Operations Management in IT
Master of Science in Technology Management
TMGT PS5120, Operations Management in Information Technology (IT)
Schedule
Class Session Day & Time: Wednesdays 6:10-8pm ET
Credits
3
Contact Information
| alf2215@columbia.edu | |
| Office Hours | Wednesdays 5-6pm in Lewisohn Hall room 504B, and by appointment |
| Response Policy | Will try to respond to communications within 24 hours, 48 hours max. Please email for messages that are sensitive in nature or contain solutions to course assignments, post in the Slack channel for everything else. |
| cv2464@columbia.edu | |
| Office Hours | Available anytime during weekends or workweek evenings (preferred order) |
| Response Policy | Available via email at all times. Will reply to emails within 12 hours. |
| ph2698@columbia.edu | |
| Office Hours | Appointments can be scheduled in the late evenings during work week or weekends |
| Response Policy | Will reply to emails within 18 hours |
| vv2358@columbia.edu | |
| Office Hours | By appointment |
| Response Policy | Will follow up within 48 hours of any emails or messages |
Students are divided into Sections to assign them to an Associate for Office Hours and grading — see People to see which Section you're in.
Course Overview
Operations Management in IT is an introduction to technology for business people, also referred to as “Technology Foundations”.
As a technology leader, people will constantly be trying to sell you on things, both literally and figuratively. This class is meant to get you past the jargon so that you can make more informed decisions. It’s meant to be more hands-on than others in the curriculum: We won’t just be talking about technology in the abstract… we’ll actually experience, dissect, and manipulate it. The hope is that this will eliminate some of the mystery of what’s behind the curtain, how the various pieces work and fit together, as well as any fear that might be present for someone working in technology without a technical background.
This is a survey course, providing a holistic introduction to various tools, roles, and processes of technology and technology organizations. See the schedule for a full list of topics. After taking this course, you will have a better understanding of:
- How computers, the internet, software, and the cloud work
- What the building blocks are, and how they fit together
- How technology systems get built
- Tools, roles, and processes within technology teams
- How cross-cutting concerns like usability, risk, management, and standards relate to each
- Considerations and trade-offs on the above you will run into as a technology leader
For each topic, the mix of lectures, in-class exercises, and Assignments will:
- Introduce the basics (the who, what, where, when)
- Give a taste through a demo / hands-on experience (the how)
- Connect it to the larger context (the why)
Changes
This is effectively a new course and the instructor is new to SPS, so the syllabus is subject to change as the class progresses to better meet the needs of the students. (Agile!) Announcements will be made for any major changes.
Exclusions
Due to time constraints / overlap with other classes, the following topics will not be covered:
- Machine learning
- Cryptocurrencies and distributed ledgers (like blockchain)
- Details of staffing/hiring
- Team dynamics
- Organizational structure/planning
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives
- Product design
- Product-market fit
- Go-to-market strategy
- Modernization at a strategy level
- Procurement
- Telecommunications and data communications
- Documentation
- Mobile
- Internet of Things (IoT)
- Non-computer hardware like robotics, control systems, sensors, etc.
Prerequisites
There are no prerequisite courses. General technology literacy is expected:
- Using a laptop and mobile device
- Using a web browser
- Installing software
Learning Objectives
These Learning Objectives were inherited from the Spring 2023 version of the course.
At the end of the course, you will be able to:
- Define the regulatory, cultural, and societal restrictions that comprise a context for the CIO.
- Form perspectives about how these contexts impact the ability of the CIO to create, communicate, and sustain value for the organizations.
- Make organizational IT and strategy decisions using these perspectives.
- Communicate the value of IT to the business.
Readings
This includes watching videos and listening to podcasts. See the schedule for what's assigned each week.
Textbook(s)
The books available through Course Reserves can only be used by one person at once, and most must be returned within a few hours. If you are going to use them, doing the readings early will increase the likelihood they're available.
Otherwise, you can purchase the books in electronic or physical form from wherever you like. I have linked to online sources that are independent/DRM-free. Buying from your local bookstore is encouraged.
|
Textbook |
Availability |
|---|---|
|
Article 19, Knodel, M., Uhlig, U., Oever, N. ten, & Cath, C. (2020). How the Internet Really Works: An Illustrated Guide to Protocols, Privacy, Censorship, and Governance (Illustrated edition). No Starch Press. |
Required purchase, through publisher or elsewhere |
|
Cagan, M. (2017). Inspired: How to Create Tech Products Customers Love (2nd edition). Wiley. |
PDF of assigned reading available in CourseWorks. Full physical book available in Course Reserves. |
|
Forsgren, N., Humble, J., & Kim, G. (2018). Accelerate: The science behind DevOps: building and scaling high performing technology organizations (First edition). IT Revolution. |
Purchase through Bookshop or elsewhere. Ebook available in Course Reserves. |
|
Krug, S., Bayle, E., Straiger, A., & Matcho, M. (2014). Don’t make me think, revisited: A common sense approach to Web usability (Third edition). New Riders, Peachpit, Pearson Education. |
Purchase through InformIT, Bookshop, or elsewhere. Book available in Course Reserves. |
|
LeMay, M. (2022). Product Management in Practice (2nd edition). O’Reilly Media. |
Purchase through ebooks.com, Bookshop, or elsewhere. Ebook available in Course Reserves. |
|
Wufka, M., & Canonico, M. (2023). Overview of Cloud Computing. Overleaf. |
Assignments and Assessments
The Assignments page has the full details of each assignment, as well as the due dates. Due dates are also in the schedule.
You should expect to spend 5-8 hours per week on this course outside of class. Resubmissions won’t be accepted after the due date.
Reading responses
Each week, there will be several hours of readings due to introduce the topic, which we will dig into further in the class session. You will be asked to submit a few sentences of reflection/questions in a CourseWorks Discussion to demonstrate that it was completed and prompt discussion. Some weeks will also have written/technical assignments due, described below.
Grading
The final grade will be calculated as described below:
| Assignment/Assessment | Weight | Individual or Group/Team Grade |
|---|---|---|
| PB&J | 5% | Individual |
| Personal Homepage | 5% | Individual |
| Service Design, Part 1 | 5% | Group |
| Service Design, Part 2 | 10% | Group |
| Personal Security | 5% | Individual |
| Continuous Deployment | 10% | Individual |
| Slack App | 5% | Individual |
| Testing | 5% | Individual |
| Final Project | 15% | Group |
| Responses to readings | 28% | Individual |
| Attendance | 7% | Individual |
| GRADE | PERCENTAGE |
|---|---|
| A+ | 98–100 % |
| A | 93–97.9 % |
| A- | 90–92.9 % |
| B+ | 87–89.9% |
| B | 83–86.9 % |
| B- | 80–82.9 % |
| C+ | 77–79.9 % |
| C | 73–76.9 % |
| C- | 70–72.9 % |
| D | 60–69.9 % |
| F | 59.9 % and below |
| Date | Topic | Assignments due on that day |
|---|---|---|
|
1/17 |
Course Introductions; What’s a Computer? |
|
|
1/24 |
The Internet |
|
|
1/31 |
Software Development |
|
|
2/7 |
Design |
|
|
2/14 |
Infrastructure; DevOps |
|
|
2/21 |
Readings and Service Design, Part 1
|
|
|
2/28 |
Product and Project Management |
|
|
3/6 |
Data |
|
|
3/13 |
no class – Spring Recess |
none |
|
3/20 |
SaaS |
|
|
3/27 |
APIs; Enterprise Architecture |
|
|
4/3 |
Security; Privacy |
|
|
4/10 |
Testing |
|
|
4/17 |
Final Project Presentations |
none |
|
4/24 |
Final Project Presentations |
Course Policies
Participation and Attendance
You are expected to:
- Complete all required readings
- Attend all class sessions
- Be engaged
- Come to class on time and thoroughly prepared
We will keep track of attendance and look forward to an interesting, lively, and confidential discussion. If you miss an experience in class, you miss an important learning moment and the class misses your contribution.
Missing class counts as an absence, regardless of the reason or notifying the instructor(s) beforehand. Missing more than 30 minutes of a class session will be treated as an absence. The first absence is treated as a "freebie", each subsequent absence will result in a 1% deduction from the overall grade. There are no "excused absences" beyond that, except in exceptional circumstances when notified by the school.
If you do miss class, we trust that it's for a good reason. If you're sick, please use that freebie and stay home and rest.
You are responsible for getting caught up on what was covered in class. You may want to ask a classmate for notes.
Late Work
Communication with the instructors is paramount. The instructors are happy to be flexible with requests for extensions made before the deadlines. Work that is not submitted by the due date without advance notice and permission from the instructor will be deducted 5% for every day it is late.
Collaboration
Some Assignments are group work, most are individual — see Grading. For the Assignments marked as "individual", you are still welcome to collaborate with other students, so long as you are submitting your own work. In other words, solutions should not be copied-and-pasted. See the Academic Integrity policy for more details.
Citation & Submission
Submissions should be made to the CourseWorks Assignment, unless otherwise indicated. For any citations, a link will suffice.
Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools
Generative AI tools can be used to assist with course deliverables, provided that it’s cited like any other source. Note that information produced by these tools may be inaccurate or outdated, and thus should not be taken at face value.
Reuse of code and approaches is common in technology, particularly in software development, so long as the original source is referenced. Plagiarism will not be tolerated.
Cross-Registration
This class has been revamped from Spring 2023. To minimize complexity, we are keeping the class size limited, and thus are not allowing students from other programs to register. This may change for future semesters.
School and University Policies and Resources
Copyright Policy
Please note—Due to copyright restrictions, online access to this material is limited to instructors and students currently registered for this course. Please be advised that by clicking the link to the electronic materials in this course, you have read and accept the following:
The copyright law of the United States (Title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted materials. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specified conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be "used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research." If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of "fair use," that user may be liable for copyright infringement.
Academic Integrity
Columbia University expects its students to act with honesty and propriety at all times and to respect the rights of others. It is fundamental University policy that academic dishonesty in any guise or personal conduct of any sort that disrupts the life of the University or denigrates or endangers members of the University community is unacceptable and will be dealt with severely. It is essential to the academic integrity and vitality of this community that individuals do their own work and properly acknowledge the circumstances, ideas, sources, and assistance upon which that work is based. Academic honesty in class assignments and exams is expected of all students at all times.
SPS holds each member of its community responsible for understanding and abiding by the SPS Academic Integrity and Community Standards. You are required to read these standards within the first few days of class. Ignorance of the School's policy concerning academic dishonesty shall not be a defense in any disciplinary proceedings.
Diversity Statement
It is our intent that students from all diverse backgrounds and perspectives be well-served by this course, that students’ learning needs be addressed both in and out of class, and that the diversity that the students bring to this class be viewed as a resource, strength and benefit. It is our intent to present materials and activities that are respectful of diversity: gender identity, sexuality, disability, age, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, race, nationality, religion, and culture.
Accessibility
Columbia is committed to providing equal access to qualified students with documented disabilities. A student’s disability status and reasonable accommodations are individually determined based upon disability documentation and related information gathered through the intake process. For more information regarding this service, please visit the University's Health Services website.
Class Recordings
All or portions of the class may be recorded at the discretion of the Instructor to support your learning. At any point, the Instructor has the right to discontinue the recording if it is deemed to be obstructive to the learning process.
If the recording is posted, it is confidential, and it is prohibited to share the recording outside of the class.
SPS Academic Resources
The Division of Student Affairs provides students with academic counseling and support services such as online tutoring and career coaching: Student Support Resources.
Columbia University Information Technology
Columbia University Information Technology (CUIT) provides Columbia University students, faculty and staff with central computing and communications services. Students, faculty and staff may access University-provided and discounted software downloads.
Columbia University Library
Columbia's extensive library system ranks in the top five academic libraries in the nation, with many of its services and resources available online.
The Writing Center
The Writing Center provides writing support to undergraduate and graduate students through one-on-one consultations and workshops. They provide support at every stage of your writing, from brainstorming to final drafts. If you would like writing support, please visit the following site to learn about services offered and steps for scheduling an appointment. This resource is open to Columbia graduate students at no additional charge.
Career Design Lab
The Career Design Lab supports current students and alumni with individualized career coaching including career assessment, resume & cover letter writing, agile internship job search strategy, personal branding, interview skills, career transitions, salary negotiations, and much more. Wherever you are in your career journey, the Career Design Lab team is here to support you.
Netiquette
Online sessions in this course will be offered through Zoom, accessible through Canvas. A reliable Internet connection and functioning webcam and microphone are required. It is your responsibility to resolve any known technical issues prior to class. Your webcam should remain turned on for the duration of each class, and you should expect to be present the entire time. Avoid distractions and maintain professional etiquette.
Please note: Instructors may use Canvas or Zoom analytics in evaluating your online participation.
More guidance can be found at The MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching.
Netiquette is a way of defining professionalism for collaborations and communication that take place in online environments. Here are some student guidelines for this class:
- Avoid using offensive language or language that is not appropriate for a professional setting.
- Do not criticize or mock someone’s abilities or skills.
- Communicate in a way that is clear, accurate and easy for others to understand.
- Balance collegiality with academic honesty.
- Keep an open-mind and be willing to express your opinion.
- Reflect on your statements and how they might impact others.
- Do not hesitate to ask for feedback.
- When in doubt, always check with your instructor for clarification.
Course Summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
|---|---|---|
This course content is offered under a CC Attribution license. Content in this course can be considered under this license unless otherwise noted.