Archives of IT is working with a number of partners to produce independent research based on the interviews we have recorded. Click below to find out about the different pieces of research that have been done or are being undertaken.
Do you have an idea for a research piece based on our interviews or publications? Get in touch via research@archivesit.org.uk
The Challenge of Being an IT Manager in the 80s - Stephen Robertson, post graduate student, Manchester University
We have been very fortunate to obtain a large volume of papers from the Butler Cox Foundation – see here. The Foundation was hugely influential in the late 1970s and the 1980s in shaping opinion, especially within the senior management community.
Stephen Robertson is a post graduate student at Manchester University who reviewed some of the Foundation’s reports for us, thinking particularly about the tensions and challenges of the relationship between senior IT management and senior corporate management during the 1980s. As Stephen says in his paper:
“Ultimately the Butler Cox Foundation reports provide an invaluable tool in understanding the changes and challenges of the 1980s. Looking forward to the present day, we can see how changes during this decade led towards the current work relationships and environment.”
Stephen’s full report can be found through this link or downloaded here. We are grateful to David Butler and Sir George Cox for talking to Stephen and helping him with his report.
Formative Years Research - Abigail Cox, a second year history student from the University of Swansea
I was asked by Archives of IT to look at the formative years of 20 high achievers in the Tech industries from their archive of oral history, and to draw conclusions as to the factors which contributed towards their success. Analysing the data led me to the conclusion that achieving success in the UK IT and STEM industry is down to drive and ambition, with the background and social class of their parents being irrelevant. Their own education, along with the support and encouragement of their parents seems to be a substantial factor in achieving success. The vast majority of the sample implied that their family was encouraging of their education, thus adding to the idea that a supportive and happy family makes for a successful job and life. Many of the sample faced difficulties in their childhood such as extreme poverty or death of a parent, however this did not preclude them from achieving greatness. It could be argued that the challenged they suffered in early life were to become motivators in encouraging them to achieve. Negatives can be turned into positives, and obstacles are there to learn from and overcome. Archives of IT are doing valuable work in encouraging future STEM and IT talents to pursue their dreams, irrespective of where they come from.
Listen to Abbie’s Research Findings in full
AIT: more than just computers - Dr Sam Blaxland
60 years of progress for women in Tech - Sophia Ahmed, an AIT Volunteer
