multiple work environments.
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Blog 15: Independent Component 2 Plan Approval
(1) For my independent component I plan to do mentorship to complete the 30 hour requirement.
(2) 30 hours of mentorship can complete my required 30 hours for the component.
(3) It is mentorship hours, it relates because it helps me gain knowledge and experience with my topic.
(2) 30 hours of mentorship can complete my required 30 hours for the component.
(3) It is mentorship hours, it relates because it helps me gain knowledge and experience with my topic.
Friday, February 1, 2013
Blog 14: Independent Component 1
Literal:
- "I, Brent Kellohen, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work."
- Mentor's Contact Information:
- Robert Kellohen
- Cell: (909) 538-6651
- EM: robkell@elinkdirect.org
- 30 Hour Log
- Completed the set up of a computer and barcode printer that is traditionally used as a loaner while we complete a setup or order of our clientele's computer.
Evidence:
Applied: Like my interpretive said, it gave me an idea for the foundation of system analysis. Sometimes I will have to be performing upgrades on systems like this one (not necessarily always going to be building from ground zero) and will have to keep the patience as well as precision in building the system that is asked of me. The biggest part this component helped me in was setting up an old serial printer and having to build the cable for it. Many companies that I have seen while on mentorship are using older printers like these and having experience with "legacy" technology gives me a wider perspective of the field that I may or may not be working in in the future.
Thursday, January 17, 2013
Monday, January 14, 2013
Blog 12: Third Interview Questions
- How can a computer system's analyst best update a clothing and accessory company's legacy systems to meet modern industry standards?
- How would you deal with the third party programs or devices that are used by clothing companies (that you have no experience with)?
- How can a systems analyst properly update or upgrade a system without having to shut it down completely?
- As a systems analyst, do you believe that it is better to work independently or as an employee/part of a team, especially in the apparel industry?
- Is there anything that you feel has made becoming a systems analyst easier for you?
- Is there anything that you feel has made becoming a systems analyst more difficult for you?
- Have you run into any situations where you'd feel that knowing something beforehand would have made it easier in that situation?
- Often times, updates/upgrades are not always perfect. Would you suggest an update/upgrade to a client when it was just released, or would you wait a while? Why?
- Has there ever been a request from your clientele/employer that you were unable to complete? Why or why not and how did you deal with it?
- What are useful sources when monitoring modern-day technology?
- Are there any books or sources that you would recommend to be useful in my research on systems analysis?
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Blog 11: Mentorship 10 Hours Check
1. Where are you doing your mentorship?
- iSS eLinkDirect
2. Who is your contact?
- Robert Kellohen
3. How many total hours have you done?
- 36 Hours
4. Summarize the 10 hours of service learning that you've done.
- The experience has been nice so far. I have learned many of the common discrepancies that will show up while working in this career field and have grown into a habit of solving them, although I just recently found that getting into a certain mindset while in this job may be a bad thing since being creative with my solutions is encouraged and will keep me away from mistakes in the future.
5. Email your house teacher the name and phone number of your contact.
- Done
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