The following is content that originally was published on an earlier HTML-based version of XBOP that existed in the early 2000s. As part of this content migration, it has been edited to protect individual identities.

2004: The Year Ahead

The following section was the original write-up looking ahead to the year 2004, from the then time-frame of 2003.

Currently in the midst of two summer semester subjects, I look forward to commencing work with Coles Myer in the Infrastructure area of IT on Monday 9 February 2004. With other ongoing commitments to the Business Systems Society, Eureka Group P/L and skyehawke dot com, life looks good. Family/relationship-wise, I would ideally like to start a relationship with *that special someone*…

2004: A Year in Review

2004 was my first year of full-time work when I entered the workforce for real. Monday 9 February was to be that first day that I would entered full-time employment. The era did not begin in isolation since my Masters studies continued on for the first half of the year. The transition for me was thus a balancing act of juggling full-time work with the completion of one subject towards my Masters in Business Systems (by Projects).
The plan in completing my university studies I had put into place a year prior, with the selection of a research project unit. The selection of research project topic took place throughout February and at first, I proposed the topic:

A study that analyses the overall effectiveness of the Business Systems IBL program, in terms of the skills & experience accumulated by beneficial IBL students, in preparing graduates for the Coles Myer Graduate Program (a sample typical pathway for Business Systems graduates).

This topic was not successful in gaining approval by the university on two fronts: both the university and sponsor/employer felt the topic was not appropriate and potentially too ambitious as a topic. Instead, the advice provided to me was to undertake a written research report which did not require me to work with other people. This relative isolation would be more conducive to my situation as it would enable me to study and complete the research and write the report up at my leisure, outside of normal business hours. This advice was indeed very sound and wise given it would fit perfectly with my new commitment to my job as a Graduate within the Coles Myer Graduate Program.

The journey for 2004 would become synonymous with my experience in the Coles Myer Graduate Program. 2004 signified a reboot of the program by Coles Myer after having dropped an official program for the previous two – three years. As an inaugural reformed program, I and the 16 other graduates were guinea pigs in helping the company to figure out things as we all progressed. A lot of focus, attention and support was provided by HR, who led and coordinated the program. In addition to our regular roles that we were allocated to as part of our rotations, we also had responsibilities to support HR in their marketing efforts. On a rotational basis, we joined the Program Coordinators in visiting the various university careers drives, providing first-hand representation of the program and our experience.

Specific details on the Coles Myer Graduate Program will be shared separately, but in summary:

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