Smith College. IT Strategic Plan May Goldstein & Associates

Transcription

1 Smith College IT Strategic Plan May 2011 Goldstein & Associates

2 2 Table of Contents Context Vision and Principles Strategic Opportunities IT Governance Organizational Implications Financial Implications Critical Success Factors

3 Context 3

4 4 Introduction Smith College recognizes that technology has become an essential enabler of its institutional goals and strategies. Faculty, students and staff depend on technology to facilitate communications and collaborations, organize and distribute information and support the basic services of the institution. The college anticipates the importance of technology will continue to grow. After a period of constraint, Smith is moving from a strategy of maintaining the technology it has to one that more aggressively expands its capabilities and extends its use. While the college s educational technology has kept pace with that of other institutions, in other areas there is growing unmet need. Aspects of the wired network must be upgraded, the data center is nearing its capacity and the wireless network has only recently been expanded to cover the majority of campus. Significant unmet needs exist in administrative computing and the college lacks an organizational and technological infrastructure to support management reporting and analytical decision-making. Technological change is presenting new opportunities to engage critical constituents including alumnae and prospective students. All of these needs exist within a context of rapid technological change that is altering how organizations deploy and manage technology.

5 5 Project Goals and Methodology To help develop its information technology strategy, Smith retained higher education consultants Phil Goldstein, Mary Beth Baker and Harvey Blustain. The consultants charge was to Help develop a vision for the future of Smith technology; Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of current technology; Understand Smith s existing and emerging technology needs in the context of its institutional plan (Design for Learning); Analyze opportunities to extend IT collaborations within the Five Colleges; and Recommend strategies and initiatives to help Smith achieve its long-term technology goals.

6 6 Project Goals and Methodology Smith established a strong foundation for its IT plan through a series of internal and external assessments and the engagement of a working group of Trustees. The consultancy built on this work with the following additional activities: Extensive interviews with academic and administrative leaders; Meetings with ITS leaders; Focus groups with faculty and students; Interviews with Five College IT directors and the leadership of Five Colleges, Inc; Meeting with the Trustee Working Group; and Day-long planning retreat with members of the Senior Administrators, faculty and other administrative leaders.

7 7 Organization of the Document This document recommends a set of IT strategies and initiatives for Smith s consideration. It begins with a summary vision and set of guiding principles for technology. The next section outlines ten strategic opportunities. It includes a set of initiatives that Smith needs to undertake to achieve the goals and benefits associated with each strategic opportunity. A timeline for phasing the implementation of initiatives is also included. The following section recommends an IT governance structure to oversee the implementation of the strategic plan and improve annual priority setting for technology. The document also summarizes the organizational implications of the IT strategy and presents a framework for dividing departmental and central responsibility for technology management. The final section summarizes the resources required to implement the plan.

8 Vision and Principles 8

9 9 Vision The effective use of technology and information is vital to Smith s strategic directions and institutional goals. Technology will continue to enrich Smith s educational offerings, provide students and faculty access to a global network of collaborators and augment place-based learning. It will provide new avenues for engaging diverse stakeholders including prospective students, alumnae, and the community at large. Technology at Smith will embrace best practices and never lag in the ability to meet reasonable expectations for technology. In most areas, it will stay near the leading edge* of technology adoption. Smith will be among the early majority of adopters of proven technology. The college will seek to be innovative in areas that support effective pedagogy and scholarship. It will sustain a technology infrastructure that is secure, reliable, and sufficiently robust. *Organizations at or near the leading edge of technology adoption are those that seek to be among the early majority of adopters of technology. They tend to follow behind the innovators and early adopters of a technology. Being near the leading edge suggests that Smith will adopt technology that is proven but not necessarily broadly used within its peer group.

10 Guiding Principles 10 Foster innovation and take risks in the application of technology in faculty research and effective pedagogy. In all other areas, be a close follower in technology adoption. Use technology to enhance place- based education and ensure that place does not become a competitive disadvantage. Create opportunities for students to develop a technology fluency and aptitude that will serve them throughout their lives. Invest in technology that facilitates individual and institutional collaborations both within the Five Colleges and beyond. Use technology to enable faculty, students and staff to work effectively anytime, from any place and with any device. Apply proven technologies in innovative ways to improve and sustain constituent engagement and effective administrative services and campus operations. Use technology to support efficient and effective administrative services and data driven decision-making.

11 Strategic Opportunities 11

12 12 Overview Smith s IT plan includes ten strategic opportunities that contribute to one or more aspects of Smith s vision. The strategic opportunities are interrelated and include actions that support multiple outcomes. For example, adoption of cloud computing solutions is called out as its own strategic opportunity. It is also a tactic that ultimately will enable the realization of other strategies including enhanced mobility, improved disaster recovery and potentially others. Likewise, Five College collaboration is both a strategic opportunity and an enabling tactic of multiple goals. The diagram on following page illustrates the interrelatedness of the strategic opportunities and their support to the vision. Each opportunity requires the implementation of multiple initiatives over a three to five year time horizon. Many of the initiatives listed within a given strategy are actually supportive of multiple goals. While cloud computing and five college collaboration are identified as strategic opportunities, they are also tactics that will enable multiple strategies. The detailed plan provides a complete description of each opportunity, its supporting initiatives, projected timeline and expected outcomes.

13 Linking Vision and Strategic Opportunities Instructional Technologies Digital Asset Management Teaching and Research Excellence Smith without Boundaries Constituent Engagement 5 College Collaborations Enhance faculty, student and staff mobility Cloud Collaboration Sourcing Reliable IT Infrastructure Agile and Reliable IT Operational Excellence Business Intelligence Administrative Technologies Enhance web self-service

14 Strategic Opportunity: Accelerate Adoption of Effective Learning Technologies, as appropriate 14 Description of the Opportunity Through targeted investments in infrastructure, support staff and faculty led projects, this initiative will accelerate the use of technology in Smith s courses. It includes expansion of the number of technology enabled learning spaces (in and outside of traditional classrooms), creating mechanisms to support faculty adoption of effective uses of technology in courses, the development of processes to assess the impact of technology on learning outcomes and increased development of hybrid and online courses in collaboration with the Five College collaboration. Goals Enhance learning experience inside and outside the physical classroom; Better position Smith students to engage in Five College collaborations; Provide Smith students the opportunity to use technology in ways already familiar to them and to experience the technologies that will be prominent in their future careers; Become a leader and innovator in technology that improves effective pedagogy.

15 Accelerate Adoption of Effective Learning Technologies - Key Initiatives 15 Initiative Create a biannual instructional technology showcase. Add instructional designers. Description Some Smith faculty have already integrated technology into the learning experience, other faculty are experimenting and still others are unclear on how to leverage technology to enhance the learning experience. To educate faculty on how new and emerging technologies can improve their teaching and the student s learning experience Smith should host a bi-annual conference. The objective of the conference is to allow faculty to demonstrate how they have deployed technology in the classroom, share lessons learned, and provide a forum for discussion. It is expected that Smith faculty will more readily adopt and integrate technology into their teaching program if provided access to one-onone, real time resources that can provide support tailored to their specific needs. Additional instructional designers (experienced faculty/ mentors or highly trained support) should be added in alignment with the faculty appetite for adoption and the availability of technologyenabled classrooms. This additional capacity will help support students in the classroom experience as well as their engagement with hybrid and online coursework.

16 Accelerate Adoption of Effective Learning Technologies - Key Initiatives 16 Initiative Continue to assess utilization and pedagogical impact of deployed learning technologies. Build more online or hybrid courses to support sharing courses across Five Colleges. Description For each technology, a process should be implemented to evaluate the impact of technology on the learning experience. For example, as cited in Ad Hoc Committee report on Educational Technology, preliminary data from two courses suggests lecture capture software is useful to Smith students. A formal assessment should be completed of the utilization of the software to determine how extensive the lecture capture software should be implemented on campus. Similar assessments can be done of the impact of high-resolution video/web conferencing capabilities, mobile applications, etc. As technologies prove to strengthen the learning experience, the software and required infrastructure requirements (e.g., bandwidth) should be made available in more classrooms. One of the high priority opportunities for collaboration with the Five Colleges is course sharing. In collaboration with the Five Colleges, Smith should inventory and prioritize the courses that are good candidates for on-line and/or hybrid learning. Based on the priority and desired timeline for implementation additional resources (hardware, software and human resources) may be necessary to support the build out of the courses.

17 Accelerate Adoption of Effective Learning Technologies - Key Initiatives 17 Initiative Create additional collaboration learning spaces and provide necessary resources to support increased multi-media collaborative projects. Description As the number of faculty members who integrate technology into the learning experience increases Smith may need to increase the number of non-traditional learning spaces for student to accommodate increased need for student collaborations. Such spaces will be designed especially for student project meetings and work sessions. Each room will be equipped with standard media equipment, office furnishings, and movable furniture to enable flexible arrangements to suit a variety of needs. Spaces refer not only to classroom space but public spaces, conference rooms, student lounges, etc. The Master Plan for the Libraries envisions the creation of expanded numbers of technology rich, flexible spaces within the library. This initiative should support efforts to realize this vision as well. As the opportunities increase for collaboration, students will also require more hands-on support for working with applying and integrating multimedia technologies into their coursework.

18 Accelerate Adoption of Effective Learning Technologies Phasing and Benefits 18 Phasing Strategy The adoption of learning technologies is well underway at Smith. The phasing strategy illustrated on the next page positions the college to more fully leverage current models of integrated teaching with the goal of accelerating the integration of technology into more courses, as appropriate. In year 1 the goals is to create opportunities for faculty to share their models with other faculty and also to provide dedicated resources who can provide more personal attention to individual faculty members as they explore new delivery models. In years 2012 and beyond, as the pedagogy is proven to benefit from the integration of technology and as faculty adoption increases, the focus of this strategic opportunity is to expand the infrastructure and support resources. Benefits This strategic opportunity offers Smith the following benefits: Improved learning experience both inside and outside the classroom; Increased number of faculty integrating technology into the learning experience; Increased use of multi-media and other technologies by students in their coursework; Increased opportunities for Five College Collaborations.

19 Accelerate Adoption of Effective Learning Technologies - Phases 19 Initiatives March June Sept December March June Sept December March June Sept December 1 Create a bi-annual instructional technology showcase Add instructional designers Continue to assess utilization and pedagogical impact of deployed learning technologies. Build more on-line or hybrid courses to support sharing courses across Five Colleges (begin with pilots, e.g., physics and math). Create additional collaboration learning spaces and provide necessary resources to support increased multi-media collaborative projects. Pilots Pilots

20 Strategic Opportunity: Implement a Digital Repository/Digital Asset Management Solution 20 Description of the Opportunity Digital asset management (DAM) consists of management tasks and decisions surrounding the ingestion, annotation, cataloguing, storage, retrieval and distribution of assets. Digital photographs, animations, videos and music are samples of media assets. Digital asset management systems include software and hardware systems that aid in the process of digital asset management. Smith s unique academic assets are increasingly digital. However, data, images and other artifacts are stored in stand-alone databases that are difficult to access. This initiative builds on work begun under the leadership of the library. It provides digital preservation services for scholarly resources, helping to ensure their integrity, authenticity, and usability over time. The initiative also includes establishing the protocols for organizing content, tools to facilitate integrating content into course materials and policies to govern access to content. The initiatives associated with this strategy will require the close collaboration of the libraries, ITS, the faculty and the museum. Goals Provide holistic and consistent approach to digital asset preservation across the college (Museum, Library, Sciences, etc; Make digital resources more accessible to faculty and students for integration into coursework; Create alignment with student expectation for quick access to information; Provide the opportunity for Smith students to experience the technologies that will be prominent in their chosen careers.

21 Implement a Digital Repository/ Digital Asset Management Solution - Key Initiatives 21 Initiative Develop strategy for the use of a digital asset management system (including researching current practices at peer and other institutions). Description The uses and solutions for digital asset management (DAM) systems are continuing to evolve. DAM, at its most basic level uses technology to organize resources, enables users to discover them and owners to track them. At its most advanced level, a DAM system can transform the way an institution manages digitization and handles access to the digital assets. It is important to develop a strategy that covers the complete continuum from creation to delivery: storing the digital objects and their related data; supporting on-line searches; enabling users to retrieve the appropriate version of a particular digital resource depending upon their interest and/or access level; keeping track of rights restrictions; and limiting access to verified users. Deeper analysis and research of how peer institutions are using digital asset management systems will help Smith shape its own approach and strategy. It is necessary to understand current uses, policy implications, implementation challenges and future applications in institutions including peer colleges, libraries and museums. Research into the commercial marketplace about existing and future solutions will assist the effort to identify the appropriate timing for implementation. Using information about available solutions in the external marketplace and current uses in peer institutions will help frame a discussion to determine the best strategy for Smith, to test interest for a Five College collaboration and to develop a timeline for implementation.

22 Implement a Digital Repository/ Digital Asset Management Solution - Key Initiatives 22 Initiative Continue policy work. Organize the project team. Evaluate alternatives and select best technology solution. Select Implementation partner. Description A number of policy and process decisions are required to protect intellectual property rights before implementation of a DAM. Decisions must be made in areas including rights and licensing, privacy, fair use, metadata standards, frameworks and formats, access rights, storage and dissemination of data. Identify the project sponsor, project manager and technical lead that will be dedicated to the project. A detailed project plan for completing the evaluation and selection of a solution and implementation partner should be developed by the project manager. Develop a detailed set of functional requirements for a DAM system and conduct a rigorous evaluation of the commercial marketplace. Through an RFI/RFP process, invite vendors to demonstrate the products, discuss migration, integration and implementation approaches and to answer end-user questions. Based on these sessions select the solution that best aligns with the College s strategy. Once Smith has identified a solution the campus will be ready to identify implementation partner requirements, prepare and issue an RFP for an implementation partner, and ultimately select a partner.

23 Implement a Digital Repository/ Digital Asset Management Solution Phasing and Benefits 23 Phasing Strategy As illustrated on the next page, the recommended phasing strategy for this strategic opportunity is to use the next year to more fully understand how peer institutions (including museums and libraries) are using DAM systems and to develop an overall strategy (or white paper) for how Smith should approach the implementation of a DAM. The white paper can be used to facilitate dialogue on campus and with the Five Colleges to determine what the approach will be for Smith. In year 2 Smith will organize its project team, select a solution and implementation partner, if necessary. The expectation is that implementation of a DAM solution would begin in Benefits This strategic opportunity offers Smith the following benefits: Promotes greater utilization of Smith s unique digital assets; Increased student and faculty satisfaction with ease and access to digital assets.

24 Implement a Digital Repository/ Digital Asset Management Solution - Phases 24 Initiatives March June Sept December March June Sept December March June Sept December Develop strategy for the use of a digital asset management system Continue policy work Organize the project team Evaluate alternatives and select best technology solution Evaluate alternatives and select Implementation partner Begin implementation

25 Strategic Opportunity: Implement a Business Intelligence Solution 25 Description of the Opportunity Smith lacks the technology, organizational capacity and management processes to adequately support data driven decision-making. This strategic opportunity will replace the college s shadow databases and ad-hoc reports with an integrated data warehouse and tool set for analysis. The projects completed will improve data governance, train staff to be better data analysts and through a phased deployment, introduce the technology Smith requires to support operational reporting, longitudinal analysis, predictive modeling and other forms of advanced analytics. Goals Create dashboard indicators across multiple units to inform decision-making; Standardize data definitions across applications; Create standard reporting templates; Create standards and policies for access and use of data; Reduce risk of data loss from shadow reporting systems (BAR) that are difficult to support; Improve strategic outcomes through the advanced use of data to design enrollment management, fundraising and constituent engagement strategies.

26 Implement a Business Intelligence Solution - Key Initiatives 26 Initiative Prepare the college for the implementation of a BI Strategy. Confirm BI phasing strategy for development of data warehouse and migration of BAR reports to Cognos/ODS. Description An overall project sponsor and project manager must be identified to oversee and ensure the success of the implementation. The project sponsor will be accountable for the success of the project, ensure availability of necessary resources, serve as the voice of the project to the college community, and support the project manager. The day-to-day project manager will report directly to the Project Sponsor and will be responsible for the development of detailed project, staffing and communications plans. Additional project resources will be required including technical staff to support the technical architecture/design, infrastructure and performance of the solution, business analysts to assist with data definitions, BI design, etc. IA recommends that Smith pursue the following phasing strategy for implementation of a business intelligence solution: Phase one: Enrollment Services (Admissions and Financial Aid); Phase Two: Registration Outcomes; Phase Three: Advancement. Before implementing this phasing strategy Smith should confirm the data needs of each area, including an identification of the data elements that require definition. For those units not included in Phase 1 a prioritization should be completed of which BAR reports should be migrated to Cognos/ODS.

27 Implement a Business Intelligence Solution -Key Initiatives 27 Initiative Develop common data definitions across the college. Review and select best technology solution and implementation partner. Hire additional technical staff and analysts. Complete first build/ deployment in Enrollment Services. Description To ensure consistency and reliability of data and analyses the college must develop a common set of data definitions. Representatives from key administrative areas should be convened to identify critical data elements and agree on definition of the data, sources for storing and capturing the data and for confidential data ensure agreement on access and use rights. In conjunction with confirming the appropriate phasing strategy, Smith must evaluate whether to implement a custom-developed solution, or implement an off-the-shelf-solution. Armed with a proposed phasing strategy and desired solution, Smith will also be ready to identify implementation partner requirements, prepare and issue an RFP for an implementation partner, and ultimately select a partner. Based on the selected solution Smith must develop a staffing model to support implementation of the solution and long-term maintenance of the solution. It is expected that the deployment of a BI solution will occur over the next three to five years with the first deployment targeted for completion in 2012.

28 Implement a Business Intelligence Solution Phasing and Benefits 28 Phasing Strategy It is expected that the deployment of a BI solution will occur over the next three to five years with the first deployment targeted for completion in However there are a number of initiatives that must be undertaken to prepare the college for the implementation of a solution. These activities include establishing the project team, confirming the phasing strategy for both implementation of the BI solution and for migrating reports to ODS/Cognos and selecting a solution. As illustrated in the Gantt chart on the following page, it is recommended that Smith take the next year to complete these preparatory steps and begin a phased deployment in It is expected that to complete the deployment of a data warehouse solution will take a minimum of three years. Benefits This strategic opportunity offers Smith the following benefits: Improved decision-making; Increased focus on data analysis versus report production; Ability to analyze strategic data both from a longitudinal perspective within a business unit and to analyze interrelationships between applications (e.g., Admissions and Enrollment);

29 Implement a Business Intelligence Solution - Phases 29 Initiatives March June Sept December March June Sept December March June Sept December Prepare the college for the implementation of a BI Strategy Confirm BI phasing strategy proposed by Incisive Analytics (IA) Develop common data definitions across the college Review and select best technology solution and implementation partner Hire additional technical staff and analysts Complete first build/deployment in Enrollment Services Build out additional phases of the data warehouse

30 Strategic Opportunity: Enhance the Effectiveness of Administrative Technology Description of the Opportunity Administrative processes do not take full advantage of Banner and other already implemented technologies. Capabilities are under-utilized, available functionality is not completely deployed and processes have not been tailored to take full advantage of software features. Significant complementary software applications do not easily share data with Banner. 30 This strategic opportunity takes a three part approach to enhance Smith s administrative operations through technology. The first set of initiatives focuses on optimizing the use of Banner. The second better integrates complementary technologies with Banner to create a single institutional data set that will serve as the foundation for business intelligence. The third part extends administrative systems capabilities through deployment of additional technologies and a repositioning of the skills within administrative computing. Goals Improve the efficiency of administrative processes by fully utilizing Banner; Improve the accuracy of data by automating the migration of data from complementary systems to Banner; Maximize the return on investment in Banner by fully deploying all modules; Broaden the utilization of Banner to all administrative, academic and student support areas; and Address short-comings in Banner capabilities through additional software solutions and Smith developed enhancements.

31 Enhance the Effectiveness of Administrative Technology Key Initiatives 31 Initiative Assess the current utilization of Banner. Implement Banner integration and improvement Projects. Clean-up Banner data. Description Continue to engage SunGard Higher Education to review the college s use of Banner in key administrative areas including Development, Alumnae Affairs, Enrollment services and finance and human resources. Leverage the findings from these reviews to define focused improvement projects to deploy new Banner capabilities, modify business processes or analyze options to fill gaps in Banner capabilities. Prioritize and implement focused improvement projects after completing baseline assessment of Banner utilization in core areas. In addition, develop interfaces to automate the movement of data from third-party systems to Banner particularly in development and alumnae relations. It may be possible to stagger some implementation work with the on-going baseline assessment. Depending on the number and scale of improvement projects being implemented, the college may require a dedicated project manager and additional SunGard assistance. Analyze the use of existing Banner data fields and establish college-wide standards for their definition and use. This initiative is critical to improve the use of Banner, to enhance the accuracy of management reports and to prepare for the implementation of a data warehouse. Implementation requires creating standard data definitions, the establishing of on-going data governance process and inspection and adjustment of legacy data to correct for inaccuracies and inconsistencies.

32 Enhance the Effectiveness of Administrative Technology Key Initiatives 32 Initiative Analyze the use of shadow systems across the college. Strategically reposition the Administrative Computing team in ITS. Description Several areas of the college use shadow databases to store information outside of the Banner system. These databases exist to compensate for shortcomings in Banner capabilities or because the department was unaware that a desired capability exists in Banner. Examples include tracking databases in student affairs and shadow financial records kept by faculty to compensate for difficult to use Banner reports and queries. ITS should work systematically with each division of the college to identify areas where shadow systems are being used in lieu of Banner. Where capabilities exist in Banner to meet the division s need, the shadow system should be retired and users trained in the Banner capability. If Banner can t meet the division s need, efforts should be made to develop or deploy a complementary system to meet the requirement. In the next two to three years, the Banner software will undergo a major technology shift. This shift will require the applications development staff to become more facile with web development tools. At the same time, the college requires the administrative computing team to broaden its skill sets to support the integration and in some cases the maintenance of an increasing number of non-banner web-based software applications. As part of this strategic opportunity, ITS should develop and implement an organizational development and restructuring strategy for the administrative technology team.