WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.355 --> 00:00:04.189
<v ->My name is Aaron Stolp, I am a communications support</v>

2
00:00:04.189 --> 00:00:08.755
specialist at Minnesota Power, here in Duluth Minnesota.

3
00:00:08.755 --> 00:00:11.480 line:15% 
The communications portion of that title

4
00:00:11.480 --> 00:00:14.063 line:15% 
actually has to do with network

5
00:00:15.084 --> 00:00:17.416 line:15% 
communications infrastructure.

6
00:00:17.416 --> 00:00:20.823 line:15% 
So it has to do with a lot of routers, switches,

7
00:00:20.823 --> 00:00:23.438
things like that that make the internet

8
00:00:23.438 --> 00:00:25.895
work across the company, basically.

9
00:00:25.895 --> 00:00:28.036
As well as telephone systems and things like that.

10
00:00:28.036 --> 00:00:31.656 line:15% 
So that's where communication comes into the title.

11
00:00:31.656 --> 00:00:33.928 line:15% 
However, there is a lot of communicating involved

12
00:00:33.928 --> 00:00:37.527 line:15% 
with my role, because there's coordination

13
00:00:37.527 --> 00:00:40.360
of projects and equipment installs

14
00:00:41.418 --> 00:00:46.134
between different departments and various sites of ours.

15
00:00:46.134 --> 00:00:50.557
As well as working with the vendors that we purchase from.

16
00:00:50.557 --> 00:00:53.140
An interesting project would be

17
00:00:54.445 --> 00:00:57.445
coordinating the work to create wifi

18
00:01:00.399 --> 00:01:04.568 line:15% 
in an outdoor environment at one of our sites.

19
00:01:04.568 --> 00:01:08.394 line:15% 
So all of the workers outside have wifi access

20
00:01:08.394 --> 00:01:12.146 line:15% 
for all of the equipment and gear that they use.

21
00:01:12.146 --> 00:01:16.313
Now, when I do these projects, I'm not tech savvy,

22
00:01:17.998 --> 00:01:20.433
technology's not my background.

23
00:01:20.433 --> 00:01:24.774
But, I'm in that department not for the tech side of it,

24
00:01:24.774 --> 00:01:27.512
but for the coordination piece and to be able

25
00:01:27.512 --> 00:01:30.861
work with vendors, manage the contracts that we have

26
00:01:30.861 --> 00:01:33.902
with them, there's a lot of that that I'm involved with.

27
00:01:33.902 --> 00:01:37.079
And I work closely with purchasing as well.

28
00:01:37.079 --> 00:01:39.549
There are a lot of software maintenance

29
00:01:39.549 --> 00:01:43.888 line:15% 
contracts that we have, a lot, more than you could imagine,

30
00:01:43.888 --> 00:01:46.536 line:15% 
daily there are renewals that have to be done,

31
00:01:46.536 --> 00:01:50.779 line:15% 
on annual commitments and those usual go across my desk

32
00:01:50.779 --> 00:01:54.612
before they get back to the vendor to be paid.

33
00:01:55.460 --> 00:01:56.915
It's not linear at all, juggling is

34
00:01:56.915 --> 00:02:01.620
a better description of it, because there are software

35
00:02:01.620 --> 00:02:04.047
renewal requests that might come in at 7:30

36
00:02:04.047 --> 00:02:07.560
in the morning and then before I get through those,

37
00:02:07.560 --> 00:02:11.893 line:15% 
by 8:15 one of our remote sites that expecting a new

38
00:02:13.403 --> 00:02:16.327 line:15% 
internet install had a vendor not show up,

39
00:02:16.327 --> 00:02:17.953
so I'm calling that vendor.

40
00:02:17.953 --> 00:02:21.870
It's all about prioritizing, if something by my

41
00:02:22.939 --> 00:02:25.703
judgment needs attention more than

42
00:02:25.703 --> 00:02:29.286
something else that's what I am working on.