about me
I work in UCL's Department of Computer Science in the Technical Support Group as Systems Process and Workflow Automation Manger.
Current Role
Since July 2023 I have been working with an external solutions architect and departmental managers to improve the data handling and various work process within the Department, leveraging Microsoft Dynamics on the UCL domain. This involves discussing with managers and stakeholders about their workflows, sources of truth, inputs and outputs and all the tacit elements that make things tick in a complex organisation like ours. With the developer, I am creating apps and system automations to support staff in various functions.
previous: Technician in Technical Support Group
The Technical Support Group manages the IT infrastructure of the Department, including compute and file servers, storage, office and lab desktops, staff laptops, audio-visual equipment, wired and wireless network provision for students, staff and guests. From 2002-2022 I provided 1st, 2nd or 3rd line technical support. I was also Safety Officer for the Department for many years.
Learning Technology
in 2011 I completed a PG Certificate in Learning Technology at UCL's Centre for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning (CALT). I completed 3 modules: Researching e-learning Technology, Adult Learning and Professional Development, and Technology Mediated Collaboration. These were rounded off with a short viva. Below are some presentations I conducted as part of each module.
Group Dynamics from
davoloid
Other Qualifications
Microsoft Power Platform Fundamentals PL-900 (Nov 2022)
ITIL Release Control and Validation (Mar 2017)
ITIL Operational Support & Analysis (May 2016)
ITIL Service Design (May 2015)
ITIL Foundation (Feb 2014)
Other Interests
Having been engaged with in online communities since 1994 (Monochrome BBS still going!), I am interested in social media and networking trends, the sociology and psychology involved in online interactions, and in particular how online resources can be used to enhance the educational experience for both teachers and learners.
As a big fan of space science and human exploration, and follow developments closely, but I'm particularly interested in the policy and planning aspects, which often get ignored in favour of the spectacle. My sense is that exploration is stalled *precisely* because of this.
Other than that, I am an all-round geek, with interests within history, geography, science, news media, music, movies, technology, books. This can best be described as "bursty" with my mastodon posts perfectly illustrating this. I am most stimulated when these areas cross over, whether it be songs about books, histories about geography, or movies about science. I ocassionally blog about these things.