Guest Speakers

TeraU was instituted in response to community business leaders who stressed the need for employability skills not being found in typical high school graduates.  These same leaders now give talks at TeraU explaining their specific business needs.  They stress how technology plays a key role in their business.  We bring them in because successful leaders and managers have tremendous credibility with TeraU students in describing necessary employment criteria.  Thus all our guest speakers are encouraged to discuss how they find and keep high quality employees.

Expert speakers reinforce TeraU's core objective of adding value to employers via:

  • Knowledge of the information technology industry
  • Professional ethical behavior and knowledge of personal work style
  • Effective social skills appropriate to teamwork
  • Concise communication of technical and business information
  • Effective Internet use to obtain business and technical information
  • Ability to troubleshoot common workplace technology
  • Ability to use creative problem-solving techniques
  • Use of active business communication skills in listening and speaking
  • Use of customer satisfaction and recovery models for customer service

Our speakers recognize that the TeraU program, being project-based, not only develops teamwork, but also develops and enhances leadership and project management skills.

Most TeraU speakers address one or more of the following topics, always with respect to their own company:

  • Rising demand for "knowledge workers" and criteria for their advancement
  • Company requirements for post-secondary education and other employment options 
  • Opportunities/learning demands for current employees; examples of "learning by doing"
  • Role of technology (or application of technology) in solving business problems
  • Changing workforce demographics related to education and/or skills
  • Focus on ‘New Literacy'—communication, problem-solving, organizational skill
  • Need for presentation skills (graphics, audio, video, web page design/maintenance)
  • Application of knowledge, creativity, and/or collaboration to solve business problems
  • Relevance of TeraU project management skills and technology knowledge
  • Importance of making ethical decisions and maintaining a global perspective

Recent Speakers

Some speakers who recently gave time to the program:

  • Dan Leary, Government Affairs Manager, T-Mobile
  • Scott Issen, Director of Strategic Initiatives, Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center
  • Rod Height, CTO, Cook County Treasurer

In the coming months, we will be highlighting this year's speakers in this location.  Please check back periodically to learn more about TeraU.