IT Colleagues,

Each year, the SJSU IT Sparta Awards are given to one individual and one team who embody our division’s collaborative spirit, commitment to our university, and drive for excellence. Nominations are submitted by both peers and managers through an open process, and the SJSU IT Peer Consultation Group gives recommendations on each candidate before winners are chosen. It’s my pleasure to share 2023’s winners with all of you.

The 2023 SJSU IT Individual Sparta Award goes to Joseph “JR” Hotchkiss. While JR’s continuous commitment to quality work and reliable profession were the core reasons for his nomination, there were a couple projects that pushed his nomination over the top. Last year, JR automated a large volume of manual processes for our Biz Ops team. He also executed a major overhaul of the SJSU IT website with a redesign focused on student feedback.

The 2023 SJSU IT Team Sparta Award goes to the University Power Outage/IT Infrastructure Response Team: Debu Basak, Nick Cappelloni, Steve Chang, Kelly Deaver, Cuong Doan, Jason Ferguson, Pauline Garingan, Werner Goveya, Brent Jones, Matt Lord, An Nguyen, Keith Nowosielski, Tristan Orlino, Atul Pala, Manish Shah, Tien Tran, Tam Vu, and Rong Wang.

On the evening of Friday, August 11, a major PG&E power event took place that damaged SJSU’s power plant and caused a major power surge through campus that knocked out generators. This ultimately led to our data centers going fully down, damaging some of our equipment. When power was finally restored, this team took on the massive effort to bring systems back online. By Monday, August 14, approximately 95% of systems were already up and running again, including prioritizing life safety, student success solutions, and cyber security. The team continued to work above-and-beyond to ensure that all systems were ready for the start of the semester on Monday, August 21st. This work also required heavy collaboration with departments across campus, including the University Police Department (UPD) and Facilities Development & Operations (FD&O).

First off: congratulations to all of this year’s winners! Thank you to everyone who submitted a nomination and supported your colleagues and teammates. And thank you to the SJSU IT Peer Consultation Group for your insight on the candidates and continued support of the awards as a whole.

Lastly, thank you to everyone. So many of you are doing amazing work every day.

Best regards,
Bob-

Dear Colleagues, 

A few weeks ago, I shared SJSU IT’s approach to helping reduce the university’s budget deficit, focusing on our team and expanding growth opportunities. There are many skills needed in our division where you might be able to contribute and expand your role.  

As I mentioned in that previous budget email, we’re expanding professional development opportunities to empower you with the skills you want to build and the skills our university needs. One of those opportunities is the SJSU IT Cross-Pollination Program, created in 2020 to foster collaboration and skill development across different departments within our division. Since then, we’ve had many success stories from colleagues participating in this program. Today, I want to highlight one colleague’s journey. 

Jane Wang’s interest in data science was sparked after engaging in several in-house training sessions. She enrolled in data science classes and dove into related topics and courses. However, she needed hands-on experience to make data science part of her career. With her supervisor’s guidance, support, and encouragement, Jane enrolled in the Cross-Pollination Program. In just a couple of months, she was already actively working and collaborating with the Data Warehouse team. She has now seamlessly transitioned to a full-time role within the Data Warehouse team, fulfilling a crucial need for our campus.

The Cross-Pollination Program remains one of the most effective ways for you to grow your skills with onsite job experience during your regular working hours. While SJSU IT reduced 25 vacant positions for this fiscal year, we remain committed to implementing new solutions and technology in support of our students, faculty, staff and university community. We can’t do this without the support from everyone in IT. We encourage everyone that is interested in learning and doing more to leverage the Cross-Pollination Program. Your professional development not only provides you with tools for your success, but also helps our division meet the university’s IT needs within our constraints.

You can contact Willie Simon for more information about the program and how it works. If you think the Cross-Pollination Program is a good fit for you, talk to your manager and senior manager to get started. 

I want to congratulate Jane Wang on taking her career with us to the next level. Thank you, Kara Li and James Anderson, for supporting Jane’s professional development and our upskilling strategy. I also want to acknowledge Willie Simon for her contributions in coordinating the Cross-Pollination Program.

Of course, you can always come speak with me about the program or about our budget situation during my weekly open office hours, every Thursday from 2pm–4pm. Please feel free to reach out to Lin Ru to schedule a time.  

Lastly, and maybe most importantly, we have to continue to support one another with human kindness and empathy as our division navigates these uncertain times. I know many of you are chipping in, collaborating, and helping colleagues every day – thank you.   

Sincerely,
Bob-

Dear Colleagues,

At the Budget Town Hall last month, Vice President for Administration and Finance and CFO Charlie Faas shared a presentation which stated that every division needed to make a 6% budget cut for the 2024-2025 fiscal year to balance the university’s structural budget deficit.

Your IT leadership team and I take this situation very seriously. We acknowledge that this is a substantive cut, in addition to cuts every division has made over the past few years. President Teniente-Matson has emphasized that we are not just trying to balance our budget but build a financially sustainable budget model.

Despite these financial difficulties, everyone on the IT team continues to work hard and passionately to support the CSU, the university, our students, and the campus community. I thank you for your dedication to SJSU IT’s customers and your commitment to elevating the SJSU community through technology.

We have accomplished many great things together, and with some adjustments, we can do even more as a team to support this brilliant and innovative institution.  I am looking at this latest round of budget cuts as an exciting opportunity for us as a division.

Let me explain. Over the past few months, your leadership team and I have been examining SJSU IT’s cost structure to tighten our belts and enhance operational efficiency. In the process, we have prioritized a key component — our team.

After obtaining input from your leadership team and consulting with the SJSU IT Peer Consultation Group to ensure staff feedback remains represented in our decision-making process, we made the tough decision to eliminate another 15 vacant staff and MPP positions, a total of 25 positions this fiscal year. This effort will significantly help reduce the university’s budget deficit in FY 24-25, and, at the same time, it will open the door to growth opportunities for our existing employees. We are expanding our professional development initiatives, external training, and cross-pollination programs to help you grow and continue to succeed in SJSU IT. In the next few weeks, we will share the IT skills the university ultimately needs to achieve its strategy and vision, and we will work collaboratively with you to help you leverage or develop those needed skills.

Additionally, we are committed to implementing new technology solutions to improve productivity, communication, and collaboration, which will help students succeed while increasing employee experience.

As we navigate this period of uncertainty and transition to a new operating structure that enables SJSU’s growth and longevity, it is very important that you feel supported and appreciated. Please talk to your manager or me to share your thoughts, ask questions, and offer suggestions. I will continue to communicate with you as we learn more. I am also available during my weekly open office hours (Thursdays from 2–4 p.m.). Please feel free to reach out to Lin (Lin.Rui@sjsu.edu) to schedule a time.

Thank you for your collaborative and constructive comments. I remain gratified by the immense loyalty and dedication of so many in our division. I am confident that we will emerge from this process a stronger and more efficient team.

Sincerely,
Bob-

Hello Everyone,

As we approach Nowruz on March 19, let us embrace the spirit of renewal and unity. Nowruz, meaning “new day,” marks the first day of spring and the rebirth of nature. Rooted in Zoroastrian traditions, this ancient festival is celebrated by diverse communities worldwide for over 3,000 years. It is a secular holiday for most, yet remains a holy day for Zoroastrians, Baháʼís, and some Muslim communities. Nowruz symbolizes the eternal cycle of rebirth, reminding us to cherish our shared humanity and honor cultural diversity.

Wishing you all a joyous Nowruz! May the arrival of spring inspire us to foster understanding, compassion, and goodwill.

Learn more: https://www.unesco.org/en/international-day-nowruz

Best Regards,
The SJSU IT Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee