Four Answers about Online Course at Linnaeus University

Last year Sigma Technology and Linnaeus University entered into a partnership that oversaw a free distance Master course for Sigma Technology employees in the EU. The first available course was Knowledge Sharing in Global Information Systems Teams. Eva Urbanovics, project manager and technical writer in our Hungarian office, was one of the first students within this partnership project. We asked Eva four questions about her course.

1.Eva, tell us why did you decide to take this course and what was it about?

The name of the course speaks for itself—Knowledge Sharing in Global Information Systems Teams. This is something we have to work with every day since our company is international and our clients have offices all around the world. Recently, I have started working at a new position as a project manager, where good skills in global international communications and knowledge management are very important.

2.How did you experience the format? Everything is online and you never meet your lecturers and fellow students. Do you think it worked well?

Definitely, the course was well organized. Even though we didn’t have real meetings, the webinar platform and online communication system worked perfectly fine. During the lectures, we had the chance to ask questions and share our opinion just like we were all on campus. The course material, which included PowerPoint presentations and the recordings of the lectures, was made available online, so it was easy to catch up if someone missed a session. The communication went surprisingly smoothly both with the tutors and the students; we mainly used chat rooms and email.

The course consisted of 8 online lectures, which included two really informative guest lectures as well. One of them was given by Niklas Malmros, CEO of Sigma Technology Solutions, who talked about the key success factors and the cooperation and business models practiced at Sigma. Besides taking part in these sessions, the course required a series of work tasks that we had to complete in the available three months.

3.What were the course projects about?

During the course we focused on the theory and methods of knowledge elicitation, codification, and knowledge sharing in global virtual teams, placing emphasis on cultural perspectives. We were given two assignments where we had to analyze a challenging situation, find best practices, and test the feasibility of the whole procedure. We presented the final results in the form of audio presentations. The submitted reports were evaluated not only by the tutors but by fellow students as well. We all had to comment on five other students’ papers, which made it possible to catch a glimpse of other interesting and creative solutions.

4. Would you like to try more courses from Linnaeus University?

Absolutely. I think it was a fantastic opportunity, and I’m looking forward to attending more courses at Linnaeus University. I have started collecting the university credits and would gladly add a few more.

Would you like to know more? Please contact Niklas Malmros, Niklas.malmros@sigmatechnology.se.

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Sigma Technology regularly takes part in activities that contribute to a sustainable future, by supporting innovation and development through education. We do that in close cooperation with universities by driving innovation, through exchange programs, and on a voluntary basis as teachers. We open up doors for students who want to learn about entrepreneurship or a specific industry, or simply want to acquire a competitive skill in a certain area.

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About Sigma Technology

Sigma Technology is a part of Sigma Group and is a global supplier of product information, software & embedded design, and offshore development. We are experts with a passion for technology and information, and take pride in delivering quality and constantly improving our deliveries. Our philosophy is “Local Drive – Global Strength”, therefore we have offices worldwide to be close to our customers.

Sigma is owned by Danir AB and has about 3,200 employees and a network of partners in 11 countries.

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