Daniel Taipala

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DanielJ. Taipala

Daniel J. Taipala

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Biography

University of the People - Computer Science

Enterprise Strategist at Hewlett Packard
Information Technology & Services
Dan
Taipala
Greater Detroit Area
IT Professional, Educator, and Scholar Interested in both practical and academic aspects of the IT industry

HP Expert One MASE (Master Accredited Solutions Expert) Certified

Specialties:
Research and Education
information technology management
Enterprise Architecture
IT outsourcing
Cloud computing
Big Data, Data Analytics, Machine Learning/Data Mining

Experience

  • Davenport University - Donald W. Maine School of Business and Technology

    Adjunct Professor

    Daniel worked at Davenport University - Donald W. Maine School of Business and Technology as a Adjunct Professor

  • Hewlett-Packard

    Distinguished Technologist

    Daniel worked at Hewlett-Packard as a Distinguished Technologist

  • Kmart

    Business Analyst

    I was part of the international Kmart organization where I helped to launch Kmart stores in Mexico, Canada, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Singapore, and Australia.

    As part of this assignment I spent over a year in the Czech Republic and about 6 months in Mexico

  • University of the People

    Associate Dean of Computer Science Department

    Developing the University of the People's computer science curriculum, develop course and course content, facilitate and refine courses, and evolve the instructional pedagogy of the department.

  • University of Phoenix

    Professor for the School of Advanced Studies

    Facilitate online courses that are part of the Doctor of Management in Information Technology program offered by the School of Advanced Studies of the University of Phoenix. In this role I develop and facilitate courses, and mentor doctoral candidates.

Education

  • Central Michigan University

    MSA

    Information Technology Management, Software Engineering

  • Davenport University

    BBA

    Computer Information Systems

  • Capella University

    Ph.D.

    Information Technology
    Dissertation research titled "Information Technology Outsourcing: A Study of Its Role in Strategic Alignment and the Mitigating Role of Virtual Organization" explored the relationship between the extent of IT outsourcing within an organization and the organization's ability to maintain strategic alignment between business and IT. The study found that there is a relationship between the outsourcing of 'strategic' IT capabilities and alignment. Companies that extensively outsource strategic IT capabilities tend to experience reduced alignment suggesting that they will be less effective at leveraging their technology investments for competitive advantage.

Publications

  • Computer Systems Course Companion

    University of the People

    I was surprised as the sales rank on Amazon for this book reached 42,000! I am actually thinking about turning the course notes for the remainder of the 13 courses that I have developed for the University of the People into similar books. Perhaps I can get started as soon as I finish the book that I am working on that is a broad introduction to Data Analytics and Big Data. I am always looking for reviewers so if anyone would like to review chapters (or the entire book when completed in the spring) please let me know. Following this I will work on course books including Database Systems, Java Programming, Data Structures, Analysis of Algorithms, Introduction to Information Retrieval, Computer Programming Language Design, and perhaps Data Mining and Machine Learning which is a course that I am just completing.

  • Computer Systems Course Companion

    University of the People

    I was surprised as the sales rank on Amazon for this book reached 42,000! I am actually thinking about turning the course notes for the remainder of the 13 courses that I have developed for the University of the People into similar books. Perhaps I can get started as soon as I finish the book that I am working on that is a broad introduction to Data Analytics and Big Data. I am always looking for reviewers so if anyone would like to review chapters (or the entire book when completed in the spring) please let me know. Following this I will work on course books including Database Systems, Java Programming, Data Structures, Analysis of Algorithms, Introduction to Information Retrieval, Computer Programming Language Design, and perhaps Data Mining and Machine Learning which is a course that I am just completing.

  • Computer Systems Course Companion

    University of the People

    I was surprised as the sales rank on Amazon for this book reached 42,000! I am actually thinking about turning the course notes for the remainder of the 13 courses that I have developed for the University of the People into similar books. Perhaps I can get started as soon as I finish the book that I am working on that is a broad introduction to Data Analytics and Big Data. I am always looking for reviewers so if anyone would like to review chapters (or the entire book when completed in the spring) please let me know. Following this I will work on course books including Database Systems, Java Programming, Data Structures, Analysis of Algorithms, Introduction to Information Retrieval, Computer Programming Language Design, and perhaps Data Mining and Machine Learning which is a course that I am just completing.

  • An introduction to information retrieval and the use of map-reduce for text processing.

    Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges

    According to projections by the IDC (International Data Corporation), in their Digital Universe study released in 2012, the amount of data on the planet that is stored and accessible in some fashion will grow to exceed 44 zettabytes by the year 2020 [1]. To give some sense of the scale of a zettabyte, it is one billion terabytes. Most of this data is unstructured meaning that it is not stored or managed in traditional data management or database solutions. Much of this unstructured data is textual or is described with textual meta data meaning that the need for technologies that are able to search for and find useful and meaningful data within this massive universe of data is increasingly important and the demand for IT professionals who understand and can develop solutions capable of searching and analyzing such data is high. This tutorial will introduce basic concepts of text search and analytics. Participants will use map-reduce processes to develop text search and analytics solutions. Applications for search and other text analytics will also be discussed.

  • Computer Systems Course Companion

    University of the People

    I was surprised as the sales rank on Amazon for this book reached 42,000! I am actually thinking about turning the course notes for the remainder of the 13 courses that I have developed for the University of the People into similar books. Perhaps I can get started as soon as I finish the book that I am working on that is a broad introduction to Data Analytics and Big Data. I am always looking for reviewers so if anyone would like to review chapters (or the entire book when completed in the spring) please let me know. Following this I will work on course books including Database Systems, Java Programming, Data Structures, Analysis of Algorithms, Introduction to Information Retrieval, Computer Programming Language Design, and perhaps Data Mining and Machine Learning which is a course that I am just completing.

  • An introduction to information retrieval and the use of map-reduce for text processing.

    Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges

    According to projections by the IDC (International Data Corporation), in their Digital Universe study released in 2012, the amount of data on the planet that is stored and accessible in some fashion will grow to exceed 44 zettabytes by the year 2020 [1]. To give some sense of the scale of a zettabyte, it is one billion terabytes. Most of this data is unstructured meaning that it is not stored or managed in traditional data management or database solutions. Much of this unstructured data is textual or is described with textual meta data meaning that the need for technologies that are able to search for and find useful and meaningful data within this massive universe of data is increasingly important and the demand for IT professionals who understand and can develop solutions capable of searching and analyzing such data is high. This tutorial will introduce basic concepts of text search and analytics. Participants will use map-reduce processes to develop text search and analytics solutions. Applications for search and other text analytics will also be discussed.

  • Information Technology outsourcing: A study of its role in strategic alignment and the mitigating effect of virtual organization

    UMI ProQuest Dissertations & Theses

    The lure of cost savings is a strong incentive leading many organizations to seek Information Technology (IT) outsourcing. Such a move is expected to result in cost advantages that can be realized in a relatively short period for the outsourcing organization. However, it is prudent to pause and consider the longer-term effect that IT outsourcing has on the organization. This study begins to fill the gap in the literature by examining the relationship between IT outsourcing and strategic alignment. In particular this study examines the impact IT outsourcing has on an organizations ability to maintain alignment between IT and business strategy. Given the fact that alignment between IT capabilities and organizational strategy is essential to creating or maintaining competitive advantage from IT investments, an erosion of alignment will result in a loss of competitive capability. This research also explores factors such as the degree of virtual organization, industry segment, or organization size and the impact they have on the relationship. The research was conducted by administering a survey to 910 IT executives from medium to large organizations. The findings indicate a relationship between the level of strategic alignment and the competitive contribution of outsourced IT capabilities. The research further finds that effective virtual organization tended to mitigate this relationship.

  • Computer Systems Course Companion

    University of the People

    I was surprised as the sales rank on Amazon for this book reached 42,000! I am actually thinking about turning the course notes for the remainder of the 13 courses that I have developed for the University of the People into similar books. Perhaps I can get started as soon as I finish the book that I am working on that is a broad introduction to Data Analytics and Big Data. I am always looking for reviewers so if anyone would like to review chapters (or the entire book when completed in the spring) please let me know. Following this I will work on course books including Database Systems, Java Programming, Data Structures, Analysis of Algorithms, Introduction to Information Retrieval, Computer Programming Language Design, and perhaps Data Mining and Machine Learning which is a course that I am just completing.

  • An introduction to information retrieval and the use of map-reduce for text processing.

    Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges

    According to projections by the IDC (International Data Corporation), in their Digital Universe study released in 2012, the amount of data on the planet that is stored and accessible in some fashion will grow to exceed 44 zettabytes by the year 2020 [1]. To give some sense of the scale of a zettabyte, it is one billion terabytes. Most of this data is unstructured meaning that it is not stored or managed in traditional data management or database solutions. Much of this unstructured data is textual or is described with textual meta data meaning that the need for technologies that are able to search for and find useful and meaningful data within this massive universe of data is increasingly important and the demand for IT professionals who understand and can develop solutions capable of searching and analyzing such data is high. This tutorial will introduce basic concepts of text search and analytics. Participants will use map-reduce processes to develop text search and analytics solutions. Applications for search and other text analytics will also be discussed.

  • Information Technology outsourcing: A study of its role in strategic alignment and the mitigating effect of virtual organization

    UMI ProQuest Dissertations & Theses

    The lure of cost savings is a strong incentive leading many organizations to seek Information Technology (IT) outsourcing. Such a move is expected to result in cost advantages that can be realized in a relatively short period for the outsourcing organization. However, it is prudent to pause and consider the longer-term effect that IT outsourcing has on the organization. This study begins to fill the gap in the literature by examining the relationship between IT outsourcing and strategic alignment. In particular this study examines the impact IT outsourcing has on an organizations ability to maintain alignment between IT and business strategy. Given the fact that alignment between IT capabilities and organizational strategy is essential to creating or maintaining competitive advantage from IT investments, an erosion of alignment will result in a loss of competitive capability. This research also explores factors such as the degree of virtual organization, industry segment, or organization size and the impact they have on the relationship. The research was conducted by administering a survey to 910 IT executives from medium to large organizations. The findings indicate a relationship between the level of strategic alignment and the competitive contribution of outsourced IT capabilities. The research further finds that effective virtual organization tended to mitigate this relationship.

  • Teaching computer architecture in an online learning environment using simulation and peer instruction.

    The Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges

    First peer reviewed article published with the University of the People attribution. I expect this is just the first of many and that the University of the People will make great contributions in both education and the technology industry through both innovation and research. APA Citation Taipala, D. (2014). Teaching computer architecture in an online learning environment using simulation and peer instruction. Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges, 30(1), 87-98.

  • Computer Systems Course Companion

    University of the People

    I was surprised as the sales rank on Amazon for this book reached 42,000! I am actually thinking about turning the course notes for the remainder of the 13 courses that I have developed for the University of the People into similar books. Perhaps I can get started as soon as I finish the book that I am working on that is a broad introduction to Data Analytics and Big Data. I am always looking for reviewers so if anyone would like to review chapters (or the entire book when completed in the spring) please let me know. Following this I will work on course books including Database Systems, Java Programming, Data Structures, Analysis of Algorithms, Introduction to Information Retrieval, Computer Programming Language Design, and perhaps Data Mining and Machine Learning which is a course that I am just completing.

  • An introduction to information retrieval and the use of map-reduce for text processing.

    Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges

    According to projections by the IDC (International Data Corporation), in their Digital Universe study released in 2012, the amount of data on the planet that is stored and accessible in some fashion will grow to exceed 44 zettabytes by the year 2020 [1]. To give some sense of the scale of a zettabyte, it is one billion terabytes. Most of this data is unstructured meaning that it is not stored or managed in traditional data management or database solutions. Much of this unstructured data is textual or is described with textual meta data meaning that the need for technologies that are able to search for and find useful and meaningful data within this massive universe of data is increasingly important and the demand for IT professionals who understand and can develop solutions capable of searching and analyzing such data is high. This tutorial will introduce basic concepts of text search and analytics. Participants will use map-reduce processes to develop text search and analytics solutions. Applications for search and other text analytics will also be discussed.

  • Information Technology outsourcing: A study of its role in strategic alignment and the mitigating effect of virtual organization

    UMI ProQuest Dissertations & Theses

    The lure of cost savings is a strong incentive leading many organizations to seek Information Technology (IT) outsourcing. Such a move is expected to result in cost advantages that can be realized in a relatively short period for the outsourcing organization. However, it is prudent to pause and consider the longer-term effect that IT outsourcing has on the organization. This study begins to fill the gap in the literature by examining the relationship between IT outsourcing and strategic alignment. In particular this study examines the impact IT outsourcing has on an organizations ability to maintain alignment between IT and business strategy. Given the fact that alignment between IT capabilities and organizational strategy is essential to creating or maintaining competitive advantage from IT investments, an erosion of alignment will result in a loss of competitive capability. This research also explores factors such as the degree of virtual organization, industry segment, or organization size and the impact they have on the relationship. The research was conducted by administering a survey to 910 IT executives from medium to large organizations. The findings indicate a relationship between the level of strategic alignment and the competitive contribution of outsourced IT capabilities. The research further finds that effective virtual organization tended to mitigate this relationship.

  • Teaching computer architecture in an online learning environment using simulation and peer instruction.

    The Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges

    First peer reviewed article published with the University of the People attribution. I expect this is just the first of many and that the University of the People will make great contributions in both education and the technology industry through both innovation and research. APA Citation Taipala, D. (2014). Teaching computer architecture in an online learning environment using simulation and peer instruction. Journal of Computing Sciences in Colleges, 30(1), 87-98.

  • Introduction to Information Retrieval and Text Analytics

    Blurb.com

    This book introduces some of the key concepts in both information retrieval (the ability to search for textual information) and text analytics (the ability to apply statistical procedures to gain insight into large data sets). These topics are increasingly important given the exponential increases in data collection from internet connected devices. Learning the concepts of information retrieval, machine learning, Big Data, and analytics include both theory and implementation elements. It is not enough to study the theory behind the statistical methods employed, or to look at the attributes of infrastructure solutions such as Hadoop. These elements, and more, are essential to learning the subject, but one must go further and study the implementation of information retrieval and analytics solutions. To address the need for both theory and application, this book takes a slightly different approach as it takes reader on a fascinating journey that begins by learning basic principles of information retrieval and analytics. We then continue by exploring Hadoop, examining fundamental map-reduce algorithms implemented in python, and finally demonstrating how these concepts are applied with common use cases. Author website