UpDate - Vol. 13, No. 20, Page 1
February 17, 1994
Coordinator to champion voice-mail implementation

     Rebecca R. Riston, a telecommunications specialist from Aberdeen
Proving Ground in Maryland, has been appointed coordinator of voice
processing administration in Network and Systems Services at the
University, effective Jan. 24.
     In this new position, a large part of Riston's efforts will involve
work with other units across campus to implement the University's voice
mail system, which was first made accessible to students at the start of
the fall semester and is now moving steadily into administrative and
academic units.
     "One of my responsibilities," Riston said, "is to go to personnel in
the academic and administrative units and let them know what is available
from voice mail, to let them know what they can expect. It's equally
important to help campus personnel determine what is specifically needed
for their particular area and then develop and deliver those services to
them."
     A start-up team has been involved in much of the dissemination of
voice mail information and training, as well as implementation and
installation of the initial service for a number of departments. During her
first month on campus, Riston has been assuming increased responsibilities
for voice processing as her working knowledge of the system and the
University has grown.
     Susan J. Foster, vice president for information technologies, said: "I
am delighted that Becky has joined our information technologies team. Her
arrival brings the needed concentration on the voice processing area as
well as relief to the startup team-Lynda Ruggerio, Chris Murphy, Mary
Hempel, Susan Allmendinger and Dan Grim-who have our grateful
appreciation."
     As part of the transition process, Riston and Dan Grim, executive
director of Network and Systems Services, have spent a week of system
administration training in Massachusetts, in sessions at Boston Technology,
the manufacturer of the University's voice mail system.
     The training session was an important part of the transition process,
Grim explained.
     Before Riston was hired, the University was somewhat limited in the
types of voice mail services able to be deployed. With Riston's arrival on
campus, Grim said, he expects to be able to move aggressively on the
deployment of advanced voice mail services.
     Two of the main advantages of voice mail, Riston said, are that it
enhances communication and relieves administrative staff of routine and
repetitive telephone answering duties. One of her priorities is to stress
in training sessions that messages used by individual staff and departments
be done professionally, to insure that callers receive a positive and
professional impression of the University and its employees.
     Riston has worked for several years in the telecommunications field
and has gained a diverse background in areas directly related to
information management.
     From July 1989 until her arrival on campus in January 1994, she worked
as a telecommunications specialist with the Directorate of Information
Management at Aberdeen. During that time, she served as both a voice mail
and data base administrator. As a project manager, she was involved in
modernization and evaluation of the command's telecommunication system. For
more than a year, Riston was a systems administrator for Consultants &
Designers Inc., working at Aberdeen.
     A 1987 graduate of Widener University with a bachelor of science
degree in business administration, she has a concentration in management
information systems and a minor in psychology. She lives in Havre de Grace,
Md.
     Riston may be contacted via e-mail at Riston@Strauss.Udel.edu. Her
telephone number is 831-3750 and her voice mailbox is 13750.