MODULE # 4 (WSU FALL 2014)

The person I have chosen to interview is a gentleman named Trent, who is employed by Advanced Brain Technologies in Ogden, Utah.  ABT is a company that sells products that help train the brain to be more productive and efficient by the way of music therapy, and brain building software and programs.  He works in the IT department, and handles pretty much everything, including customer service and warranties.  Trent’s typical day revolves around making sure that all computers on the office network are running well and maintained.   They have one main server at ABT, but have an online hosting company as well.  There is an entire department of programmer’s, that code ABT’s online programs, and websites.  They have 8 websites that are all integrated together, and they sell their products on these sites, as well as enabling the customer to listen to their programs online.  They also have specific websites for their providers to do their certified training.  It is a very large network of data management for ABT, and Trent gets to fix it all.   Trent maintains and manages over 100 terabytes of information daily, and also speaks to customers on the phone who are experiencing problems.  Technical support is one of his biggest challenges, due to the nature of technology constantly changing, and the knowledge of the end user.  Trent says that people are much more tech saavy than ever before, and his job has actually become easier with time, as more people are more skilled when it comes to using computers.  ABT’s online listening program can be utilized on an IOS format, Android, and any web browser, so there are many compatibility challenges involved when it comes to listening online. He deals with those questions on a daily basis, and has to understand all of the operating systems, and mobile OS’s, which is a challenge because of all of the constant updates.   He fields an average of 50 calls per day in technical support.  They have a software program called brain builder which requires license codes that the consumer has to call in to receive.  He provides them with the code in order for them to use the software.  In speaking with Trent, he does so many jobs, that it is extremely overwhelming to me.   He is constantly backing up daily operations to the servers, and external drives, taking warranty calls, sending out RMA’s (return merchandise authorizations), walking people through the online process, maintaining the office network and computers, and programming  all of the Ipod listening devices and physical systems.  Trent has a big job to do, and does it very well.  He is certified in many different computer an IT areas, and is still working on more certifictaions.   He says that since technology always changes, there will always be a certification to take.  However, those certifications can add up to big money in the long run, as employers now days hire many IT people based on what they are certified in!  I truly do not feel I could do Trent’s job, as there are to many components to it, and I would lose my mind.  I guess I’d better stick with my job!