My name is Ashley Anne Andres and I am currently majoring in Management Information System. Initially MIS was not the major I wanted to pursue. I started my college journey at University of Hawaii Maui College where I worked towards my Associate’s Degree in Business Asministration. ICS 101 was one of the classes I took in my first semester. I honestly did not care for programming or anything tech, I just wanted to get the class over with and earn the required credit. But behold, my young mind was not prepared to be blown away with the things I could do with just typing out symbols and words. I made my very first website through ICS 101, and I was officialy hooked on the adrenaline of creating something with my own two hands. It was just a couple of programming rules, syntax, and structure we learned, but that was just enough to make a fully functioning website. Of course, mine was not the most professionally designed website, however I held a deep pride and joy with the website I have made from scratch and brought into existence.
After two years of being in the Ka’ie’ie program, fulfilling all my required credits to be accepted into Shidler’s Business of College, and graduating with my Associate’s Degree in Business Administration, it was finally time to figure out what I wanted to study for in my last years of my college career. My first semester I was declared a Management major. I was really invested in and passionate about good leadership and I wanted to continue studying it. After a semester of zoom-versity and endless amounts of group projects, which is nothing surprising for a business major since most of our work involves knowing how to work with other people and especially my major which is all about being skilled at manaaging people, I have decided that I wanted to be more than someone who was good at leading people, but also someone who can lead by example.
With technology rapidly changing today, it would be disadvantage for a manager who was not adept with the basic technological tools used in today’s businesses. I did not want to be a manager who tells their employees to adapt to these new technologies when I do not know how to operate them myself. That goes against everything I value in a great leader. Now, here I am, studying these new technologies so that one day, when I do find myself in a position where I need to guide people with these technologies, I will be fully equipped and skilled to help.