When it all just worked
A couple weeks ago, I got to work with the fine folks with Apple Education as we prepared a major rollout of new devices to students and teachers. It was a massive project with thousands of iPads and MacBooks for a 1:1 deployment in schools. The usual IT approach might be: “Get the devices out there, make sure they power on, keep the Wi-Fi running, call it a day.” But while I may be the “IT guy”, I don’t ever want to be an “IT guy”.
What good is all of this fancy tech if it’s not utilized to its potential? To truly be an intuitive experience that enables users to see their goals? Like, if I did my job right, they’d just walk into a classroom, tap an icon, and get on with teaching or learning. No fuss, no frantic calls to IT, no 20-step instructions laminated and taped to the wall. So that was my mindset as I worked with Apple and school technology teams to build the entire experience.
About two weeks after we wrapped up the deployment, I popped into a classroom to see how everything was going. This teacher was screen mirroring from her MacBook to the Apple TV to show the class a short video, all while juggling her lesson in Keynote. Students had iPads out, collaborating on a group project in real time. No headaches, no fiddling with settings, no drama.
At the end of class, I asked her how things were going with the new tools. Something she said really resonated with me:
“I don’t even think about the tech anymore. I just teach.”
That was it. That’s all I needed to hear. For me, moments like that are the gold standard. If a user—who might not consider herself ‘tech-savvy’—can just walk in, tap a couple buttons, and focus on achieving their goals, I know we did it right.
Good IT is an invisible foundation that lets people do whatever they need to do, without technology getting in the way.
I’ve also started noticing students using features they didn’t even know existed before: splitting screens on iPads, collaboration with classmates, or quick video editing in the new Clips app. Watching them discover what was possible (and actually enjoy it) has been super cool. I realized I’ve missed seeing users feel surprised and delighted. It reminded me why I care so much about the experience that comes with good technology. It’s my intrinsic motivator in all I do.