IT Alumnus, M.B.A. Student and Veteran Focusing on Career in Business Analytics

Meet Jose Flores

Job Title & Employer: Enterprise Architecture and Optimization Student Employee, United States Steel Corporation
Majors/Programs: Information Technology (Computer science), M.B.A.
Graduation: April 2018
College Activities: Vice president and treasurer of the Student Veterans Association and member of the Information Technology Student Organization
Scholarships: Transfer Opportunity Scholarship
Hometown: Urbana, Md.
High School: Urbana High School
Now Living In: Pittsburgh, Pa.
Hobbies & Interests: I enjoy staying active and working out. I love coaching my daughter in soccer and attending her many activities such as dancing and gymnastics. I love sports of all kinds, both playing and watching. During my undergrad, I developed a passion for programming and creating interactive websites that can help others. I look forward to enhancing my programming skills and diving into the big data and analytics world.

"Jose presented himself with the utmost integrity at his interview. We really liked his educational background and work experience. His skills with project management and mobile technologies were additional driving factors to consider him for this position. Jose has great pride in representing Point Park University. The project work and group work he does at Point Park has prepared him to be successful."

Christian Holliday , Director, Enterprise Architecture and Optimization team, U.S. Steel Corporation

"As IT students, we gained the knowledge to be software developers, data analysts, business analysts, project managers and more. The IT program at Point Park will get you ready for the workforce and will give you a satisfying career in one of the fastest-growing markets."

Jose Flores

As a veteran, what factors made you choose Point Park University?

Initially, I didn’t know much about the veterans program at Point Park University. It wasn’t until I enrolled that I was introduced to Debbie Bateman and the Student Veterans Association. Debbie is a great asset and has helped so many veterans pursue their dreams of completing a higher education. She is always there to answer any questions you may have about the VA’s educational benefits or available veteran scholarships. The Student Veterans Association at Point Park has introduced me to new networks and lifelong friends who have helped me both personally and professionally.

Tell us about your experiences in our IT program.

I enrolled at Point Park University in the fall of 2016 with hopes to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering technology. I was a boat engineer in the Coast Guard and I wanted a degree that would directly relate to my experiences gained from my eight years in the military. I had some minor conflicts with the program schedule so I switched my degree plan to business management. While I enjoyed taking business courses and learning more about entrepreneurship, I felt like that degree plan was not going to be enough to fulfill my particular educational and career goals.

About a year prior to graduation, I made the decision to request a change in major. I met with Dr. Mark Voortman and he immediately offered his assistance and encouraged me to pursue my degree in information technology. I have learned so much from the IT faculty at Point Park. I have developed real-life skill sets that I often use in my job at U.S. Steel. The courses are very challenging, but in the end, you truly feel you have learned so much and have accomplished many things in a short period of time.

As IT students, we gained the knowledge to be software developers, data analysts, business analysts, project managers and more. The IT program at Point Park will get you ready for the workforce and will give you a satisfying career in one of the fastest-growing markets.

Why have you decided to continue at Point Park for an M.B.A. concentrating in business analytics?

In most, if not all companies, analytics is a growing phenomenon. You hear about it all the time in relation to leading tech companies such as Google, Facebook and Uber. I chose the business analytics concentration in the M.B.A. program because I enjoy taking raw data and converting it to something useful.

I want to build models that can tell a small business owner what product to sell more of based on previous sales. I want to build models that save a corporation millions of dollars because we can predict when a piece of machinery is going to fail minutes or hours before it fails. This can all be done with business analytics. We can make accurate predictions based on the past and make our world more efficient.

Exploring something new has always been interesting and appealing. I know that I won’t regret learning more about what I can do with data and how I can apply it to my career.

Tell us about the work you do for U.S. Steel Corporation.

At U.S. Steel, I work for a team called Enterprise Architecture and Optimization. We essentially take manual manufacturing and business processes and create a technological solution in an effort to save the company money and time. I am learning about IT project management, big data/analytics and the Cloud.

I have great mentors in both fields who are willing to help me grow within the company. During my time at U.S. Steel, I have learned a lot about big business and corporate processes and procedures. This has been a rewarding and valuable experience in which I can put my college education to use.

What are your career goals?

My career goals are to become a very successful IT project manager. I want to have a high-level understanding of all aspects of IT projects and analytics. I want to continue to learn and grow and teach my daughter that it’s never too late to follow your dreams. I hope to get hired for a permanent position whenever the time is right. I will continue to take advantage of the resources provided to me to move forward and advance in my career.

Photo by Brandy Richey, senior multimedia major

IT Alumnus, M.B.A. Student and Veteran Focusing on Career in Business Analytics Alumni Profile