Stories by Fred O'Connor

Tech-savvy college hires bring integration, communication challenges to IT workplaces

College graduates receiving their diplomas this year were teenagers when the first iPhone debuted and Facebook allowed anyone to create a profile. As this tech-saturated generation enters the IT workforce their familiarity with technology -- especially consumer products -- can lead to communication and work style clashes with more seasoned employees who may not share a passion for digital life.

Struggling companies turn to business-savvy IT pros to boost the bottom line

Economic woes have pushed companies of all sizes to shake up data center hiring, development and other processes to better align IT and business operations.

With revenue at stake, companies seek business-savvy tech workers

Financial concerns in the wake of the recession are causing companies to better align IT and business and this shift is changing what is expected from technology workers, say executives and staffing professionals. Business acumen is now on par with possessing stellar technical skills, with in-demand employees those who can contribute more than code to the company.

Health-IT early adopters well-poised for big-data advances in clinical medicine

Nearly a decade after research firms predicted major cost savings and clinical benefits from the use of health-IT, adoption rates among U.S. medical providers remain sluggish, with the industry slow to embrace the big-data movement.

Cloud, mobile and BI skills to lead technology hiring in 2013

IT hiring in 2013 will focus on jobs involving cloud computing, mobile technology and business intelligence, said staffing professionals.

Wanted: Job candidates with diverse backgrounds to fill severe big-data jobs shortage

A career path that began with studying infectious diseases and led to analyzing terabytes of game data may seem a circuitous route. For Brendan Burke, though, the applied math skills he picked up as an undergraduate biology and political science major, the programming skills he added as a bioengineering graduate student, and his use of the two as a research scientist led to a job in the booming IT field of data science.

Colleges incorporate data science into curriculums

Colleges have noticed the strong interest companies have taken in data science and are incorporating the field into their computer science curriculum. Here are a few examples of the many data education efforts being made at universities.

EA files copyright suit against Zynga over 'The Sims Social'

Electronic Arts has sued Zynga, developer of the popular -Ville brand of social media games, alleging that the company violated EA copyright pertaining to its Facebook game "The Sims Social," EA said Friday.

Survey: Drivers like in-car Internet but worry about safety, privacy

U.S. drivers seem to hold conflicting opinions on in-car Internet access, viewing the technology as a driving hazard and even a threat to privacy while praising the entertainment and safety features it offers.

Hospital networks take key role in health care as IT makes further clincial advances

The health care industry's increased use of electronic medical records (EMRs), wireless medical devices and personal mobile technology has turned hospital networks into important components in patient treatment. Practicing medicine now requires maintaining constant wireless connectivity and possibly managing wired network traffic if doctors and nurses are to fully leverage health IT according to health care professionals.

Salman Khan to MIT grads: Innovators will foster societal change

Future scientists and technology professionals, not governments, will develop the innovations that most benefit society, online educator entrepreneur Sal Khan told MIT's 2012 graduates during his commencement speech Friday.

For tech staffers, working remotely requires more than Wi-Fi and a desk

Web services, VoIP and other technology may have turned any place with an Internet connection into an office and decreased the importance of an IT professional's location, but a range of factors contribute to how enterprise telecommuting policies are developed and who should untether from the traditional workplace, said IT executives and staffing professionals.

Coding contest shows how big data can improve health care

A recent coding competition in the Boston area brought together IT professionals, medical workers and others with an interest in health IT to show how data analytics can improve health care.

Panel: Future CIOs will have careers blending non-tech roles with traditional IT duties

Next-generation CIOs will have to consider how technology affects other corporate departments as well as handle traditional IT management functions, especially those accompanying mobile device management and greater data analysis, according to panelists who spoke at the MIT Sloan CIO Symposium in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Updated SDK from Soti allows businesses to remotely control Apple mobile devices

Businesses can now remotely control enterprise mobile applications developed for Apple's mobile platform with the latest version of Soti's MobiControl Software Developer Kit for iOS, announced Tuesday.