Today, we take it for granted that we can check data in the university system and surf on social media whenever we like. But have we ever stopped to ponder the trials and tribulations that our colleagues have endured to make this happen? Deputy Director of Information Technology Mr Albert Tse Wai-kwong, who has been working at the University for 32 years, has witnessed the rapid advances in campus information technology and has a unique perspective to share.
Mission possible
Albert joined the University in 1992, but he did not serve in the IT department all the time. He was deployed to the President's Office for about ten years. “At the time, I led a team that reported directly to Vice-President Prof. Leung Chun-ming, who was in charge of the University's technology and development,” he recalls. “Under his leadership, we drove the implementation of innovative IT initiatives on campus, including building the University website, intranet and portal.” It was like a special forces mission, with Albert at the forefront of the World Wide Web development project. “Back then, people had limited understanding of the internet,” he says. “While we were doing development work, we partnered with professors from the School of Science and Technology to provide training to staff and students on its use, which was truly a challenging endeavour.”
Since then he has encountered myriad challenges, but the most memorable was rebuilding the student administration system.
A new page to be proud of
“Prof. Leung was a visionary leader,” Albert reminisces. “When major universities were still focused on in-house development of their student administration system, he advocated purchasing a commercial package and customizing it to our needs.” While homegrown IT systems often involve a trial-and-error process, commercially available solutions have already incorporated the lessons learned from countless failures. Careful selection and tailoring it to the University’s requirements made acquiring a commercial package the optimal choice.
“Unfortunately, almost the entire University opposed the idea at the time,” Albert recounts. “Coupled with the fact that the project was quite costly, we had to explain and lobby the Council and all staff members in various meetings and staff forums.” Against all odds and after untiring efforts, they finally kicked-off the project. Their initial triumph was short-lived, however, as the vendor was acquired by another company, resulting in a major setback.
They did not give up and finally restarted the project after arduous negotiations. Several years later, the new student administration system was successfully launched and became a pioneer among local institutions. “HKU, CUHK and HKUST subsequently sought advice and reference from us one after another,” he says with gratification. The success not only marked a proud moment for Albert, but also helped him forge deep bonds with his counterparts, who had fought side by side for years.