Catie Oerther
iLEAD Academy Student
Class of 2020
Vogt Power International
I job shadowed at Vogt Power International (VPI), they were excited to have me because I'm a girl and at their company they have very few girls. VPI designs boilers for their customers by their customers design constraints and most cost efficient way. During my job shadow I got the chance to talk thermal engineers, project engineers and product engineer. I did not get to take many pictures because I was not permitted to take pictures. During my experience I learned about the company and what each person does and how it effects the outcome. I learned that event they use the design process, but the biggest difference is that each engineer has a different step in the design process.
Manger of Commercial Real Estate
I job shadowed Jennifer Howell she is a Manager of Commercial Real Estate at Commonwealth Real estates. I definitely seek an interest in her job. She uses Excel, Access, Home Architect and Quick Books. While job shadowing I had the chance to use spreadsheets to help keep track of clients, create invoices, view leases, make a floor plan and visit a property that is for sale. I consider the job shadow an success because I enjoyed the time I spent at her work.
Business Analyst
As a business analyst, you put together business requirements for a product development team. Useful subjects include business, IT and technology science. Different industries require different or specific degrees. Courses such as agile and scrum are beneficial. As a business analyst, you are not expected to create the code. Communication skills are necessary because you need to be able to communicate efficiently between different people. You need to have strong analytical skills, being able to challenge yourself and others and the enthusiasm to learn new things. There are meetings to discuss the current project and to review the requirements. As a business analyst, you mainly communicate with product development and the areas of business. In this position, you need to be open to criticism and learn how to give critical feedback. You will take requests and research competitors.
Data Analyst
As a data analyst to take a company’s data and to help them make decisions. You will extract the data and use business intelligence tools to help make wise decisions. A perk about being a data analyst is you can work from anywhere, giving you free rein to travel. You can determine the best type of product, target customers, ideal price, best location, etc. It is important to look at the location when talking with a client because each location has a different customer demographic. It is important to learn how to use different tools and be able to adapt to new ones. You use artificial intelligence to identify patterns in your data. For a business, inventory is really important because you need to understand the patterns each product holds. With the analysis made, you can make predictions on the kind of traffic a store would receive.
Carroll County Tech Office
I job shadowed Cindy Johann who works at the Carroll County Tech Office. The services Cindy does is she is the project manager, gets quotes, applies for grants, does research, STLP, COSN, works with students, problem solves, works with the state, works in the tech office, and fixes or works with technology. While engineering I learned that there is a difference between a manager and a leader. Overall my job shadowing was a great opportunity and I took a lot from my time with Cindy.
Department of Corrections
I went to KCIW or Kentucky Correctional Institution for Women. I was given the opportunity to job shadow the Warden Vanessa Kennedy. I was not allowed to take my phone into the prison for safety reasons. I was also not allowed to go on the yard but because you have to be at least eighteen years old. I was able to get a virtual tour and learn more about the prison system and how it functions. This job shadow showed me a career I have never consider, criminal justice, although I don't think that I will pursue a career in criminal justice I still found this job shadow experience an excellent opportunity.
IT Project Manager
A project manager oversees a project with a fixed time frame, costs, and requirements. As IIT Manager you hold meetings to catch up with your team members, create a plan and assign each team member a task. It is your job to be sure each task is completed on time and meets all the requirements. She recommends psychology so you can better understand people and different situations. Certifications show employers that you’re able to apply yourself under time pressure, the Princeton qualifications is the most recognized. As a project manager you need to have confidence, need to be very organized, diplomatic, empathic, very flexible and need to be able to work well under pressure. You should enjoy working with clients and working face to face. You can become an associate project manager to watch a project manager and learn how they run projects.
Software Engineer
As a software engineer, you spend time looking at user stories or the description of functionality that is required then find a solution. In school take classes related to computer science, math, and electronics. A degree in computer engineering is sought from employers. Employers will also look for skills in different programming languages including C++, C, and Java. The job you get will be based on the different programming languages you know, so it is important to take the appropriate courses at your university. Be on the watch for new trends and what languages are more popular. As a software engineer, you deal with data and API. Ensure that the courses you are taking are about the most recent technologies. You will retrieve data from databases as a software engineer. Communication is important because you will have to communicate with people with less knowledge about the topic and will have to make it understandable.
