Ford Motor Company
Director, Connected Vehicle Cloud
What is your fondest memory of your time in the CS department?
My fondest memories in the CS department are actually the LATE nights in the CS Labs heads down working on programs and different ways to optimize my programs… fueled by lots of caffeine. In particular the systems programming course where we had to re-write a lot of the basic UNIX services like CRON from the ground up, I found to be the most beneficial assignments and I still appreciate that work to this today. I built a lot of amazing friendships with other CS students and professors alike spending countless hours in the labs.
How has your education impacted your career?
Computer Science (and related) is such a foundational and truly timeless degree. It’s served as the framework for understanding every technical position I’ve held in my career. It’s not just about ‘writing code,’ but understanding the principles, concepts and logic that enable efficiency. Throughout my career, some of the best engineers I’ve worked with are from .Michigan Tech. They are autonomous in their roles straight out of school to a degree I haven’t seen matched by any other program.
William Frantz serves on the Department of Computer Science Advisory Board and actively supports recruiting for all of the College of Computing departments.
"Michigan Tech as a university is so much more than a degree. The friendships formed and maintained while attending have persisted for over a decade – not just with fellow students but faculty, as well. There is something ‘extra’ about Michigan Tech that just cannot be matched! "