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My Awesome IT Job: Vice President of Security, SuccessFactors

Hey, we all complain about work from time to time; we've all had lousy jobs. But before you call it a day and head off to the support group that meets at the bar, here are a few words from an IT pro that loves their work.
Written by Deb Perelman, Contributor

Hey, we all complain about work from time to time; we've all had lousy jobs. But before you call it a day and head off to the support group that meets at the bar, here are a few words from an IT pro that loves their work.

billharmer.jpg
Name: William Harmer III, CISSP, CISM, CIPP/C

Location: Toronto, Ontario Canada

Profession and specialization: Information Technologist, specializing in Security & Privacy

Hobby: Building Motorcycles. I've been rebuilding a 1990 Honda Hawk for the last few years. I'm thinking of building a Rat Rod next.

Last book read: Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates by Tom Robbins. The man truly has a gift for writing.

Latest accomplishment: Certified Privacy Professional with a specialty in Canadian Government

Toughest technology lesson learned: You can never have too much testing. I allowed a system into production once that had been tested by IT's QA group. What we didn't reproduce was non IT behavior. Have someone with NO technological background be a part of your final user acceptance testing on applications. When using even those people with a modicum of technological understanding they naturally work around issues without realizing it. I brought my 68-year-old mother in to perform QA testing and she logged the highest bug count in the department. These people have to be temporary to keep them fresh.

Advice to an up-and-comer: Trust your instincts then communicate clearly and often.

[Know someone who thinks their IT job is awesome? Introduce them to me at debperelman [at] gmail [dot] com.]

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