Please note that this is an abridged version and some details may have been omitted for brevity. For the complete experience, please visit the following link: The IT Curio Show: Full Blog Episode 1
Kameron Kennemer: Welcome to the ITcurio podcast, brought to you by ITque, a boutique quality, enterprise-class managed IT services company. I am the producer of the show, Kameron Kennemer, and this is our co-host, D.J. Foreman. We’re here to talk about all things I.T., from the latest news and trends to tips and tricks for businesses.
About ITque and DJ Forman
DJ, could you tell our listeners a bit about you, ITque, and your vision for the company?
DJ Forman: We are a boutique quality enterprise-class managed IT services provider. My background is in IT security, having worked for many different IT Security companies and government agencies. My real goal here is to be able to explain IT issues, not necessarily in layman’s terms, but using common business language and relating IT issues to actual business operations and executive decision-making processes. We also want to share information and knowledge. There are two different types of people in the IT world. There’s the type of person who hoards all of their knowledge and experience over the years, and that’s what they believe makes them valuable. They’re not entirely wrong. That is a viable method. But I think it’s more important to share information, share knowledge, and things will happen organically from there.
The Future of IT and Managed IT Services
Kameron Kennemer: So, D.J., let me ask you about the world of managed IT services right now. Businesses are becoming a part of the Internet of Things, and that creates a lot more vulnerabilities. How do you see that progressing as time moves on? And what can companies do to protect themselves?
DJ Forman: Everybody needs to get a little bit more knowledge. Business owners need to do the same thing, and I believe that there’s not a system in place for something like that. I believe that business owners are left in this nebulous area of, well, I’m the business owner, so I should already have all the answers or know all this stuff. And I think that that’s a big gap that needs to be addressed. For example, surveillance cameras, Voice over IP phones, gate entry equipment, door entry equipment, light bulbs, for goodness’ sake. Everything is connected. And, you know, long ago we talked about this, and years ago we said, oh, someday even light bulbs are going to have IP addresses. Well, guess what? We’re here.
Cybersecurity Awareness Training
Kameron Kennemer: You know, one of the things that I’m really excited about is the free cybersecurity awareness training classes that we’re going to be doing for business this year. I think that you are going to be a great instructor and a great teacher for those business owners, and then it’s going to be something that really benefits them and helps them to avoid some of the phishing scams and other things that can really leave businesses vulnerable and cost them quite a lot of money. I’m looking forward to helping you put that together, too. Can you talk a little bit about that?
DJ Forman: I’m also looking forward to being able to do more security awareness training for people. I think far too often that kind of training isn’t delivered with the best intentions in mind. But oftentimes when you go to this Cybersecurity awareness training, it’s very focused on all the fun and you’ll hear me say that a lot. “FUD”.
Advice for Aspiring IT Professionals
Kameron Kennemer: DJ, you know, you have given some really great advice to our listeners out there? Could you also give some advice to people who are maybe looking to get into Managed IT Services or Cybersecurity? Either switching careers or just starting out? Could you give them some advice on maybe how to go about that?
DJ Forman: Don’t do it!…… just kidding. I’ve been in this business for a long time, I mean, since pre-Internet. I was on several different teams of, of testing Internet before it wasn’t available to the public. So some of the thing I feel are important are… So what you want to do is you want to find the right team. Certainly get a little education, build your own computer, things like that. You know, get used to some of the ins and outs of some of the basic stuff, but then you’ve got to find a team that is in the open silo that’s going to share information, that’s going to actually mentor you and tell you things because that can be the biggest challenge in this industry, is a lot of people will say, well, I’m going to go get some training in college, not going to go get an I.T. job somewhere. And then they’re very upset because they find themselves sitting on a help desk and they get kind of stuck there. They’ll be reading scripts off of screens. And that’s not well, that’s part of it. That’s a different kind of it. And so you have to really understand where you want to be. You’re going to be in that world. There’s nothing wrong with that!
Choosing the Right Path in IT
DJ Forman: of my favorite and our the best people in our team just do that all day long. That’s hard. That’s challenging. I have nothing but the utmost respect for them and empathy because they have to deal with a lot of stress that’s coming at them and being able to put that wall up, filter it and listen with their ears instead of their mouth, but really filter. What is this person saying? Also if you’re one of those types that don’t like people, like a super extra introvert, or maybe you’re even like, know thyself, right? Maybe Managed IT Services is not for you because you’re going to have to deal with people every day. So that’s the best advice I have for you.
Conclusion
Kameron Kennemer: D.J., you are a wealth of information. I look forward to learning from you. I’m super excited about working with you in the future, working with our show, and bringing valuable content to our viewers. Folks, thanks for listening to ITcurio. Be sure to subscribe to our show on your favorite platform and follow us on social media for more episodes in the future. And don’t forget to sign up for our free cybersecurity awareness training class, and you can go there by following the link at the bottom of the screen here. Thank you so much. Until next time. Have a great day!
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