By Joseph Venturelli (self-proclaimed geek)

Bill seldom makes it home before 2am in the morning and when he does, it’s simply to change into different clothes and freshen up. He does not eat a proper meal or take some good sleep but he will not hesitate to fall asleep on the couch and leave the computer on. Being the IT resident genius at a healthcare company, he is the best at what he does. Most of the time he wishes he could get more comfortable and fall asleep, but with the unending projects and amount of pressure from his management team, he can barely create time to even tidy up his apartment. The off duty time he gets in between shifts are usually consumed in consulting and doing some extra research for a new project. Bill does not really have a relationship with his colleagues but he is well aware that they have many perceptions towards him. His poor personal care is obviously because of his job and his management. Not that he takes his job too seriously; he is just oblivious of the other world and has to deliver in this one.

Geek is a term used to refer to individuals with extreme intellectual pursuit in a particular field of complexity.  A nerd is a descriptive term for person overly intellectual, obsessive but lacking social skills. These persons exclude mainstream activities to spend overt amounts of time on obscure activities relating to topics of fiction or fantasy. Geeks and nerds are used as synonyms but most people argue that they slightly differ in meaning.

Geeks are more proactive and involve practical activities in the technical fields they study and are consulted for expertise and skills. Nerds, on the other hand, tend to be slow and passive; spending most time studying and doing research in literal works.

These individuals constitute the technology as well as computer experts, and sometimes engineers, and are generally referred to as technologists.

The first step in managing geeks and nerds requires the understanding of the nature of these individuals and creating an environment that they are able to fit into.  Insight into their minds, motivations, beliefs, and behaviors is important in developing a significant influence in their pursuits. Their nature revolves around thinking, acting and moving in a unique perspective that is technology, business technology management, research scientist, professor, general manager, entrepreneur, director of corporate training, and author where the breadth of knowledge and experience resonates with their abilities to perform.  With this understanding you’re able to develop a model of how technology focused knowledge works and its ability to add value to an organization’s objectives.

Technologists display a number of behavioral traits that inhibit not only advancement up the technological ladder, but also smooth relations with non-technical colleagues and clients. This ascribes to the fact that they develop a mechanism to move around the world based on the perception on technology and machines. The start of work in any organization requires interaction with people and their feelings, but after some time technologists are not able to respond to these behaviors and this leads to a pitfall, where the organization seeks technicians that are more professional. Understanding the perspective of the world of engineers and technologists we can enhance their communicative abilities to deal with issues and relate better with other people. This can be achieved by management policies with prescriptive approaches for managing, motivating and understanding that technological work is not affected by influence and authority, but by the productivity of the technologists. Team motivation is another integral part in dealing with the competitiveness of workers in the technological field because applying management techniques in technical fields works best in environments where technologists have interpersonal relationships and can make consultations based on proximity and not command.

Despite the fundamental importance of technologists around the globe today, most of them work under conditions of extreme pressure and frustrating job environments. This results in burnout because of physical and emotional exhaustion. The nature of these jobs demands intense attention and long hours that leave most individuals drained and stressed. Keeping technologists happy is an absolute requirement for any organization or modern business; hence managers should avoid inhibitors to technologists’ productivity. Stress in the work environment, especially criticism from management, can be a depressant, and too much work can end up straining the physical and mental health of a technical worker. Management may come up with strategies that counter these challenges; change of routine whereby frequent long and short shifts can interplay, creating programs that encourage colleague relations in the work environment, placing limits on how many things one worker is handling at a go, encouraging diversification in the worker’s routine.

Technologists appreciate respect, not because they have some level of intellectual expertise, but because it is a professional courtesy. This respect is mostly required of the management due to the demeanor of authority that larks within the work environment. For most technologists, respect develops based upon the tolerability of a person, which includes the practicality of the suggestions they make. It is easier for them to work and self-organize with people of independence and social chart.

Capacity for technical reasoning trumps only on right decisions. Making mistakes only adds to the workload and creates more tense relationships between the management and the technologists. The manager, however, must never ignore the technologist despite their different fields of specialization, opinion or ideas. Technologists require good leadership just like all other personnel groups. A technologist’s creativity is another trait that a manager can use to his advantage.  When technologists are able to present their ideas and use them, it lessens the need for consultation on the procedures and methodologies that work for both sides. It is, however, important that management consult the technologists when making decisions that directly affect, or relate to their creativity and programming.

Technologists may be experts and intellectuals in the field of technology, however, even experts require a bit of direction and orientation when they join new organizations.

Training is very important   for the success of technologists because it motivates the intellectual aspect to adapt to the organization’s principles, procedures and routine.

Other skills also enable the technologists to revise old and new knowledge to a working advantage. A technologist with all the tools needed to work is a happy technologist. It is quite easy to work when all the required equipment is available. This enhances efficiency and saves time. It is the manager’s responsibility to ensure the provision of work equipment is sufficient, with fully functional tools for instance; an effective computer system with reliable internet connection, an office phone connection, sufficient detailed information and instructions on what to do, and caffeine. Technologists work best with caffeine beverages.

Technologists are not perfect; they tend to over engineer systems in an attempt to build architecture to accommodate for future capacity. Sometimes this is necessary but often all that is needed is a quick nudge, which is why managers need to be aware of such possibilities while assessing the immediate procedures that focus the technologist’s attention to what’s required in the present. They can also avoid such situations by giving an outline of the scope of work to be covered so that anything outside of that, of interest to the engineer, is achieved later.

Most technologists develop instantaneous ideas in the course of duty, which could include formulas or patterns to a particular course. Such ideas may contradict the set procedures for a particular assignment. Managers are, however, encouraged to adjust the formal arrangement of strategies in cases when the period for work is open. This motivates the technologists to work with ideas they are familiar with, which they can adjust when necessary. Managers should also learn to avoid superficiality in technological aspects. It inhibits the worker’s ability to work with confidence because they are likely to feel undermined and unnecessarily pressured. For example, a constant reminder from a manager about the deadline of a particular assignment could cause a technologist to feel de-motivated rather than enthusiastic about finishing the assignment.

To conclude, technicians and technologists represent an important aspect of the globe today; technology, and therefore help define some of the most significant inputs in making other industries successful. To enhance the continuity of this field of expertise, the educational curriculum needs to affect the studies of individuals to the level of management so that geeks and nerds can relate to other aspects of work other than machines and tools. Management, on the other hand, should prioritize issues of their technical direct reports through creating beneficial relationships with the technical workers.   Fostering effective communication skills for engineers and technologists that can improve their interactive abilities with other colleagues and customers and practicing effective leadership for managers in top positions. This is one way to enhance the work environment and team effort.  Learning methodologies to apply from IT practices in projects and concepts that all workers are comfortable with and finally, appreciating the efforts of technologists by providing working conditions that enhance their productivity.

Management in any organization or modern business should know that, happy geeks are productive geeks.

About the Author

Joseph Venturelli earned his degree in design from the School of Visual Arts in New York City. His debut in healthcare Information Technology began as a system administrator, concentrating on the technical oversight of information systems at Presbyterian Hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina in 1990. Early on Joseph trained and became certified as a system engineer and certified trainer. He has been responsible for leading teams of technologists supporting  infrastructure, web services, data center operations, call centers, disaster recovery planning and help desk services, and has managed scores of system implementations over the past twenty five years.

Joseph co-led the creation and implementation of an electronic medical record system, which included full financial, transcription and scheduling integration. Physicians were given office access to the scheduling and clinical documentation platforms. This integration strategy created immediate medical record completion, eliminating the need for back end inspection and rework resources. Joseph has consistently delivered efficiencies through standardization, recruiting and retaining key talent and launching enthusiastic customer service programs for a variety of professionals, patients and vendors.

Joseph has been published in numerous technical journals and industry magazines and has authored several books, one notably addressing patient advocacy. A seasoned executive, Joseph has worked as the Chief Executive Officer for a Southeast consulting firm, a Chief Information Officer for an ambulatory surgery center, as well as Chief Information Officer for a Midwest county hospital system and Chief Technology Officer for a New England Hospital System.