Growing Future Operators

By Rick Mendes

"Growing Future Operators" features Freddie Lima, a technical unicorn, who has served as a Software Engineer, Systems Engineer, and Security Engineer. Freddie's wife Ginger is the CEO of the company they co-own, All Things Operations (ATO).
Jack Whitaker is a technology curmudgeon who prides himself on teaching the classics. He has a great reputation as a superintendent, graduating more students than any other public school in his state. Frank Spencer is a pragmatic superintendent who tailors his program to give students the best possible future.
The novel follows Freddie as he introduces his idea at the collegiate level and then works with the local school systems. Freddie knows nothing about teaching or schools, but he thinks a school system should implement his idea. The story contains helpful information for teachers, administrators and students.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jun 6, 2023
• ISBN: 9798350903171

Book preview

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Contents

ACT 1

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

ACT 2

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

28

29

30

31

32

33

34

35

36

Growing Future Operators

©2023, Rick Mendes

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

ISBN: 979-8-35090-316-4

ISBN eBook: 979-8-35090-317-1

To my wife, Ginny:

Thank you for all the support you provided and

your brilliant questions during my time to get this novel done.

I know I used up a lifetime of weekends on this.

I promise I won’t start another novel until I am retired

and can work on weekdays.

ACT 1

1

Saturday, April 9

Someone asked me yesterday whether you were a software engineer, a systems engineer, or a security engineer. They didn’t believe me when I told them all three. I then explained your three-part career, and they got it. They were incredulous at first, Ginger said.

Why do people react that way? Maybe people don’t know anyone who gobbles up learning no matter the subject.

Our order is ready. Can you get it?

Sure, be right back.

Freddie visits this coffee shop four or five times per week. He loves his iced coffee. Ginger doesn’t drink coffee. Her order is tea or hot cocoa. She loves donuts.

Here is your tea and jelly donut.

This donut is perfect! It has a ton of grape jelly, and it’s still warm. You should try one.

I’m happy with my Boston cream donut. The custard is still warm. The chocolate on top is warm too.

Do you remember when we first started dating and you were working 80-plus hours per week? I thought you were crazy, until I realized later that you will work however many hours needed to make a project a success.

I am surprised you married me after that start.

You wore me down during the first five years of dating. I kept waiting for a proposal—I’d almost given up when you eventually proposed.

Freddie and Ginger are the co-owners of All Things Operations (ATO). Ginger has the CEO position and Freddie is the CTO.

ATO started as a contracting company. Freddie would take a couple of contracts, hire some subcontractors to help, and complete projects in record time. During this period, Ginger worked on getting more contracts, recruiting subcontractors, and did the books for ATO. The success of the contracts resulted in money rolling in.

Freddie came up with a product idea. ATO completed all its contracts and did not take any renewals. This meant Freddie could work full-time for ATO. Freddie and Ginger decided they needed a team to work on the product. Freddie hired co-op students from Northeastern University in Boston. ATO signed up for a summer session of full-time work for two students. ATO employed the students full time for six months.

The company has two products for sale. Product one helped people using the DevOps method. The second product focused on the SecOps method, and it is now outselling the first product.

Ginger earned an accounting degree and worked for a couple of companies before founding All Things Operations (ATO) with Freddie. Freddie has an electrical engineering degree and a systems engineering master’s degree, and he had dozens of jobs before he and Ginger created ATO.

Ginger and Freddie are quiet, unpretentious people. They own the condo they live in and have paid off the mortgage. They love to take cruises, and clean up well for black tie events. You don’t know how casual they are when they dress well.

The couple also owns Ash, their miniature schnauzer. He was born on New Year’s Day and is four months old as we start the story. Freddie has always loved miniature schnauzers because they are so smart.

Did I tell you Ash graduated?

Graduated?

From puppy 101 school. The instructor said most dogs need five to six months before moving to puppy 102 school. Ash is going there in his fourth month. The instructor said he is one of the smartest dogs he has trained.

Outstanding! That means we can teach him more commands.

Freddie grew up in a Catholic family, attended Catholic school through high school, and did his undergraduate degree at Notre Dame. Ginger did not grow up in a religious house.

Can someone tell us if your idea can change the educational world?

Don’t worry about it this weekend.

Monday, April 11

Frank didn’t expect to see so many tables occupied.

Good evening, Your Excellency. Thank you for meeting me at short notice. I know you are busy.

You’re welcome, Frank. Please call me Ed. No need to use my formal title when I am sharing a meal with a friend.

Bishop Acosta has been the bishop for nine years. He wants to put the Catholic schools on top of the other schools. He wants a win before he retires. This is the motivation for having invited Frank to his favorite seafood restaurant. He wants to hear Frank’s idea.

OK, Ed. Where should I start?

Tell me about your idea starting at 10,000 feet.

Frank Spencer is the superintendent of schools for the Catholic Church in New Hampshire. He got his law degree from Boston College where he also played college football. In his early 40s, he was the superintendent of schools for five years. Popular in the Catholic community, he is expected to run for the governor’s office at some point.

What if we could hire someone who could bring in knowledge about DevOps, SecOps, and DevSecOps?

The bishop appeared to be retrieving information as Frank spoke. I still have the cheat sheet you gave me for all those acronyms. This would give us a second technology area to teach the students?

Yes. All those acronyms fall under operations. Companies that hire software engineers have an operations team that controls the servers, network equipment, and the CI/CD pipelines. These days, operations teams write as much code as the software teams. Everything these days is based on software.

Who are you talking about?

Freddie Lima. I sent you videos last week about his university talks.

A server brings food to the table, prompting a pause in the conversation.

The seafood restaurant the bishop suggested for their meeting is very popular in this area of New Hampshire. New England is full of seafood restaurants, but this one stands out for its showing of the history of fishing in New England and its fabulous menu. The bishop likes to bring co-workers, friends, and family here as often as he can, because he loves the food. The restaurant has about 75 tables and three rooms for big parties.

Yes, I remember those videos. I couldn’t believe it when he talked about teaching operations to school children.

Frank’s face lit up. Same for me. It was like a dream come true. We have talked about adding another area of technology to our schools. This might be it. Also, this yellowfin tuna melts in my mouth. It works well with garlic butter too.

I told you; this restaurant is the best. Have you talked to him yet?

No, sir. I wanted to get approval from you before I reach out to him.

Is he a technology guy or a teacher?

Technology guy. I plan to take it slow with him. My understanding is his company keeps him busy seven days per week. I don’t want to scare him off by moving too fast.

Take it slow with him. We don’t want to turn him off by being too aggressive. You can meet with him whenever you please. I’ll stay out of it for now.

Thank you, Ed. Also, thanks for introducing me to this place—it’s great. I will keep you posted on how we are doing with him.

Tuesday, April 12

Hi Jack. It’s been a while, my friend. Your invitation surprised me, Mike said.

Mike is Freddie’s younger brother. He is also a lawyer, and he graduated from Yale Law School a year behind Jack Whitaker. He has a wife, Julie, and a daughter, Michelle, who is finishing up fourth grade. Mike practices law as a mergers and acquisitions attorney.

I thought it was time that the Yale Law School friends got together again, Jack said.

Those were the days, weren’t they?

They sure were. I also wanted to talk about your brother.

Jack Whitaker was an Oklahoma football player as an undergrad. People find him to be loud, and he often acts like a bully. He continued to be a bully at Yale Law School, and it did not earn him any fans among the professors. Somehow, he still graduated first in his class there. Jack is divorced, and has no children. People that know him well can’t believe he’s the leader of Carran public schools.

What do you want to know?

Doesn’t he have his own company now?

Yes, his company is called All Things Operations (ATO). He develops software with ATO that makes it easier for operators. Also, he consults with Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs). He amazes me, because ATO combines all three phases of his career.

Remind me again, did your family emigrate from Costa Rica?

No, our parents brought us over here from Cuba when we were kids.

Is Freddie married?

Yes, his wife’s name is Ginger.

Your brother has been making a lot of noise. Should I be worried about him?

What kind of noise?

I heard he gave talks at Boston University and Northeastern University, where he talked about adding operations classes to school systems.

I knew he was giving talks, but I don’t know much about them. He often comes up with ideas people like. Sounds like you don’t like that idea.

I feel like we have too much technology in my schools already. We took a poll this year, and 67% of the students voted for having computer science classes. There are companies we can hire to produce the class material, and they make it easy for teachers to pick up the material. I have asked around, and none of those companies teach operations.

The server brought their food to the table. Jack had a salad and Mike had a Reuben sandwich.

Mike took a bite of his sandwich and said, The sauerkraut is so crisp. Knowing my brother, he wants to design his own classes.

There is also the money involved in hiring more teachers to teach operations. From what I heard about his talks, he must think money grows on trees.

If ATO designed the courses and made them easy for teachers to learn the material, could you use the computer science teachers? Mike said.

I can ask, but I suspect the teacher’s union will jump in and stop it. They always want to add new jobs when the curriculum changes.

Should I ask Freddie about this?

You can tell him I was asking about him.

I’ll have to tell him, because he doesn’t know who you are. He has been in the corporate world his whole career.

Try to find out if he wants to pursue his ideas. The school committee loves the idea of more technology in schools. If they hear about him, I will get pushed back on my anti-technology stance.

Are you the superintendent of all schools in Carran or just the public ones?

Just the public ones. The Catholic Church runs a K–8 school and a high school here.

Do you have any more questions about Freddie?

Not now. You should tell me about the seriousness of his ideas.

Maybe we can meet for lunch soon.

Call me when you know more.

2

Wednesday, April 13

Freddie was playing fetch in his office with Ash.

The office door opened. Ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling, ting-a-ling.

Ash, no! Stay, Ash, Freddie said.

Ash laid down. Freddie has been teaching Ash since the day he first came home.

Hi Mike, my favorite brother. Sorry about the commotion.

Hi Freddie, I am your only brother. This must be Ash. He is only a puppy, and you already have him trained. How old is he?

Four months old, and he only knows a few commands at this point. Ginger has been bringing him to a puppy 101 class. What brings you here today?

Mike walked around the office to check it out. Wow. Your office looks nice. The office window overlooks the street. I wondered what a storefront office would look like.

If ATO hires interns for the summer, it is going to get crowded. We need to add three desks for the internships.

You are always doing something interesting with ATO.

OK brother, I know you are here for something more than telling me how nice my office is.

I had lunch with Jack Whitaker yesterday.

Freddie’s nose crinkled, which was a sign he was doing some hard thinking. He tried to search his mind for Jack Whitaker, but he could not find him in any of his memories.

Who is Jack Whitaker?

He is the superintendent of the Carran public schools. He was asking a lot of questions about you.

Why was he asking about me?

He heard about your talks at Boston University and Northeastern, and he seemed concerned that you talked about getting operations training into school systems.

Why would that concern him? I said it. I never mentioned Carran. Can you tell me more about Jack? What is your connection to him?

Jack was a year ahead of me in Yale Law School. He graduated first in his class. During law school, I thought he was a cocky SOB and wanted nothing to do with him.

You must have patched up your relationship?

He helped me get my first job out of law school. We became friends that year. Each of us had our daughters the same year. Raising kids tempered our friendship.

Is his daughter in the same class as Michelle?

No, he sent his daughter to Exeter Academy, a private school.

The superintendent of Carran public schools sends his daughter to a private school? Shouldn’t that make parents of public school students worry about the education they are getting?

He has improved the public schools quite a lot since he took over. He always says his daughter has been in a private school since kindergarten and he does not want to move her. By the way, I forgot to mention that Jack was the Oklahoma quarterback during his undergrad years. That is another reason for his cockiness.

Freddie needed a drink, and he figured Mike did too. Freddie handed a water bottle to Mike. Jack is a former football player, lawyer, and superintendent of schools, and he is worried about me?

Jack is adamant that he doesn’t want more technology in his schools. He is also concerned that the companies they have contracts with for computer science classes know nothing about operations. He mentioned that the teacher unions will want more jobs.

So, I gave those talks at the college level. If colleges add operations classes and degrees, that will spur additional classes at the high school level. Once it is at the high school level, it might make it down to the K–8 schools.

Did you mention teaching operations at the elementary school level in your talks?

Yes, I wondered if it would be possible to teach it at that level and reverse the process: go from elementary school to high school to college.

That made him so nervous. He thinks you want to integrate this in his elementary schools.

Tell him I am not an educator. I don’t know which level it should start at. It is possible for operations to be taught with computer science. I don’t think people understand how much code DevOps teams write. Sometimes there is more code in the CI/CD pipelines than in the application.

Is it possible to design classes for teachers to get them up to speed on operations?

Yes. That would be easy for me. Remember, ATO stands for All Things Operations. I think they should teach it because I know a lot about it. There are universities now that teach information security. Software engineering and security are two of my career phases. Operations is the third, and I plan to champion the idea of teaching it at some level of schooling.

I guess I can tell Jack that you are passionate about this?

Yes. If I can make this happen, I will champion it.

Would you be interested in lunch with Jack if I can make that happen?

Sure, I would like to meet the guy who wants to squash my idea.

Thursday, April 14

Hi Julie, this is an unexpected meeting. Mike stopped by the office yesterday and we had a talk about Jack Whitaker.

Hi Freddie. I am here on behalf of Frank Spencer.

They entered the coffee shop wearing raincoats. Thunder boomed from nearby.

Freddie’s nose crinkled again. He searched his memory, but found nothing. Another person I don’t know about. That thunder is loud.

Julie is Freddie’s sister-in-law and Mike’s wife. Mike always says their daughter Michelle is so smart because she got it from her mother. Mike forgets he made it through Yale Law School, so he is smart, too.

The lightning seems to be everywhere. Frank is superintendent of the Catholic schools in New Hampshire. The Catholic Church has fewer schools than the public schools, so Frank is a regional superintendent, where Jack is the Carran superintendent.

You said you are here on behalf of Frank. What does Frank want with me?

Just like Jack, he heard about your university talks. Frank liked what he heard, while Jack didn’t. Frank wants to know how serious you are about getting operations teaching into a school system.

I told Mike yesterday that I am dead serious about this, but I am not pushing the idea at any grade level. I don’t know if this should start at the college level, high school level, or elementary school level.

Frank is thinking about starting at the elementary level. His first question is how serious you are.

Can you tell me more about Frank?

He is in his early forties and, at six foot two, he is an imposing figure. He was a lawyer before he took over the New Hampshire schools.

I am surrounded by lawyers. Jack, Mike, and now Frank too? What is your connection to Frank?

You know I graduated from the Catholic high school in Carran? I’ve become friends with Frank over the years and I’m still involved with the Church. He knows you are my brother-in-law, so he sought me out last night to ask about you.

How many schools does the Catholic Church have in New Hampshire?

They have four K–8 schools and two high schools. Compare that to Jack, who has four elementary schools, three middle schools and two high schools. Carran hosts one Catholic K–8 and one Catholic high school.

One of Jack’s worries is the cost of adding new technology to his schools. Can the Catholic schools do this?

Yes. If you compare school level by school level, the Church has less money per school, but it also has a war chest.

Does Frank view this as a war?

He knows he is competing with the Carran public schools.

The Carran public schools are against my idea.

The superintendent is against your idea. I am told the school committee wants to overrule him and you might hear from them soon. That is why Frank wants to know your level of seriousness. He knows Jack will be after him if he hears Frank is pursuing you.

Do the Catholic schools have technology classes?

They have a computer science teacher at each school. They run their own program vs the Carran public schools, which offer no technology classes.

Do the Catholic school computer science teachers have experience as software engineers?

Yes. They plucked each one from technology companies in New England.

Do they know anything about operations?

Frank has asked them to read up on DevOps, SecOps, and DevSecOps. He has also asked them to think about teaching an extra class if the Catholic schools start an operations program. The results should come next week.

It sounds like Frank wants to be in the high schools.

I think you will like Frank when you meet him. He is interested in technology and thinks it is a necessary thing to teach students these days. He also believes the Catholic schools can compete with the public schools on technology. It was his idea to use real computer scientists even though they cost more than regular teachers.

Are the Catholic school teachers unionized?

Yes. The Catholic schools are private schools that provide a family-like atmosphere. Their union is small. They don’t want the national teachers’ unions in their schools.

Thanks, Julie. Please tell Michelle I have an idea for her this summer. I am sure the families will get together sometime soon.

Will do. Michelle has been asking about getting together with her aunt and uncle. I think she has an idea for you, too.

Thursday, April 14

Hi Jack. What is so urgent? Frank said.

I heard a rumor that the Catholic Church is pursuing Freddie Lima. Is that true? Jack asked.

They have given me permission to approach Freddie, just to see if he is interested in bringing his program idea to our schools.

You know I am dead set against more technology in schools.

Recruiting Freddie would be a coup for us. It would differentiate us from the public schools.

The two men sat in silence for a few moments, sipping their iced coffees.

The fresh donuts’ smell is killing me. Please don’t do this.

You have a thousand more students in the public-school system than we have in the Catholic school system. We need something to stand out.

We compete for students. I don’t have to do anything to support your overreach to Freddie. As a smaller school system, I think you people are deluding yourselves into something you can’t afford to do.

Jack, why are you so negative about technology? Yes, we are smaller. Yes, this may be an expensive solution for us. What if it makes our schools more attractive to 10–100 students that we wouldn’t get before this? Shouldn’t we offer them an alternative to computer science?

My understanding is that Freddie started out with computer science and moved over to operations later in his career. Couldn’t our students do the same?

Freddie has had an exceptional career with his three phases. Most students don’t have that drive. For many students, most of their learning comes from school and once they find a career, they stay with it. If we have students that know they don’t want to be software engineers, we can offer them a technical alternative. Based on our research, operators in modern companies make about the same money as software engineers. DevOps is sexy for today’s students.

"Would you advocate for operations students that they don’t