An assistantship with John Deere during his time at GSLIS helped Derek Riddle redirect his career path to the business information field. Now the senior business information analyst at John Deere’s Research Park office, Riddle enjoys working in a variety of research areas and stays connected to GSLIS by supervising current students who gain work experience at John Deere.
Where do you work and what is your role?
I’m the senior business information analyst at John Deere’s Technology Innovation Center in the University of Illinois Research Park. Our facility houses employees in the advanced engineering function, meaning that they take the long view of technology and machinery—developing what will be used in machines in five to ten years as opposed to next year’s model. My role is to conduct research into technology and business issues that supports both marketing and engineering decisions, and to find companies and universities that we can work with to jointly develop technology. Typical reports may include academic literature reviews, intellectual property research, technology landscapes, financial analysis, and company profiles. We also have current GSLIS students working here as graduate hourly/assistantship/company intern employees, so there’s a degree of hiring, training, and supervision involved in my work as well.
What do you like best about your job?
I love the wide-open subject matter that we deal with here. On any given day, we may be looking at emissions reduction technology, robotics, materials science, iPad apps, agronomics, emerging market issues, or any of a hundred other topics. I also really enjoy working with the students, since I can always see a bit of myself in them (I had an assistantship here when I was a student at GSLIS). Finally, I really like the autonomy that I am given here. Although I certainly have goals and responsibilities that have to be met, I have the freedom to find my own way of getting there, and everyone is open to new ideas and alternative methods.
How did GSLIS help you get to where you are today?
GSLIS helped me immensely. I was working in fundraising, including prospect research, before going back to school, and I really wanted to use those two years to pivot into a new career. Having that time to read whatever I felt would help me, to try new things, and to learn new skills and implement them right away was extremely helpful.
What advice would you like to share with GSLIS students?
The first thing is that while you don’t need to know exactly what you want to do when you start the program, the sooner you decide, the better off you will be . . . the time goes by very quickly! As a professional program, it’s really important to apply your newfound skills, so it’s very helpful to get an hourly position or an assistantship, take a practicum, go on Alternative Spring Break, or volunteer somewhere—anything to get practical experience and make connections while you are still in school. You should also take the opportunity to fill in the gaps of what you don’t know, while really concentrating on the skills that you love doing most. For example, I learned more about statistics and data mining while at school, but I really focused on learning more about company and technology research. Finally, I would say that you can’t read too much—always do the optional reading, check the citations of interesting passages, read those articles, and read books and articles that are frequently mentioned as important in your field.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?
I am currently in the Illinois Professional MBA program, as well as working a full-time job, so I don’t have any spare time.
What’s next for you?
After moving from job to job in fundraising as capital campaigns began and ended, I’m really happy to have the opportunity to stay in one job for a longer period of time. John Deere is a great place to work, the facility here is growing, and there are more than enough exciting projects to keep me busy. I’m looking forward to continuing my studies at Illinois, trying new things in my current position, and having a positive impact on my company’s business and the Champaign-Urbana community.