Entry #2

Describe the work atmosphere. How are decisions made, is it cooperative or competitive, what is the dress code and work ethic of the organization?

The work atmosphere at the Town of Cary is very cooperative and positive. There is a slightly larger cubicle that is specifically meant for the 7 of us. I enjoy being close to the other interns because it allows me to discuss work, solve problems, practice teamwork, and most of all enjoy my summer internship. Although we are assigned different projects and belong to separate teams, we still learn a lot from each other when we discuss the kind of work we're doing. For example, I learned from the Service Desk team that having a positive attitude is extremely important when making calls to your co-workers all day. I truly believe that our working environment has allowed our group of AOIT interns to become a really great team, but mostly a great group of friends.

Our daily workdays start off with our manager giving us a short brief of the tasks that need to be completed, or just a quick update with how our current work is going. In terms of decision-making, the Town of Cary is extremely cooperative. We have very flexible hours, fair dress codes(jeans are allowed), and are allowed to ask for vacation days. In fact, when it came to the kind of work we were going to be responsible for, our manager preferred us to tell her what kind of work we would like to have. This allowed everyone to not only be satisfied with the work, but also excited for our upcoming projects.

The work ethic of my job is very exciting, professional, and busy. I never have a day that goes by without me doing work. I enjoy the fact that I get various projects to work on because it gives me a chance to explore my own work ethics. Hence, I take leadership in multiple projects that stimulate my abilities as an intern. 

Entry #1

Define the purpose of the business/organization – what they do, structure, who are their customers, etc. What is your job description – what will you be doing, who will you work with, where do you fit in, etc.?

The Town of Cary is our local government, in which many departments that contribute to Cary's development are located. For example, Parks and Recreation, Human Resources, Police, Fire, Technology Services and Public Works are all Town of Cary departments that each have their own responsibilities and work ethics. The Town's customers generally consist of Cary citizens, however with a department like Technology Services, other companies/vendors are also Town customers. The department in which I work in, Technology Services, is probably one of the most crucial departments for the Town of Cary. Here, the staff not only takes care of Police/Fire records, but also provides data management strategies for all Town departments in order to ensure work efficiency.

I have been given the job of a Project Manager. In this position, I lead my Analytics/Innovation team, provide work for my co-workers, attend/lead meetings, handle presentations and take responsibility for all projects. I primarily work with the Data Analytics staff. The other interns (4) belong to the Service Desk team, where they make calls for internal staff maintenance.

This week, I am working on an Open Data story for the Parks and Recreation department. Open Data stories are basically written articles explaining the significance of the data visualizations we've made of the Town's progress. My two co-workers are given the visual analytics tasks with the help of SAS Enterprise, whereas I am given the research/writing/coding part of the job.