The past 10 weeks, I've been reading about APIs, Test Automation, Service Virtualization and everything DevOps. If asked to define any of these terms prior to this time, I would not have been able to give you an answer; now, I eat, sleep, and breathe Application Delivery, and I monitor this Community page like a hawk. I’m not an engineer or developer, and I’m not a prospective buyer of CA Technologies software solutions-- I’m an intern. My name is Jessica Pennington, and I’m a summer intern at CA Technologies.
When I began my time at CA, I wasn’t sure what my role would be. I was told that I had the power to decide what direction my summer would take; my only direction was that I would work towards developing awareness of the CA Application Delivery products and the people who create them. After some preliminary discovery work, I made the choice to focus my attention on the recently launched, Jive-supported, CA Communities. More specifically, I would work on having blogs regularly published on the CA LISA Application Delivery page.
Currently, there are 9 different blogs published in this community through my initiative. The response has been stellar, and I feel that the bloggers who have written are proud of their work. The journey to this point has not been easy. I needed to learn about the DevOps space that the CA products are part of, and discover what type of content existed. With the help of my tech savvy colleagues, that was actually quite simple. The difficulties laid elsewhere.
Many of the bloggers were blogging for the first time, and most of them occupied roles that did not require much writing. I created guiding documents, and was speedy in making sure I answered all of their questions and assuaged their concerns. The Communities platform was (and still is) new, so my bloggers were learning the ins and outs while I was doing the same. Trying to stay one step ahead was a trial and error process. However, I was continually impressed by each writers’ talent and enthusiasm.
Another issue was making sure that the posts received proper exposure. With some advice from the very friendly and helpful social media and PR teams, I was able to establish and execute a protocol for social media promotion. The amount of unique visitors to the Communities site due to the blogs is growing, and the blogs are currently the most viewed form of content on the CA LISA Application Delivery Community.
I’m so proud of everything that has been created this summer, and thankful to have been able to play a role in the growth of such a large and influential technology community. Unfortunately, I have to return to college (I’m a rising junior at the University of Pennsylvania ), so my time at CA is at a close. I hope that the blogs continue, and that everyone on the community continues to innovate and participate in this amazing area.