Memorandum
Succeeding at EdSoft
To maximize your chances for success at EdSoft, It is important
that you understand how EdSoft works and your role within the
organization. The EdSoft Way includes teamwork, tasks, and professional
level presentations of results.
EdSoft wants the same kind of employees as other innovative
companies want to hire, only better: People who are adaptable,
creative problem solvers and independent learners. Professionals
who can work well with people and work successfully on teams.
In a nutshell, we value people who are professional and know
how to get projects done efficiently and effectively.
We hope your experiences over the next weeks will help you
gain confidence in your abilities as a true EdSoft professional. To
assist you, we compiled these suggestions from managers surveyed
about what it takes to be successful at EdSoft:
Be proactive
You must schedule meetings with your manager when needed. In
general, you should come to us if you can't find the answer
on your own. The more you put into the process yourself, the
more you'll get out of it. Don't expect us to tell you
what to do.
Keep in Touch
You are responsible for checking your email regularly; announcements
will be made this way, and we will assume that you have read
them.
Check with your manager about available online tools (email,
threaded discussions, listservs, etc.). Use these tools to
share information, project schedules, agreements, resources,
results, and updates with your team members and manager.
Manage your time
You
should plan to spent 50% of your time on this challenging project
for reading and research. See the Working with Task section
of this Orientaiton for additional suggestions on time management.
Address performance issues in your team
Since you won't initially know the full extent of your team's
capabilities, negotiate the initial scope of work for each
member carefully (i.e., what concrete pieces of the task s/he
is responsible for).
If problems emerge, surface them as soon as possible so that
you can negotiate them within your team and complete your task
on schedule. (This may be socially uncomfortable, but you've
just got to do it.)
If you ever have a problem you don't know how to solve, discuss
it with your manager after you have talked to your team.
Be innovative
Innovation is essential to our success. To explore where
innovation is coming from today, watch this lecture on
innovation by Eric
Von-Hippel:
Democratizing
Innovation [Real Player
required]
also available at MIT World
Tasks
Visit the Working with Tasks section of this
site to learn the process we recommend for completing tasks and
presenting your solutions to your colleagues.
Teams
Review the Working
in Teams section of this Orientation to improve your
team skills.
FAQ [Frequently Asked Questions]
Questions are compiled for this section from questions you ask
your manager, postings to discussion threads, and other sources.
In addition, suggested readings on the concepts presented in
this Orientation are listed within each task's Resources page.
If you have additional books, articles, or websites that would
prove useful to your colleagues, please let your manager know.
