About 18 months ago I was given the supplementary job of IT manager at my company. This was meant to be a small hat to wear. And in the grand scheme of things, this is mostly true. The job is cyclical and as I am trying to implement some significant projects, there are times when it sucks up my time. But mostly, I spend my time working with engineering and sales on new projects to expand the business.
Here’s the problem. When I work with engineering and sales, I interact with about a dozen people. When I help with IT, I interact with everyone. So more people have come to recognize me as the person who helps with IT.
As a result, people across the company have started introducing me to customers and new employees as the company IT guy. Nothing against IT, but this is only a small portion of my job and in comparison to my other projects, a very simplistic component of my tasks. I feel this sells me short.
I’ve got a marketing problem. How can I accomplish my all my tasks and pull my reputation away from ‘the computer guy’ and more towards ‘a major contributor to the company’s bottom line’? Somehow I have to better communicate the actual work I do. I don’t know how to do this. Hopefully I will come up with something.
Is there a process by which someone requests your IT services? Could you somehow subtly include a message in this transaction that brings their attention to your primary job? For example, if you normally use an auto-signature in your emails, you could make sure it specifies your primary job title very clearly. And in the case of IT emails add in parentheses after your primary title (aka the IT guy). It seemingly brings attention to your IT position while in reality it points out that it is secondary to something else. It’s not very flashy, but it would be clear.
Not a bad idea. Right now people come directly to me with their issues. Perhaps I could have them report their problems via an email address. This might sever their connection with me as the person who responds to their IT issues.
I think I would refrain from using the word IT anywhere near my title. People tend to only see what they want.
Rebrand yourself as Mike D – Company Synergist
I think the problem is that the only “output” you generate that the average employee sees, is your IT work.
If the fruits of your Marketing labors were easily seen by everybody, this would probably help shift their mentality in that direction.
I think that reworking the atmosphere in which people work into a more Marketing-centralized workplace would go a long ways towards this goal.
First task? 25ft. tall mural of a company robot, ala Optimus Prime, cutting a swath of destruction through the similarly anthropomorphized representations of our competitors. I bet you could cover most of the manufacturing area.