Dr Vanesa Tennant – Information systems change agent

PEOPLE perceive her to be quiet, shy and humble, but in reality she possesses a spirit of resilience like no other. Dr Vanesa Tennant, 32, who was raised in the East Kingston community of Doncaster, said while she didn’t experience what it was like to be dirt poor, she understood the relevance of having determination and persistence to make it through life — her first example being her mother, whom she watched go after her dream of being an accountant.

“My mother is from Clarendon and she told us what she went through growing up in rural Jamaica. She had to borrow her mother’s shoes to go to school and when they started falling apart, she had to put cardboard in the bottom and go. When she came to Kingston she chose to pursue her education and did what she had to do. She would carry me to work and put me in a corner to do my work and she’d do hers. I would see her going to school in the evenings and on weekends,” Dr Tennant said.

“I was also in an environment where seeing people wasting time was the norm, and most of your role models were your family members. Part of me excelling is trying to be a change agent through my actions and be a role model where I can help people,” she said.

And so, Dr Tennant said from early in life she realised education was the vehicle that would transform lives and lead to upward social mobility. As a result, after leaving the Convent of Mercy (Alpha) Academy to pursue her bachelor of science degree in computing and information technology at the University of Technology (UTech), she resolved that after completing one area of study she would see if there was room for growth and go after the next level.

“I remember when I finished my undergraduate degree I was unable to get a job. I sent out a lot of résumés and didn’t get anything. I started being a lab technician at UTech and that’s when I was introduced to the master of philosophy in information systems,” she said.

Determined to do well, Dr Tennant developed a love for research as the master’s was research- oriented, and rekindled her love for teaching, which she said was developed as a child when she would teach her chairs at home, using her mother’s balance sheets as the chalkboard. With both loves combined, she continued making her mark by teaching at the university while pursuing her master’s research in radio frequency identification.

Dr Tennant said her next test of resilience came when she decided to study in New Zealand and pursue her doctor of philosophy in accounting and information systems at the University of Canterbury.

“That was the most interesting part of my life and my test of faith. I decided that I wanted a scholarship for my PhD and I started looking at countries and someone told me about a scholarship in New Zealand. I applied to the university and got through,” she said.

“I left Jamaica on August 25, 2010 and arrived in New Zealand on August 28, 2010. On September 4, 2010, Christ Church was struck by a 7.1 magnitude earthquake and on February 22, 2011 they had 6.3 magnitude earthquake and 185 people died. I went to do a PhD thinking that was the only thing I had to think about apart from being away from home, but I was somewhere where the norm was that the ground shook. I worried a lot and I preferred when the ground was shaking because when it didn’t, I wondered if a big one was coming,” she said.

Despite those challenges, Dr Tennant managed to complete her doctoral studies in three and a half years and also earned the award for the most outstanding dissertation in New Zealand in the area of information systems.

Dr Tennant said the dissertation titled Understanding changes in post- adoption use of information systems: A generalised Darwinism perspective, was aimed at getting individuals to change the ways they use systems to get value from it.

“I looked to biology — the evolution theory — and proposed how the evolution theory in biology can get an individual to change the way they look at systems,” she said. “I was really surprised when they e-mailed me that I got the most outstanding PhD in information systems in New Zealand. The award is good, but knowing what I went through and that I applied myself, means I must have done well.”

Currently a lecturer at UTech, Dr Tennant has over 25 conference papers and published journal articles. Apart from her accomplishments, she also serves as a mentor for young people and has a special drive for encouraging women to not only believe that education is important, but to persevere, be resilient and determined to go after their goals despite what life throws at them.

Also a Kiwanian, Dr Tennant believes in equality and said she enjoys learning from other women in the group and doing volunteerism at the community level, especially with young people.

Now a doctor of philosophy, her goal is to become a professor, but as she continues her work and research in information systems, she intends to continue carrying herself and Jamaica as a brand while establishing herself in academia.