An Interview with Jim MacLennan, SVP and CIO of IDEX

Recently I was able to make a quick call to Jim MacLennan, SVP and CIO of IDEX Corporation. We talked about how the use of computers in business has changed over the course of the past 20 years. He said that when he started in the field of technology, computers were machines designed with business in mind and only had that one purpose. He went on to say that no one expected computers to be something that everyone would carry in their pockets on a day to day basis. 

Then when asked about how computers will again change in 10-20 years he said that he doesn’t believe it will be a drastic change when compared to the changes from 20 years ago to now, but it will still be a change nonetheless. He doesn’t believe that computers will ever fully replace people when it comes to business but he does believe they can fill the roles that people cannot.

I also asked Mr. MacLennan about the steps he took to get to where he is today. He graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1985 with a degree in electrical engineering and became a programmer soon after. He also went to DePaul University to get his degree in marketing. After higher education, he started out as an entry-level programmer and throughout the years he went from company to company working on different computer-related jobs. When asked what advice he would give to someone who wants to go into a similar field, he said that the best thing they could do is work hard in school and learn what you need to succeed in a certain career path. After you finish school, work hard to succeed in your job and you will be rewarded.

Mr. MacLennan is also a renowned writer. Most recently, his book “Don’t Think So Much” hit the bookshelves. The book is a compilation of various articles he wrote on his blog, Makerturtle.com, about how simple computers are. He said that he always wanted to be a writer but didn’t want to deal with the whole ordeal of publishers and sellers so he said it was a fun challenge to do it by himself. 

This interview was the most interesting and informative out of all of the interviews I have done and I really appreciate the time Mr. MacLennan took to answer my questions. I learned very insightful information I could only get from someone like him and I hope to continue to interview individuals in the business and technology field.