Computerworld names IU professor IT leader

Before Michael McRobbie, IU wasn't quite the same. The IU vice president for information technology and chief information officer ushered in a new age of campus connectivity, making IU a leader in the field. \nNow he's being recognized for his contributions by Computerworld magazine, which named McRobbie one of its 2004 "Premier 100 Information Technology Leaders" in the first issue of the year. \n"It was backwater before Michael came up," said Dennis Gannon, a professor and chair of the Computer Science department. "He basically managed to just change everything about the way the faculty and the students access information technology, the computer clusters. Basically, he had this vision of making IU a real leader of IT. Not just catching up but jumping way ahead. He did that. It was a remarkable run for the last few years."\nA panel of 10 past winners and Computerworld editors selected McRobbie and the other winners from a pool of 598 candidates. McRobbie found out he had been nominated in October and learned in late 2003 he had been chosen for the list.\nMcRobbie said he credits the entire IT department with the accolade.\n"I'm very flattered and honored personally to receive it," McRobbie said. "I view it as an honor for Indiana University, and I view it as an honor for all the IT staff at IU who I think are frankly the best in the country. This really reflects their achievements. It's a nice kind of independent way of verifying our national standing and how we compete with those top tier organizations."\nBeside McRobbie on the list are IT leaders from such organizations as, Bank One, American Express, Merrill Lynch and Goldman Sachs and technology organizations, including Sun Microsystems, Novell, Cisco Systems, Nortel Networks and Palm. Computerworld describes the list as leaders who "use their wit and fortitude to keep their staffs and companies headed in the right direction."\nMcRobbie, who is also a professor of computer science, informatics and philosophy and an adjunct professor of cognitive science and information science, said three IT developments he's headed likely clinched the award for him and IU. \nMcRobbie credited IU's optical networking and the life cycle funding program at IU, which ensures no computer on campus is older than three years and keeps technology up to date. He also said IU's unique licensing agreement with Microsoft was a big step.\n"The Microsoft deal is enormous savings over what we were paying before, and everyone has immediate access to the latest programs," Gannon said. "People around here treat it like freeware. Believe me, it's not like that anywhere else."\nMcRobbie has also turned IU into a hub for international networks, with a center for the Internet2 and networks that reach as far as Europe, South America, Russia and the Pacific region. \nDean of Informatics Mike Dunn met McRobbie when McRobbie worked at the Institute of Advanced Study at the Australian National University in 1975. Dunn said he's been impressed with McRobbie ever since and he deserves the recognition.\n"I was extremely pleased but not surprised," Dunn said. "Everywhere I go in my travels people tell me not that he's in the top 100, but that he's number one among university CIOs. I've been told that at places like Carnegie Mellon, which is often regarded as the top technical university in country."\nMcRobbie said being on the list is something all of IU can be proud of. \n"(I thought) it was flattering and a great honor," he said. "Computerworld is probably the major IT trade out there. It's certainly widely read, and it's regarded as being quite authoritative in the IT profession. But one person doesn't accomplish it."\n-- Contact campus editor Gavin Lesnick at glesnick@indiana.edu.