Pitt Business e-newsletter Issue 11, September 2008
The Threads of Technology
From internships to project courses, real-world experiences abound within and around the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business, but second-year MBA/Master of Science in Management Information Systems (MBA/MS-MIS) student Alexandra Kelley had the opportunity to participate in the ultimate experience-based learning activity this summer. With Myrtle Beach, S.C. as a backdrop, Kelley was able to immerse herself in her field of study by way of three co-organized conferences. She and nearly 1,500 other guests participated in conferences sponsored by The TrainingCo. LLC (2008 Techno Security Conference), EC-Council (Hacker Halted USA 2008 Conference), and AccessData Corp. (first annual user's conference).
With seven tracks offered in four days, Kelley was able to pick and choose where her time would be best spent. Of all the presentations, she most appreciated Current and Emerging Cyber Threats presented by Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent in Charge (Columbia, SC Division) David A. Thomas and Rohyt Belani, managing partner and cofounder of the Intrepidus Group, Inc. Other sessions covered digital forensics, e-mail leakage of customers' private data, and wide-reaching advice on information security.
Gaining knowledge is always important, but as a member of the Katz MIS Club, Kelley also knew that the networking opportunities these conferences presented would be quite valuable. With her personal efforts, she acquired several connections to information technology professionals, information security solutions vendors, and law enforcement agencies who have agreed to give presentations to the MIS Club in the coming year.
How did all of this come about?
The immense power of networking is embedded in the very fiber of the Katz Information Systems (IS) program. The IS Interest Group strives to involve active professionals, corporate partners, and alumni in its curriculum to benefit current students now and as future alumni. The networking cycle is a positive one. Sam Angelo (MBA/MS-MIS '97) is the assistant vice president for network engineering and information security at Service Link, part of the Fidelity National Financial family. He is also one of Kelley's past professors. Angelo, tapped his connections with Jack Wiles, cofounder and senior partner of The TrainingCo., which runs the Techno Security Conference. As a result, Wiles became interested in how IS Security was being taught in the Katz School and extended an invitation for Kelley to attend the conference, expand her knowledge, and cultivate professional networks with attendees and presenters that will now help to broaden the professional networks of her fellow MIS Club members. Next year, the threads of these connections will expand even further with a standing invitation for Katz IS students to attend the Techno Security Conference.
Kelley, who returned to Pittsburgh just in time to begin an internship with United States Steel Corporation, is eager to see where the connections she forged this summer will lead.
