Category Archives: Uncategorized
Hot Job: Project Manager—Educational Content
Are you a project manager with excellent time management skills? Use these talents to plan, manage, and execute the delivery of education content-related projects in support of business objectives and ongoing operations in Esri’s Educational Services team. In this role, you will facilitate the definition of project scope, milestones, and deliverables and then plan and schedule project timelines, communicating status, risks, and issues on an ongoing basis.
John, a current Educational Content Project Manager, says, “In my position I have the privilege of working with professionals committed to the success of our users and to the development of relevant and interesting training. I enjoy helping our project teams be successful—I like the people I work with and I appreciate being employed by a company that is financially stable and growing. I feel privileged to be at Esri.”
Esri Employees “Believe”
On Sunday, October 7 an estimated 12,000 people gathered along State Street in downtown Redlands for the 5th Annual Believe Walk. Pictured below are some of the members of Team Esri, which consisted of more than 70 employees and family members whose participation contributed to the $500,000+ raised from the event to benefit Inland Women Fighting Cancer. Great job!
New Helpful Applicant Tools
By Guest Blogger Melinda, Human Resources
Earlier this year we implemented a more user friendly system to apply for jobs at Esri. In addition to a more streamlined application process, we can now offer several new features to enhance your applicant experience, including job alerts and using social media accounts to create and update your profile.
Nine Esri Employees Awarded Scholarships
Esri and the University of Redlands are proud to announce the induction of nine new scholarship recipients to the Esri Fellows Program. Established in 1999, this program provides selected Esri employees with full tuition scholarships to attend evening and weekend courses at the University of Redlands School of Business towards completion of either an undergraduate or graduate level degree.
This year’s recipients are from Product Development, Technical Support, Professional Services, Contracts and Legal Services, Customer Service, and Marketing. One is completing a bachelor’s degree and the others will be obtaining master’s degrees.
Julie, ArcGIS for Server product manager, said, “It is an honor and privilege to be chosen for Esri’s scholarship program. My vision is to become a true problem solver utilizing GIS and industry knowledge by earning a master’s degree in GIS, combined with unparalleled experience, enabling Esri’s users to achieve success. I am especially excited for the master project. My plan is to investigate opportunities with the GIS community to select a project that could have a positive impact on real-world issues, and work with mentors at Esri to design a state-of-the-art solution to the problem.”
Earth Day, Every Day
Earth Day is Sunday, April 22 and it’s estimated that millions around the world will be doing something to celebrate. A bit of trivia: Earth Day was started in 1970 by a Wisconsin senator to create awareness for the Earth’s environment and to encourage conservation efforts.
Like many organizations, Esri has put in place green initiatives to help save our planet and create a more sustainable future.
Solar rooftop panels have been installed on several buildings at the main campus in Redlands. It is estimated that the solar energy system will reduce global carbon emissions by more than one million pounds annually, the equivalent of planting 70,000 mature trees.
Esri regularly donates trees and horticultural materials to local schools and parks. It also donates surplus office equipment and computer hardware and software to schools and nonprofit organizations.
Walk This Way… In Comfort!
By Guest Blogger Terri, Charlotte Regional Office
This year I was involved in a new role at the Esri User Conference: helping with the UC Student Assistantship program. There were 60 terrific students selected to come to the User Conference to make sure it is a wonderful experience for all our customers. The students assist with tasks from registration, monitoring technical workshops, working special events, to banner stand set up in all locations across the huge conference.
The miles at UC certainly add up in this role. By noon each day my iPhone application was telling me I was hitting the 8 to 9 mile mark already.
Hints for happy feet are:
- be prepared (10 pairs of shoes)
- pack appropriately (one carry-on for shoes)
- change shoes mid-day (if you forget, it’s not good)
- comfort is crucial (the Crocs won)
- band-aids are located at the first-aid station outside of Hall E
Editor’s note: The UC Student Assistantship program is a great way for students to be fully engrossed in everything geospatial for a full week. In exchange for helping Esri staff with conference logistics, students have the opportunity to attend technical sessions and special events as well as network with GIS professionals from around the world. UC student assistants come from schools across the US, so it’s also a great opportunity to meet others who share their passion for GIS and geography.
Nine Esri Employees Awarded Scholarships
Esri and the University of Redlands are proud to announce the induction of nine new scholarship recipients to the Esri Fellows Program. Established in 1999, this program provides selected Esri employees with full tuition scholarships to attend evening and weekend courses at the University of Redlands towards completion of either an undergraduate or graduate level degree.
This year’s recipients are from Software Product Development, Technical Support, Professional Services, Customer Service, Marketing, and Human Resources. One is completing a bachelor’s degree and the others will be obtaining master’s degrees.
“While working in Customer Service, I have learned a great deal about Esri’s business operations and as a result I was given a career that I truly enjoy. Completing a bachelor’s degree in business will give me the knowledge and tools I need to advance my career at Esri,” says Beth, one of this year’s recipients. “Being awarded this fellowship allows me to complete my goal faster and puts me on a clear career path that will keep me focused and driven to do my best.”
Some employees who didn’t major in GIS for their undergraduate degree use the scholarship to further their knowledge of GIS. Shreyas, a software developer, is an example. “I feel privileged to be a recipient of the Esri fellowship to pursue a master’s in GIS. Coming from a computer science background, this will fill in some of the gaps in my understanding of GIS and allow me to look at the software we build from an end user’s perspective. This will make me a more effective engineer, aligning user requirements and software development.”
Michael, an employee in Professional Services, sees the scholarship as a win not only for himself, but for Esri and its customers as well. “I am honored to be an Esri Fellow and look forward to further expanding the breadth of my background through an MBA program,” he says. “As technology evolves and becomes more transparent through innovations such as the cloud, the importance of understanding key business needs to create optimal solutions is critical. It’s exciting as I have the opportunity of advancing my career, and at the same time providing even stronger value to our customers and Esri.”
Esri strongly supports employees’ ongoing personal development including formal education. In addition to the scholarships, it offers tuition reimbursement, participation in Esri Training and Education course offerings, and off-site training classes designed to improve technical, sales, interpersonal, and management skills.
Congratulations to this year’s Esri Fellows.
My First Time at the Esri User Conference
By Guest Blogger Kirsten, Support Services
I’ll admit it, I wasn’t very excited to be headed out on a four-day convention adventure whilst seven months pregnant. However, despite my penguin waddle, the User Conference (UC) was a lot of fun. Not only fun, but it also proved to be a great way to learn more about Esri, the products we offer, and what’s ahead. Since I’ve been with the company only a few months, I found extreme value in everything the UC had to offer.
Monday’s plenary events were full of interesting information. I especially enjoyed learning how others are using Esri software and GIS in general to do amazing things. An application that would automatically report potholes from a driver’s smartphone without the driver needing to call or text the information is incredible, as is using GIS to help Rwandan farmers branch out into the competitive coffee market. Although I wish I could have gotten a better seat for the events, I was happy the sound quality was high and I could see and hear what was happening, even in a room with thousands of people.
The rest of the week was a whirlwind, filled with meeting a lot of interesting, creative, and driven individuals. Whether I was staffing the Support Services booth or walking around the exhibit hall, I was surrounded by hundreds of folks with valuable information. Even those with questions were providing our team the feedback we need to help ensure that our websites, applications, and services remain the best they can be in the future. I was able to inform visitors to our booth of some of the exciting things we currently offer, gauge how users have experienced these services in the past, and find out ways to make them even better.
I talked to booth visitors about the ArcGIS Ideas site, which allows users to submit and vote on ideas for our software, websites, applications, training services, and more. I told people who were already a part of this active online community about our other communities: the GIS Wiki, a place for anyone with GIS knowledge to share and learn more; our forums, a place to communicate with others working with the same software and issues; and our Support Services blog, a place for users to learn about Esri Support news, updates, patches and service packs, and technical support on a variety of common issues written by analysts.
Talking with people all day, every day, gave me the opportunity to not only get feedback, but also better my own knowledge and skills talking about our products and services. I was really able to get past any insecurities and shyness I had and just have fun.
Although I was too tired at the end of the day to enjoy any of the parties or special events in the evenings, I am already looking forward to next year when I’ll be able to walk freely with non-swollen feet and really experience all of what the UC has available.
A Day of Learning and Collaboration for Esri Interns
Every summer, Esri hosts an event on campus for all the interns to learn more about the GIS software development life cycle and get a better understanding of the collaboration between departments. Directors from throughout the company provide an overview of their division and talk about the skills needed to work on their team and how they support the overall operations of the company. After the presentations, Esri president Jack Dangermond joins the group for lunch. He goes around to each table to meet the interns individually and learn about their career goals.
The event is one of several opportunities for interns to interact with peers whose paths might not otherwise cross. “Throughout the summer, meeting the other interns and arranging social events have made the office seem more welcoming,” said Logan, an intern in product development who holds a bachelor’s in computer science from the University of Redlands. He added, “Meeting the man who started it all at this lunch made me feel like I really belonged.”
For some interns, the highlight of the day is learning more about Esri. Katie, who is also interning in product development, said, “The intern lunch was an excellent opportunity to learn about the vision and mission of Esri from people who are actively involved in making it a unique and competent organization. The directors’ presentations showcased the extensive nature of Esri’s endeavors and highlighted opportunities and resources outside my immediate department.” Katie obtained her master’s in GIS from the University of Denver.
Lucas is applying his bachelor’s in geography from Cal Poly Pomona to his internship in Support Services. He enjoyed learning about how Esri technology and GIS continue to evolve. “The intern luncheon was a great opportunity to meet some of Esri’s management and to see how each one of their departments contributes in helping Esri, as well as their customers, expand the knowledge and capabilities of GIS.”
Learn more about the Esri Summer Internship Program. Details will be posted this fall about applying for the 2012 program. Follow us on Twitter (@EsriCareers) or join our Facebook page (Esri Student Connection) to get updates on summer programs and other news.
An Inside Perspective: A Recent Grad’s First Six Months at Esri
By guest blogger Joseph, Support Services
A couple of weeks ago I hit the six month mark of my employment at Esri. As I think back on the past few months, I find that my experience here has been challenging, engaging, and satisfying.
As a recent graduate, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started at Esri. I’ve since found the campus to be a great work environment. Outside, the tall trees around campus obscure many of the buildings, people eat their lunch next to fish ponds, granite landscaping boulders dot the lawns, and I feel as though I am back at school. In the office, I’m part of a team that works together and encourages sharing ideas. The others on my team support me, when needed, with my tasks and I am given freedom in my projects. It is a good feeling to know that my opinion carries weight and that I have been given flexibility in my work.
I work in the Support Services department as a technical writer on the Online Support Resources team. Working as a tech writer has given me the opportunity to contribute to a variety of interesting projects. My time is divided between maintaining the content on Esri’s support website and technical articles, assisting support analysts, creating new content, and developing training classes. One of my favorite projects has been building up Wiki.GIS.com, a repository of GIS information that is an open resource for the GIS community. I’ve been contributing to the site by adding pages about new GIS products and by helping to redesign the site’s new main page. It has been rewarding to see firsthand the results of my efforts to improve the online content that our team offers to GIS users.
In the last six months, I have made meaningful contributions to several projects that will provide better support for ArcGIS users and, at the same time, improved my writing skills and my knowledge of GIS. I look forward to continuing to develop professionally as new projects are launched.
Do you have the skills to succeed in a position similar to Joseph’s? Learn more about being a technical writer at Esri. If you have a question for Joseph or a member of our recruiting team, e-mail us at careersblog@esri.com.
