Field Reports

Each student is expected to find a company to work with, and secure the cooperation of the telecom manager. You will be asked to interview this person four (4) times during the course.If you know you will need help locating a company, please discuss it with me immediately. Here are MS Word versions of the Interview Protocols for each of the four topics.

Interview Protocol 1
Interview Protocol 2
Interview Protocol 3
Interview Protocol 4

About these interviews:

• These protocols are intended as a preliminary guide for your interviews
• You do not have to get answers to all the questions
• When the answer is "I don't know" that's fine - that also tells you something about the scope fo the job that person does (often no one person can answer all the questions)
• You should let the conversation roam and focus on the topics most germane to your telecom manager
• In the end, you've had a successful interview if you've learned a lot about the telecom situation at this organization

Each student will submit four (4) 2-4 page Field Reports (FRs), summarizing the results of your interviews with the telecom manager. Each FR should highlight how the chosen organization manages and uses the communication or information system(s) examined in that particular module.

All Field Reports are due by e-mail at noon on the day it is listed in the syllabus. A hard copy is due in class that day. Late Field Reports are docked one letter grade per day.

You should request four (4) one-hour interviews over the next month. At least one of these interviews (preferably the first) should include an on-site tour of the company's facilities. If the company is also your place of work, perhaps all interviews can be in person. Please keep in mind:
· You must schedule these interviews far enough in advance to ensure you can complete the interview and the write-up by the assigned due date
· Your telecom manager contacts are very busy professionals, working long hours and facing unexpected situations and emergencies every week (at least one of your scheduled meetings will likely be re-scheduled by your contact person)
· Late assignments - regardless of the reason - are subject to penalties
· These folks have generously agreed to give you some of their time - however, it is up to you to make this happen
· make it YOUR job to reach your telecom management "hosts." Call well in advance of your due dates. Leave messages, but don't wait for them to call back (or tell me they "never called you back"). It is YOUR job to complete the communication with them, not vice versa!