By Andrey Nikolayev. Are you looking for a communication tool to increase collaboration? Or are you already a member of several Slack teams but unsure which one to use for your work? Slack is a messaging application for real-time conversations, like instant messenger, or asynchronous conversations, like e-mail. It has many other useful features, such as app integrations, file sharing, and group chat. These collaboration tools are especially helpful for

Last Wednesday, September 11, we held the UC IT Town Hall. Many people joined remotely from around the UC system. Dr. Harold Schmitz, former Mars, Inc. Chief Science Officer and now General Partner at the March Fund, talked about  how technology is transforming the food industry. Danna Gianforte, Chair of the UC IT Leadership Council (ITLC) and UC Riverside CIO discussed ITLC’s goals for the year. And UC System CIO Tom Andriola provided

There are still a few spots left for the 8th Biannual Cyber Security Summit in UC Santa Barbara. Don’t miss your chance to learn from accomplished speakers and get to know colleagues and leaders in your field. Registration is open until October 3. Speakers will discuss crucial topics in cybersecurity, including how to protect critical infrastructure and improve incident response. We look forward to seeing you on October 23rd in

By Amy Akmal. The 1994 Northridge earthquake was one of the costliest natural disasters in U.S. history. Fifty-seven people died, more than 8,700 were injured, and property damages amounted to billions of dollars. In the 25 years since the 6.7 quake shook Southern California at 4:30 a.m. on Jan.17 — collapsing buildings, bridges and freeways — what have we learned? Quite a lot thanks in part to the work of

By Denise Dolezal. As news sinks in that the European Union’s (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) applies to UC, it might cause some consternation across the university. But what if there is a bright side to the extraterritorial nature of the regulations? UC’s paradigm of privacy actually exemplifies the principles and rights embodied in GDPR regulations, as well as reflecting elements of other nations’ privacy regulations. So could it

By Tanya Jansen, Traci Farrell, and Vanessa Palacios. Do you approach change by hitting your users over the head with the same communications strategy? Or do you hit the nail on the head with targeted communication and outreach efforts? Let’s face it: change is painful and inconvenient, especially when you’re competing with the distractions of a busy community. We have developed a formula to achieve what we thought was impossible.

The calendar on the UC IT Portal lists events of interest for the systemwide UC IT audience. Be sure to check it from time to time. You’ll learn about everything from the EDUCAUSE annual conference to the UC IT Town Hall (coming up on Sept. 11, by the way). We need YOU to submit events: Any IT related event, at a campus or elsewhere, that IT colleagues from around

By Sonia Fernandez, Engineering and Public Affairs Writer, UC Santa Barbara. When you think of robots, it’s likely the image that pops into your head is one of a rigid, perhaps humanoid metallic machine with electro-mechanical actuators and calculated movements. Which is all the more reason why, when UC Santa Barbara mechanical engineering assistant professor Elliot Hawkes’ pliable, pneumatic-powered soft robot came along, it was considered so innovative. And it’s now been named

Don’t miss the next UC IT Town Hall – September 11 at 10:00 a.m! Dr. Harold Schmitz, former Mars, Inc. Chief Science Officer and now General Partner at the March Fund, will discuss the transformation of the food industry enabled by technology through fields such as computational science, digital technologies and data science.  Dr. Schmitz will talk about how in their investment thesis includes the explosion of data and building

By Sarkis Daglian. In April 2019, UC Irvine Interim Chief Information Officer Kian Colestock and I launched the inaugural Office of Information Technology (OIT) Leadership Academy. The program is a collaboration with UCI’s Paul Merage School of Business. It is always challenging to maintain a level of management consistency in large organizations, especially with a diverse population of managers who come from different career tracks and backgrounds. We started the