Josephine Fong, BA 2009: Major Political Science & Economics
I am working as a Project Coordinator for the Handheld Software Operations team at Research In Motion (RIM), located in Waterloo, Ontario. The Handheld Software Operations team was recently formed this past January. My team is responsible for looking over the operations of all software development components (Operating System (OS), Java Applications, Radio, and Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN)). In other words, my team is involved with internal process improvement projects that will enhance the efficiency and the success of integrating technologies into the product lines.
My experience working at RIM has been great so far! There are many benefits of working here. For example, each employee gets their own BlackBerry device with a voice and data plan. I am currently using the ‘Storm,’ which is the first touch screen BlackBerry device released to the consumer market (December 2008). Another benefit of working at RIM is the opportunity to gain work experience in a fast-paced, fun, and innovative environment. Co-op students are treated the same as regular fulltime employees. My manager provides me with opportunities to work on projects of my interests and ensure I have all the opportunities and resources to fulfill my learning objectives.
The main challenge I have faced so far is learning and understanding how BlackBerry Software is created. I have to learn the process of tracking bugs, change requests, and bug fixes. There are lots of acronyms and technical terminologies to learn.
Currently, I am managing three projects. Some of the responsibilities I have completed include writing project charters, project plans, and work breakdown schedules. Writing these documents are just the initial stages of these projects. Down the course of these projects, I will be tracking and monitoring the progress of milestones, updating the work breakdown schedules, and writing closing reports. I have also organized, chaired, and participated in various meetings regarding the logistics of the projects. In addition to these projects, every Wednesday I create a ‘Bug Report’ through Excel to update the status on software development change requests for our software integration team. For these Bug Reports, I manipulate data and create pivot tables and graphs giving the ability to track their progress.
Some of the major skills I have started improving/ developing are: technical writing skills, organizational skills, and analytical skills. I have learned how to use BlackBerry Internet Server, BlackBerry Enterprise Server, MS Project, DevTrack, and Adobe Photoshop. I have also furthered my knowledge in MS Excel and software components.
My short term career goal is to obtain a permanent placement as a Project Specialist at RIM after this Co-op placement. In the next 10 years, I would like to work towards becoming a Project Manager and obtain my Project Management Professional (PMP) certification. During this period, I hope I will also get the opportunity to work in one of RIM’s offices outside of Canada.
