Name: JoLyn Brixey
Title: LAN Administrator
Company: Utah Department of Health, Division of Health Care
Financing
Contact Info: dajo@uswest.net
How I arrived at my present job (academic and other influences): Basically, I did it the hard way, one I would not recommend to younger women. I worked my way up through the pink collar jungle from a secretarial position in 1984 to an Administrative Assistant to the State Medicaid Director in 1987 to a Wang computer (I doubt many will remember that system!) Word processing and applications trainer. When the Wang system went away and PCs started to appear on every desktop, I became the Department's WordPerfect, email and other application training specialist. Eventually my job expanded to desktop support and I began attending classes in the evening at Salt Lake Community College. I was promoted to a LAN Administrator when I started assisting in the administration of the Department email system, Novell's GroupWise. Nearly two years ago, I transferred to Medicaid to be on a team of 5 (I am the only woman on the team) of LAN Administrators. I then completed my CNE program. During my nearly 15 year career with the State of Utah, I married, had a child, divorced, remarried, had another child, and lost three close family members to death. I maintained working full time and attending school at night! Wish I could go back 20 years now and finish my education instead of at the age of 38~!
How I organize my day: I share a pager with my teammates. If it is my "on call pager day" I am almost working at the whim of our users, troubleshooting PC and network issues, answering questions, and resolving miscellaneous problems. If it is not my pager day, I have assigned projects which I work on and which are discussed at a weekly team meeting. Some of this time is my own to follow projects I develop myself or to play with new software or technology to broaden my knowledge in my position.
Amount of time spent working daily (at home and office): I work 8 hours a day, sometimes 9, depending upon the workload. Overtime is expected, if necessary, but not encouraged if not absolutely necessary. We do work for the taxpayers!
What I do to get myself thinking creatively: To get myself thinking creatively, I need some time away from the "put out the fire" mode that people in my profession can easily get drawn into on a daily basis. Having test file servers and a quiet place to work while not assisting users is usually the only way I can do this.
My problem-solving strategy: For interpersonal problems, I wait at least a day before I say or complain about issues at work. Otherwise, I will consider all options and often remind myself how different we as individuals are and how difficult it is to communicate effectively 100% of the time. For work type problems, I follow common troubleshooting steps, try to eliminate variables and follow steps in as systematic a way as possible.
What I do to relieve stress: To relieve stress, I follow a scheduled exercise program. It is often interrupted by crises here at work, but if I can get at least 20 minutes of some type of exercise 5 days a week, I can usually eliminate quite a bit of stress that way. Taking time off and spending time with my family also helps me relax and enjoy myself.
My hero, mentor, or person I most admire and why: I had two really wonderful female mentors when I first started in the workplace. The first was a Vice President of a Human Resource Dept. I was in school at the time, and she taught me a great deal about professional behaviour in the workplace. She was also a fine example of a woman who had achieved an executive position in a financial institution. The second female mentor I had was my second supervisor here at the State of Utah. She was a Bureau Director and was very confident and supportive. She encouraged me to explore my interests and talents in information technology. Without her encouragement, I don't know if I would have ever climbed out of that secretarial typing pool!
What I do to mentor those who work for me: There are not any younger women in my field in my Division, however I have encouraged the younger women that I know in other positions to apply for openings. One young woman I know recently was promoted to a programmer position. She is a friend of mine and I encouraged her to do this, even though she did not have a great deal of practical experience. I gave her a good reference to her new boss, and she was hired! She is extremely intelligent and was a good fit for the job. I think it is important for women to do this for other women. Sometimes we tend to resent the successes of our female coworkers - not a good thing for any of the women involved in this type of situation.
How a negative event changed my life in a positive way: A negative event that changed my life in a positive way was my divorce. I needed to make more money to support my 3 year old son at the time (1989). I applied for the Wang training position on a dare, practically, and was hired. I didn't expect to get the job, but I interviewed well and had so much encouragement from previous mentors that I got it!
One event or decision in my life I wish I could go back and change: If I could change one thing, I would have stayed in school when I first got married in 1982. I dropped out of the University of Utah to work full time as a loan counselor's assistant in a local financial institution. I have regretted that decision for 17 years.
What values are the most important to me and what I value in others: I value hard work, independence, reliability, and perseverance in myself and in others.
What inspires, motivates, or gets me excited about my job on a daily basis: Challenges or new experiences motivate me. New assignments or opportunities to learn new things get me more excited about my job.
Biography: I am a Local Area Network (LAN) Administrator working for the Utah Dept of Health, Division of Health Care Financing, a state government organization which oversees Medicaid among other programs. I have been a LAN Administrator for 3-1/2 years now. A year ago last January, I completed my CNE (Certified Novell Engineer) in Intranetworking 4.11. This year I will complete an Associate of Applied Science degree at Salt Lake Community College. I am 38 years old, and attended the University of Utah as an English major for three years right out of high school.
Last Modified:
Location: www.acm.org/crossroads/dayinlife/bios/jolyn_brixey.html