Thelma J. Johnson-Vance

Thelma J. Johnson-Vance
Location: RAI Service Company, Winston-Salem, NC
Education: BS Degree in Computer Science
Position: Lead Data Analyst


What I do: I am currently working in the IM Compliance world. I am going through my first Sensitive and Personal Information audit. I provide documents to prove to the Auditors that our sensitive data is protected and that we have policies and procedures in place. I have been involved with disaster recovery processes (what steps to take if our data center is destroyed). I have worked on the Vendor Risk Matrix where we measure a vendor’s risk based on certain criteria. I am working on a process where we will set our vendors up for encrypted emails. I have worked with the Change Management group where I make changes for production applications, get necessary approvals, attend meetings to discuss changes and implement the changes. I have interfaced with third party vendors providing them with file layouts and data files. When systems were being replaced, I worked on a project to archive data. I have worked on various data base platforms.

What I like about my job: I like the challenges and the new things I learn every day. I enjoy the days when I am really busy. I enjoy accomplishments and feeling like I have contributed to the company. I like learning about the overall picture of our company.

Anything else: It is a vast area to work in and a whole new world of opportunities. There are very technical positions whereas one might be installing complex computer networks or databases. It can be as simple as creating software, building elaborate spreadsheets, or building simple applications. There are audit positions, managers of vendors, project managers, installation teams (software and hardware), infrastructure groups, data and application security gatekeepers and the list and areas of responsibility goes on.  Because IT is ever changing, there are always new things to learn and do. In IT, one can be as creative as possible.