Adelaide University Internship Experience - Jay Shijie Zhang
Welcome Jay!
Jay Shijie Zhang joined our SAcommunity Data Analytics Team for his University of Adelaide SET (Sciences, Engineering and Technology) Internship for his Bachelor of Computer Science 2024: 22 March 2024 - 20 May 2024.
He is completing a 140 hour internship onsite with SAcommunity at the Connecting Up Office, Infoxchange for 2 days (15 hours) a week for ~10 weeks around his classes.
Total Hours 140 Joined 22 March 2024 Last Check-in 22 May 2024 (Completed)
Personal Biography
Shijie Zhang, is currently in his third year of a Bachelor of Computer Science program at the University of Adelaide. In addition to his studies, he is an experienced photographer and videographer, and the proud owner of his personal studio, 444media. He harbors a deep passion for both fields as well as a strong aptitude for learning new concepts and technologies. Recently, he has developed a keen interest in Artificial Intelligence (AI), captivated by its potential to revolutionize various aspects of our lives.
At Connecting Up, he is eager to gain industry experience and collaborate with like-minded individuals. In particular, he is enthusiastic about learning how to use software such as Power BI to visualize data, to aid in understanding and analysis of community information, and ultimately contribute to assisting the wider social network.
His ultimate goal is to develop a career that aligns with his passions, whether that be in photography or in the field of Computer Science, with a focus on Python programming and data analysis. In the long term, he aims to leverage his skills and passion to make a significant contribution to his future employer as well as to society in general.
Image: Port Augusta Council - FY 2022-2023 PowerBI report and Canva Report Created by Jay
Community Services in Councils Project
Jay has selected Port Augusta City Council for his Power BI council reports, a database of approximately 230 community services operating in the area for the financial years 2021-2022 and 2022-2023. His reports followed previous visualization report work by Renu Bala, and his completed reports can be found >>here. Including 4 years comparison report and geo-mapping along with insights.
There are a number of steps involved in the creation of community service information data presentations. A summary of data trends prepared, using information from Google Analytics and SAcommunity with subsequent Power BI and Canva reports revealing data anomalies and corrections required, the database is updated, and reports re-created with improved information. Final data reports are published to the website and introduced by Harsh to council stakeholders for information and/or feedback.
Image: Jay taking photo of Harsh, (left-right)Harsh Bhatt, Dexter Tabada, Yi Han, Jay Shijie Zhang
Photography Empowers Community
Jay leveraged his photography skills to provide professional assistance to many volunteers. He helped them enhance their LinkedIn profiles by capturing professional headshots. In addition, he contributed to creating a conducive workspace by taking high-quality desk shots. Recognizing the importance of skill sharing, Jay also imparted advanced photography composition techniques to the volunteer coordinator, Catherine. This was particularly beneficial as Catherine is responsible for taking most of the photographs for the interns and volunteers.
Jay also provided photographs for Volunteer Flavia's blog post on the April Community Events, including the Adelaide Motorsports Festival. His photography skills not only enhanced the visual appeal of the blog but also helped in effectively conveying the vibrancy and excitement of the events. This further demonstrates Jay's ability to use his skills in diverse ways to support and enrich his community.
Image: Desk shots by Jay and Catherine, (left-right) Jay Shijie Zhang, Tanvi Srivastava, Kristen.
Work experience - Internal and External Events, Connections and Networks Volunteers and interns are encouraged to attend monthly SAcommunity Team meetings, Connecting Up staff meetings, as well as quarterly all-staff Infoxchange Town Hall meetings to understand more about the organisation as a whole.
Organisation-wide news, events and projects are communicated through the staff channels, with weekly CEO Updates from David Spriggs, informal ‘Lunch and Learn’ educational sessions, and network meetings create connections with staff, whilst peer-to-peer training and telephone techniques allow for networking with other volunteers. Interns are also given opportunities to attend stakeholder and partner events.
Relevant meetings and training Jay has attended include:
Image: Stathis and Jay during 1 to 1 Telephone training
Training and Development - Telephone Techniques
Telephone techniques follow on with email and communication techniques, to assist Data Analytics Team members with understanding more about the directory and data collection methods, in data cleaning and updating their individual dataset information, and, in finally introducing and presenting their data reports to council stakeholders. There are several telephone techniques meetings, as with the student's elevator pitches, practice makes perfect.
Connecting Up Monthly Staff Meeting
9 April 2024
In an internal conference at ConnectingUp, Pankaj talked about the company's current
Infoxchange (IX) All Staff Town Hall Meeting
22 May 2024
Updates from the Infoxchange CEO, Operations, Finance, People & Culture, Lightning Talks from IX Teams, & IXcel Awards
Lunch & Learn | Surplus for Purpose
‘Surplus for Purpose’ emphasized the importance of self-funding and balance between surplus and purpose. It highlighted the role of surplus in enhancing customer service, managing workload, investing in technology, fostering innovation, and scaling impact. The session underscored the significance of understanding financial statements for effective surplus management and prompted attendees to consider the implications of running deficits. It was a valuable learning experience that offered insights into financial management within purpose-driven organizations.
Data Catalyst Network Webinar | MS Fabric
At this meeting, Benny from Microsoft introduced us to Microsoft Fabric. As a comprehensive data analysis software suite, various data team members can efficiently organize and analyze files using Fabric. However, during the volunteer discussion following the meeting, we found that the cost of Fabric is quite high, which could make it challenging to control the actual usage costs.
Image: Koodge Parker, ITS Helpdesk Officer, IX Products & Services Customer Support and Jay during 1 to 1 Mentor meeting
Mentor Meeting with Koodge Parker
Jay had the chance to have some enlightening conversations with Koodge Parker https://lnkd.in/gii9vtzQ, his mentor at Infoxchange. He chose him as his mentor because of his extensive experience in the IT support role. Koodge shared his unique journey from a film background to an IT support job and gave Jay some tips on how to excel in this role. One story that really resonated with Jay was when Koodge solved camera problems remotely. Koodge explained how he checked how different apps interact with the camera by looking at the drivers and so on. Jay couldn’t be happier with this learning experience.
Digital Education & Training Webinars:
Self-Leadership Webinar:
This insightful webinar is presented by Mel Kettle. It emphasizes the importance of self-leadership as a key strategy in managing burnout and becoming more effective leaders. The webinar provides practical strategies for increasing self-awareness and underlines the importance of regular health check-ups. Interactive resources are made available through a QR code, fostering an engaging learning environment.
Introduction to Microsoft 365:
This informative video serves as an introduction to Microsoft 365, highlighting its numerous benefits, particularly for non-profit organizations. It provides a comprehensive overview of key functions, migration paths, and license options. The speaker also discusses various features such as SharePoint, Planner, Power BI, and Forms, showcasing the versatility of Microsoft 365.
MS Teams 101:
Presented by Sophie Sushan, this webinar provides a comprehensive guide on using Microsoft Teams effectively for meetings. It covers a wide range of features like managing audio and video, sharing content, and different participant views. The session encourages exploration of further functionalities of Microsoft Teams and the Microsoft 365 platform, emphasizing their benefits for non-profits.
Enhancing MS Teams Presentation Skills:
This webinar, also presented by Sophie Sushan, offers a comprehensive guide on enhancing presentation skills within Microsoft Teams. It covers various features like scheduling and editing webinars, using live captions for accessibility, and launching polls for interactive sessions. The session encourages active participation and provides solutions for technical issues, aiming to assist nonprofits in their digital transformation journey.
MS 365 Cloud Files Management:
This webinar delves into the role of the Digital Transformation Hub in aiding non-profits with digital transformation, emphasizing the benefits of cloud technology. It differentiates between Teams, SharePoint, and OneDrive in MS 365 for file storage and collaboration. The session also provides tips for efficient file sharing, organization, and management, including printing PDF files in Teams.
Gaining Buy-in Strategies Webinar:
In this webinar, Cassandra Hatton, an expert in the non-profit sector, emphasizes the importance of people and culture in digital transformation. She outlines five strategies: prioritizing people over technology, building trust, effective storytelling, fostering inclusion, and celebrating successes. Hatton’s approach underscores the value of every stakeholder’s perspective in ensuring successful, sustainable, and beneficial digital transformation initiatives.
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Jay Shijie Zhang's Internship Summary:
I have learned a lot during my three-month internship. I gained valuable experience interacting with coworkers and acquired essential skills in data analysis, cleaning, and visualization using PowerBI and Canva. This work experience provided me with practical knowledge of real-world scenarios and allowed me to contribute to community projects, something I take great pride in. I plan to volunteer again in the near future.
While learning from my mentor, Koodge, I also was able to apply my IT support knowledge to practical situations. For instance, when a monitor at my workstation stopped working, I first checked for power issues, then inspected the wiring. When these steps didn’t resolve the issue, I swapped the two DP output cables at the terminal connection and discovered the problem was with the computer’s port. I reported this information to my supervisor for the IT support personnel to repair. This experience was just one where I demonstrated my problem-solving skills and ability to apply this learned knowledge and look forward to continue to do so in my career.
