What is your current job title and industry and what do you enjoy the most about both?
I am currently the Manager of the Technology Service Desk at The University of Adelaide. I love the excitement that the University sector brings, with our focus on world-class education to prepare the leaders of the future, alongside the excellent research to solve the world’s grandest challenges! The fast pace of the Service Desk always keeps me on my toes, and is a great way to channel my focus on customer service.
I am about to transition into a newly created Service Delivery Manager role, as we focus on building our Service Management capability, so look forward to the new challenges this will bring.
How long have you been an itSMF Member?
My first itSMF event was back in 2016 where my colleague, Ian Willis, presented about our customer service journey ‘from last to first’. Meeting other service management professionals was exciting and new, and got me hooked! And the rest, as they say, is history.
What itSMF Membership Benefits do you get most value from?
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What do you enjoy most about being an itSMF Member?
The itSMF seminars have been interesting, eye-opening and inspiring, and I always walk away enthusiastic about how I can take action. I also find everyone in the itSMF family so welcoming, friendly and willing to share their experiences.
Has being an itSMF Member benefited you professionally?
I mentioned my itSMF membership and involvement in my recent Service Delivery Manager interview … I’m pretty sure this got me the role.
What ITSM related certifications do you hold, if any?
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What has been your biggest workplace or career challenge and how did you face it?
My first full-time job was in a government agency in Leeds, UK, and most of my colleagues had been in the same job for 15-20 years and were very set in their ways.
My just-out-of-school enthusiasm to change the world was on overdrive and I found an expense spreadsheet that was printed each month and added up on a manual calculator. After adding a ‘sum’ field, I thought I was the bee’s knees, but my manager didn’t see it that way.
I was strongly advised to not interfere with the processes, because ‘that’s how we do things here’. From that moment onwards, I knew that I needed work in an environment that challenged the status quo on a daily basis. 3 months later I moved to a small IT company and I haven’t looked back!
Have you ever applied your ITSM skills outside of work?
I’d like to say that I leave work behind, but who am I kidding ….. from the Trello board for the household projects, to providing timely IT support to my family, my workplace skills are often useful in many scenarios.
Member Q & A
Tracey Horricks
in conversation with
Brendan Cullen