This week, we had A Conversation With... Paul Novell, our in-house IT Technician who solves more issues than most of us staff members knew could exist!
What does your average day entail?
Most days, I'll go for a quick cycle in the ergo room here at the College, before taking a look at the tasks I need to take care of for the day. A lot of my day-to-day responsibilities will be resolving the live job requests, but between these I will either work on other ongoing projects or the necessary IT infrastructure maintenance work required to keep the College running smoothly. This includes checking the School’s backups for data redundancy, security patch updates and any needed changes to the networks firewall. After work you'll find me in the gym working on my fitness to give me that edge competing in the Friday evening staff sports activities!
What’s the best IT joke you know?
What does a proud computer call his little son?
A microchip off the old block.
What do you enjoy most about day to-day life at Shiplake?
I really enjoy getting the chance to help people by resolving their IT issues as I know how stressful computers can be at times! Taking that stress away gives me a bit of a boost and a good feeling.
What is your favourite meal prepared by the Catering Department?
It's got to be Fish and Chips on Friday as it beats any of my locals and tops off the week in the best way possible.
Do you have any hobbies or interests outside of School?
As well as playing guitar, I enjoy cycling. I’ve taken part in some long distance cycle journeys, like my trip to Paris and back, which is over 500 miles! I hope to do more of these in the future. I am really looking forward to playing guitar in the staff band at the Leavers' Ball.
What is the most challenging aspect of your job?
The most challenging aspect of my job is managing the support tickets. You do find yourself having to prioritise some issues over others, which means some people unfortunately have to wait longer. I always try to work chronologically but this is not always possible. Customer service plays a big part of IT support but can be the hardest element when trying to keep the IT system running.
What does the future hold for Paul Novell?
I would like to see if I could take my IT skills to other countries to be able to experience different cultures, as well as different systems, and the challenges that they bring.
