Reflections on the IT Project Management Class

March 20, 2009 at 10:29 AM (Like & Dislike, Proposed Suggestions)

During this short course of IT project management, I learned many valuable lessons on certain aspects, not only matters that fall under the range of management of project, but also educate myself personally to better manage my life. From this course, I mostly take an interest in the way the lectures are conducted. Its laid back approach and no-hassle learning outcomes make the class more participative. It also made me feel good that the class teaches and broaden my knowledge in giving presentation. Although in the class, I have not yet presented something, I do learn something from all the presenters about mastering this soft skill.

In spite of all the positive part about the course, there are some aspects that I dislike and reluctantly do or accept it. First of all, the course is filled with many works where we were given burdensome project where we have to follow so many rules and prepares much documentation for the project in short period of time. I would frankly say that it is a bit of trouble to do those things. Another thing that I dislike is that this course is jam-packed with theories and a wealth of terms that need to be remembered. It should be more balanced with case studies rather than filling it with so many jargon. Besides, what I really miss is a practical explanation of how to switch theory to reality. This course is a really good introduction to IT project management and it helps to understand basic aspect in managing projects. But when trying to use this methodology in future work or even in the group project assessment, I do not know or a little confused about what steps to do with whom and when.

Anyhow, I also have some suggestions regarding the course which in my opinion would make the course better and more understandable. In truth, I personally think that the content of the course, especially those written in the book, looked a bit complicated and full of words I only partially understand. The problem with all the books and courses, not only for this particular course, is that they were typically written by native English speakers and that is why they have no idea what difficulties has a person who was not born into English faced. Thus, it would be ideal if the lecturer could in some way translate or rework the content to make it more suitable to be learned by most non-native speaker of English.

If I had more time, I do wish that I have done some things differently for the course. If I was concentrating more on the lecture and be more participative in the discussions, maybe I could gain more knowledge and be able to easily practice it later on in my life. Also, despite the day to day interactions I have with the lecturer, the relationships I have built with my classmates, at the end of the day I am still the same student as before. Apart from my familiar friends, I barely know other students in the class. I just know them by their faces and names. This is a bit disappointing because I think I have missed a great chance to mingle with my classmates especially with international students.

Leave a Comment

IT Project Management Tips

March 17, 2009 at 9:38 PM (Benefits of Learning, Significant Knowledge)

There are actually a lot of things that I have learned from this course and it will took me forever if I want to list it all. Thus, I try to mention two of those that I think are the most prominent and useful not only in managing projects, but also can be applied in our daily life. First of all, this IT project management course teaches me about knowing how we can leverage our personal strengths to be of the most service to others. We are all different and those differences are what create the most value for others. We can learn how to leverage our differences to create more value for others as mentioned by McClelland’s acquired-needs theory. Additionally, this course also trains us to make sure the commitments we are considering pursuing will make sense in another time, be it days, weeks, months or years. Defining scope clearly and precisely is a must because by only then we know our capability in having the job done. It is best to search out the emerging opportunities that offer the most chances for us to create value. This is based on how competitive we are in the area where the opportunity is emerging. Not every opportunity is right for every person to pursue. The better we can establish our competitive advantage, the more value we can create.

From this course, I learned some of the process required in the any typical IT project, step-by-step and guidelines in managing it, and how to have a good relationship with other team members. Generally, the course teaches me the importance of a well-organized project and ensures that I have the right skills and knowledge in managing a good project in future. I am much more convinced in talking in front of an audience and am not afraid to take on the challenges of becoming a real project manager some day in the future.

Leave a Comment

Educational and Career Goals

March 16, 2009 at 12:31 AM (Achievements, Career Goals, Future, Strengths & Weaknesses)

My early education until SPM is mainly in my hometown where I grew up there and lived there most of my life until I finished my secondary school. Until then, I have thought long and hard about my educational goals and I know for a fact that I want my bachelor degree to be in the field that I am interested in, either science or ICT. I have found colleges that offer all three majors, but I was kind of torn at that time. In the beginning, I would prefer the pre-university program at Malacca Matriculation College, but I also was applying to UiTM and IIUM as well, and the offer from a private university is the last resort. However, after some thoughts and discussion with my parent, I choose to be enrolled in IIUM and started my pre-university program in Petaling Jaya. I choose IIUM because first of all, IIUM provides me with an Islamic environment and as a Muslim, I want to broaden my knowledge not only in academic, but also religiously. I know that my understanding about my own religion is not as good as it suppose to be. Other than that, I chose this university because I want to brush up my English. Previously, English has only been my written language and I had difficulties in speaking the language. Consequently, by choosing IIUM, I hope that I could increase my proficiency in English.

As a student in an international university, first of all I have to adapt to the environment in IIUM. Not only we have Malaysians, but there are quite a number of international students and they have their own lifestyle and culture. I need some time in order to familiarize with the surrounding here. Over the past few years, my student life also has pretty much been taken over by works. I get up, go to classes, come back to hostel, do revision or assignments, sleep, then wake up and repeat it all again. Only on certain weekends I have the opportunities to hang out with my friends or spend time with my family back at home. Still, my studies up until now has been going pretty well; I discover new things every day, meet new people, and learn important lessons along the way. Looking back I can tell I have grown quite a bit just in the past three years since my first time at MCIIUM, where I started my post-school life.

As a person born in between 1976 to 2000, I am considered as Generation Y person. Normally, people consider the Generation Y people are flexible, ready for change, great at multitasking, value creativity and independence, and are comfortable with technology. Yet, it also says that people that fall under this categorization are too demanding at work, easily whine and complain about anything, distracted due to multitasking, lacking in their cultural contributions to society and have an over inflated sense of power and privilege. I do agree with many of the attributes mentioned by them and I know very well those are only few of my strengths and weaknesses. Thus, I hope that one day I could change my lifestyle and be a better person.

My achievements are quite moderate. I try to balance between academic and co-curricular activities. In terms of academics, I achieved quite a good and satisfying result for every semester. Although not so actively involves in non-academic matters, I have managed to join some programmes or activities such as theatres, committees of programmes, and even joining some training and short courses offered by some societies in IIUM.

For future, my immediate goal is to obtain a bachelor degree in computer science. A degree in computer science will provide the opportunity for me to take many minor courses and certificates which will eventually help me prepares for the challenges of the work force. I believe that my future career opportunities in the field of ICT are not limited and I look forward to increased knowledge through courses either inside or outside of IIUM.

Upon graduation from IIUM, I plan to acquire position as a programmer or a system analyst. I hope to work in an environment in which I can my help a company achieve its goals, as well as an environment that will provide me with personnel growth and development. With my educational background, experience in working on courses’ mini project, cooperative skill, and desire to learn, I am capable of handling the challenges that the work force will bring. Should I have any difficulties and uncertainties about my future, I would like to try on some other new skills such as business. Maybe at present I do not have enough experience in business but those aspects can be learned and I am looking forward to develop a new skill in the future.

Leave a Comment

About Me

March 15, 2009 at 12:20 AM (Image Represents Me, Personal & Family Background, Personal Interests)

Photo Of Me

Assalamualaikum. My name is Mohd Fadhli and I am 21-years-old, as of March 2009. I am a student of International Islamic University of Malaysia (IIUM) and pursuing my bachelor degree in Information & Communication Technology, majoring in computer science. I will be graduating in midst of 2010.

My life is pretty simple to describe, and I do not need a long explanation to do it. I was born and bred in Skudai, Johor, and have been living there up until now. My father works as an engineer at Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) and my mother is a clerk in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM). My interests, besides religion, are in computing and technology. I am interested in everything about technology, but my major interest is in programming and artificial intelligence. I also have a passion for arts, comics in particular. It really helps me a lot to release stress and also rejuvenate my mood.

LegoPlayingWii

If I had to choose an object that represents me, I would choose Lego, my first ever toy given when i was still a child. I choose it because it helps to remind me of my past and where I come from. With Lego, we start with some basic blocks that can be joined together, and by adding creativity and imagination we can build anything. Of course, just like with Lego, everything that I have experienced from the very beginning of my childhood up until now, has shaped much of my life.

Leave a Comment