Next steps in learning as a professional consultant

I’ve decided to pursue a Master of Information Management (MIM) program from University of Maryland.

As a consultant for Microsoft, I am required to become an expert on technologies as they emerge. Since I work with customers that are sometimes slow to adopt technologies, I need to ramp up on older technologies as well. Continuously learning multiple generations of technology can be a fun challenge, although sometimes daunting!

Microsoft provides me with amazing tools to stay fresh. MCS allows for 4 weeks of paid training per year, and every 18 months, I attend TechReady, a week-long training in Seattle. I also have free access to everything Microsoft Learning and Microsoft Press creates. I try to take full advantage of these tools and always add certification exams to my yearly commitments in order to keep myself on track.

With all the need for me to learn technologies, there seems to be little time to cycle back to foundational knowledge that can help me make broader decisions, and help customers make more impactful technology choices that are led by business needs.

In the next 5 years, my impact will increase. I’ve made my technology skills and aptitude for running with new technology challenges evident on every project I’ve been assigned to, and I plan to continue to do so.

With the knowledge I gain from MIM program as well as my growing impact on the job, I am hoping to position myself to more fully affect change at a higher level.

In the next 5 years, I hope to shift from the “tactical” impact of designing and implementing specific systems to the world of “strategic” thinking, and I think this degree program will help me get to that point.