University Staff Encyclopedia for Those Changing Jobs to Universities #2

In my note, I write about the reality and realization methods of working as a university staff member (working in the information systems department) for those currently working as system engineers.

Following the previous post, I would like to introduce the reality of people who work at universities, which is unimaginable when working in the private sector.

6. The Iron-Willed Manager

I have introduced the pathetic and embarrassing parts of universities until the last post, but of course, there are also iron-willed managers at universities.

Since they are influential figures with a loud voice on campus, if you work in the information systems department, you would want to have such people on your side for DX or system implementation projects.

This type of person often has a strong personality, such as being a heavy drinker or having many subordinates who admire them from their club days, and personally, I feel it is relatively easy to get into their good graces.

7. The Fairy Staff Member Who Is Neither Harmful Nor Helpful

This is the same as in private companies, but there are veteran staff members in every department who are like fairies, doing only a certain amount of work and otherwise not being a productive force.

• Only doing what they are told

• Saying that if you pile on the work, they can only meet the deadline for one thing

• Not working overtime

Even though they are from the Showa generation, they have firmly adjusted their way of working to the Reiwa era, so they are shrewd, or how should I put it... In a sense, they can be called winners who receive a high salary with good cost-performance.

8. Professional Specialists

There are professionals in their field among university staff as well.

They mainly inhabit areas like human resources, finance, admissions, career services, and facility management. Many of them joined through mid-career recruitment, and I think there are many cases where they remain in the department for many years without being subject to transfers after joining.

Among them, there are even those who transition from a specialist career to a generalist one, move to the planning department, and advance up the career ladder.

Even if you join as a system engineer, if you are a person who excels in areas other than your SE skills, a generalist career might be waiting for you eventually.

9. The Traveler Staff Member Seeking Change

Among those who have changed jobs to become university staff, there are quite a few with experience as civil servants, at regional banks, or at other universities.

The common reasons for changing jobs from their previous positions include a sense of blockage or stagnation, lack of delegation of authority, and a lack of speed.

However, there are quite a few people who, despite having changed jobs in search of change, continue to work with the same mindset as civil servants or regional bank employees. I don't mean to disparage them; I just interact with them with the understanding that people don't change that easily.

10. Crisis-Aware Young Staff

Many universities have a policy for staff in their 20s of 'having them experience multiple departments for the purpose of career development.'

In other words, they are transferred every few years. Senior staff know this, so some departments don't provide much training because 'they'll be gone in a while anyway,' which makes it unfortunate for the young staff who draw the short straw.

Furthermore, universities have a strong generalist mindset, and in departments with a high ratio of outsourcing, staff don't acquire specialized skills, leading to many reaching the age of 30 without having gained any particular expertise.

It is easy to understand why young staff with a healthy sense of crisis change jobs around the age of 30. If there are any young staff you work with on projects in the information systems department, I hope you will treat them well.

If you have thoughts like 'This new type is increasing at my university!' or 'Don't forget about this native species!', please share your opinions in the comments or on X.