ManagementOperationsReviewTeam(MORT) ReportoftheInstitutionalCommunication StrategyTigerTeam CommitteeCharge ExecutiveVicePresident(EVP)DiazandProvostWoodsoncreatedaManagementOperationsReview Team(MORT)toseekandimplementimprovementstoouroperationalservices.TheMORTteam consistsofdeanakridge(agriculture),deanjamieson(engineering),deanweiser(liberalarts),vice PresidentAlmond(BusinessServices),VicePresidentBuckius(Research),VicePresidentMcMains (PhysicalFacilities),VicePresidentMcCartney(InformationTechnology),andManagingDirectorKen Sandel(OfficeofEVPandTreasurer). TheMORTgroupselectedinformationtechnology(IT)ontheWestLafayettecampusasthefirstfocus areatoexaminepotentialsynergiesandcostssavings.sixcommittees,calledtigerteams,wereformed toexaminethefollowingareas:datacenters,campusitorganizationalstructure,emailservices, OnePurdue,desktopcomputingservices,andthecomputerlabs.Eachteamwastaskedtoprovide recommendationstoimprovethemanagement,efficiency,andaccountabilityofcampus wide informationtechnologyoperations. ExecutiveSummary TheemailTigerTeam(alsoreferredtoastheemailcommitteeinthisdocument)waschargedtoprovide recommendationsoninstitutionalcommunicationstrategy.specifically,ithassoughtanswerstothe followingquestions: ShouldtheUniversityoutsourceinstitutionalemailservicestooutsideproviders? Shouldthedozensofexistingemailservicesoncampusbeconsolidated? ThekeyconstituentsoftheUniversityareallrepresentedontheteam.(SeeAppendixA.) GeneralProcess TheemailTigerTeamhashadthreeface to facemeetingsinadditiontoregularcommunicationsvia email.thediscussionsareopen,frank,andinclusive.followingeachmeeting,adraftoftheminutesis distributedtothecommitteeforcommentsviaemail.theminutesarethenrevised,ifnecessary,and finalized.forreference,theminutesofthemeetingsareappended.(seeappendicesc,d,ande.)it shouldbestressedthatthisreportisbasednotonlyontheminutesofthemeetingsbutalsoon discussionsthroughemailcommunicationswithinthecommittee(whichoftenincludemoreupdated informationpreviouslynotavailabletothecommittee). MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page1
Background Financialsavingsofemailoutsourcing.TheemailTigerTeamisawareoftherealityofemail outsourcingbymanycollegesanduniversitiesaroundthecountryandhasdiscussedtherationalefor suchadecision.basedontheinformationavailable,itiscleartothecommitteethatthekeymotivation foroutsourcingisfinancial:atypicalinstitutionwouldexpecttosaveupto$1millionperyearin operatingcosts.anaturalquestionishowmuchpurduewouldsaveifitsinstitutionalemailservices wereoutsourcedtoacommercialprovider.thecommitteewastoldthatpurduerunsanefficientand low costemailserviceandthusdiffersfrommostcollegesanduniversitiesthathavedecidedto outsource.theinitialestimatewasthatpurduecouldexpecttosaveonlyaround$60,000to$70,000 peryearifitweretoadoptabasicpackagecurrentlyavailableonthemarket.questionswereraised abouttheestimate,sinceitdidnotseemtohavetakenintoaccountshort termexpensesrelatedto suchatransition;administrativeoverheadassociatedwithrunningtheservicethroughathirdparty;and anypossiblelong termexpensesifthechosenproviderweretochargeafeefortheservicesafterthe initial(free)periodends.followingseveraldiscussions,theconsensusisthatsubstantialsavingsin operationscostareunlikely. Prosandconsofemailoutsourcing.Withoutstrongfinancialincentives,itisgenerallyfeltthatthere mustbecompellingreasonsforadecisiontooutsourceinstitutionalemailbecauseitaffectseveryone oncampusandmayleadtoundesirableconsequencesrelatedtoitsecurityandprivacy.tothisend,the teamhascompiledthefollowinglistofprosandconsandcarefullyexaminedeachofthem: Pros: Portability. Enhancedsocial networkingcapability. Sophisticatedcollaborativeenvironment. Morestoragespace. Improvedspamfiltering. Betterinterfaceandlessdowntime? Cons: ComplicationinFamilyEducationalRightsandPrivacyAct(FERPA)compliance. Lossofcontrolonforensicdata(e.g.,subpoenaedemails). Protectionofsensitivecommunication(e.g.,intellectualproperties). Lossofaccesstomailstream(forresearchpurposes). Lossofin houseinfrastructureandskillset. Uncertaintyinthefutureofoutsideserviceproviders. Theresultsofaninformalsurveyoftheteammembersindicatedthatalthoughnearlyeveryone appreciatestheconvenienceandbenefitsofcutting edgetechnology,facultyandstafftendtoweigh the cons muchmorethanthe pros. Theybelievethatonecanalreadytakeadvantageofthe convenienceandbenefitssimplybysigning upforafreeaccountwithan outsideserviceproviderand havingpurdueemailsautomaticallyforwardedtothataccount.thiswouldalsoavoidthecontroversyof forcingeveryonetousethesameserviceprovider.studentperspectiveshavebeenheardandcarefully discussed.intheend,itisgenerallyfeltthattheargumentsforemailoutsourcing,whilevalid,arenot compelling. MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page2
MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page3 StudentEmailvs.Faculty/StaffEmail.TheemailTigerTeamhasalsodiscussedthepossibilityof outsourcing(undergraduate)studentemailswhilekeepingfaculty/staffemailsin house.thiswould preservebasicinfrastructuresandexpertiseandwouldthusmakeiteasiertotakebacktheoutsourced servicesiftheyweretobecomeafinancialburdenontheuniversityinthefuture.itisnoted,however, thatsomedisadvantagesassociatedwithemailoutsourcingwouldremain,including:thelossofa commonenvironmentforstudentsandfaculty/staff;apotentiallyhighcostassociatedwiththe transition;andlong termcostsforadministeringtheservices.althoughnomajordownsideofthe student onlyoptioncouldbeidentified,itisgenerallyfeltthatthereasonsforadoptingtheoptionare notcompelling. ConsolidationofOn CampusEmailServices.TheemailTigerTeamismadeawarethattherearemore than20emailserviceprovidersonthewestlafayettecampus.itisnotedthatsomeoftheexisting emailservicesaremanagedbysmallitteamsthatmaylacktheexpertiseindealingwithsecurityand legalissuesandmightthusposeasecuritythreattotheentirepurdueitsystem.ontheotherhand,a smallnumberofacademicdepartmentsorcentersneedtoprovidetheirownemailservices e.g.,to enableresearch andhavetheresourcesandexpertisetosecurelyadministerthem.theteam generallyfeelsthatitishighlydesirabletolimiton campusproviderstoasmallnumber.aconsolidation ofemailserviceswouldalsolikelyleadtosubstantialsavingsinoperationscost. Recommendations Basedontheinformationpresentlyavailable,andonthediscussionsviaface to facemeetingsandemail communications,theemailtigerteammakesthefollowingrecommendationsoninstitutional communicationstrategy: TheUniversityisnotadvisedtooutsourceitsemailservicestooutsideserviceproviders. Existingon campusemailserviceprovidersareadvisedtore evaluatethebenefits,risks,andcosts associatedwithindependentservices,andtoconsidermovingtocentralizedservices. Itshould,however,benotedthatthePurdueStudentGovernment(PSG)representativeisin disagreementwiththerecommendations.
AppendixA:TeamMembership TheinstitutionalcommunicationstrategyTigerTeamconsistedofrepresentativesfromfaculty,ITareas, thestudentcommunity,andstudentservices: EricaCarlson,AssociateProfessorofPhysics DaveCarmichael,Director,EngineeringComputingNetwork BriannaCastle,PurdueStudentGovernment WeiCui(Chair),ProfessorofPhysics MartinCurd,AssociateProfessorofPhilosophy ShawnDonkin,ProfessorofAnimalScience ScottKsander,ExecutiveDirectorofITNetworksandSecurity,ITaP SamMidkiff,ProfessorofElectricalandComputingEngineering MikeRubesch,ExecutiveDirectorofITSystemsandOperations,ITaP GeneSpafford,ProfessorofComputerScienceandExecutiveDirectoroftheCenterfor EducationandResearchinInformationAssuranceandSecurity(CERIAS) DanWhiteley,StudentServices MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page4
AppendixB:ReferenceDocuments ThefollowingisalistofthedocumentsthatweremadeavailabletotheemailTigerTeamoverthe courseofthediscussion: TheGoogleAppsEducationEditionAgreementbetweenIndianaUniversityandGoogle TheUniversityCommunicationServicesAgreementbetweenIndianaUniversityandMicrosoft Attorney scommentsonindianauniversity sdecisiontooutsourceitsemailservices ThelatestversionoftheGoogleAppsEducationEditionAgreement Attorney scommentsonthelatestversionofthegoogleappseducationeditionagreement DespiteRisks,ITOfficialsOutsourceCampusEmail, anarticlepublishedinthechronicleof HigherEducationthatprovidessomedataonemailoutsourcing. PurdueEmailversusGmail, apaperwrittenbystudentsintech621e(informationassurance Ethics)thatdiscussesmanyofthetopicscoveredbytheemailTigerTeam. Aftertheconclusionofthelastface to facemeeting,theemailtigerteamalsoreceivedadditional informationfromthepsgthroughthestudentrepresentativeontheteam.itshould,however,be stressedthattheteamisnotchargedtospecificallyexaminethepsg sproposaltooutsource institutionalemailstogoogle(oranyotherproposals).nevertheless,theteamhastakenintoaccount thepsg spointsofviewonthesubjectbeforemakingtherecommendations. MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page5
AppendixC:MeetingMinutes,11/4/2009 Present:Carlson,Carmichael,Castle,Cui(Chair),Curd,Ksander,Midkiff,Whiteley Absent:Donkin,Rubesch,Spafford ManythankstoEricaCarlsonfortakingdetailednotes. Themeetingwasfocusedontheprosandconsofoutsourcinginstitutionalemails.Followinglively discussions,itwasgenerallyfeltthatitwouldbedifficulttocomeupwithclear cutprosandcons. Nevertheless,thefollowinglistwascompiled: Pros: Mobilecommunication. Enhancednetworkingcapability. Integratedtools. Environmentforcollaboration. Lessdowntime. Morestoragespace. Betterinterface. Potentialfinancialsaving(toPurdue),about$65,000/year. Cons: PrivacyissuesrelatedtoFERPA. Protectionofsensitivecommunication(e.g.,intellectualproperties). Lossofcontroloninstitutionalemails. Legalissues(e.g.,subpoenaedemails,varyinglegalstandardsatdatastoragelocations). Itwassuggestedthateachcommitteemembershouldattachanumericalsignificancetotheitemsin thelist(onascaleof1 10,with10beingmostsignificant).Pleasesendmeyourinputatyourearliest convenience. Notes: 1)Theconsappeartoaffectstudentemailstoalesserextentthanstaffemails.Thetwocouldbetreated differently. 2)Purdueprofessorsarealreadynotallowedtosendsensitivestudentinformationviaemail.Why wouldferpastillbeanissuehere? 3)Everyoneisalreadyfreetoforwardhis/herPurdueemailstohis/heroutsideemailaccountsifhe/she wishestotakeadvantageofmanyoftheproslisted.thequestioniswhatadditionalbenefitsthatcanbe gainedbyhavingpurdueformallyoutsourceitsemailservice.onebenefitmightbethathavingapurdue addresscankeepemailsfrombeingcaughtinspamfilters. 4)ItseemsthatPurduewouldsavealotmorethanabout$265,000overfouryearsbyoutsourcing emails. 5)Thelossofcontrolonemailswouldleadtothelossofcapabilitiestodealwithmissingemails.Howdo weensurethefidelityofcriticalcommunications,e.g.,betweenaprofessorandherstudents? MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page6
6)IfPurdueemailsaresubpoenaedaspartofalawsuit,outsideemailsserviceproviderswouldunlikely beaseagertoprotectpurdueinterests. 7)Questionscanberaisedregardingoutsourcinginstitutionalemailstoproviderswhostoredatain placeswithvastlydifferentlegalstandards. 8)Outsourcingemailsmaycompromisetheprotectionofemailsthatcontainsensitiveinformation. 9)Outsideemailprovidersmaygobelly upinthefuture. MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page7
AppendixD:MeetingMinutes,11/11/2009 Present:Carlson,Carmichael,Castle,Cui(Chair),Curd,Donkin,Rubesch,Spafford,Whiteley Absent:Ksander,Midkiff Afteralengthydiscussion,itwasgenerallyagreedthatfinancialsavingsfromemailoutsourcingwould likelybequiteminimal,ifanyatall.thecurrentpurduesystemisveryleancomparedtomanyother universities.theprojectedsavings(about$65,000/year)wouldbereducedifthechosenoutside providerdecidedtochargefortheservicelateronorifsignificantmanpowerisrequiredtointerface withtheprovider.withoutfinancialincentives,whatwouldthenbethemainmotivestooutsource emailservices? Theanswerappearstolieinastrongstudentinterestintheenhancedfeaturesthatarenotavailable withthein housesystem,suchasacollaborativeenvironment,socialnetworking,andintegratedtools. Itwas,however,pointedoutagainthatthestudentscouldalreadytakeadvantageofthefeaturesby signingupforaccountswithoutsideproviders,withouthavingpurdueformallyoutsourceitsemail services.whilethisiscertainlytrue,thestudentsmaystillpreferservicesthatcarrythepurduebrand name. Incontrast,facultyandstaffgenerallyfeltlesscompelledtoswitchservicesjustfortheenhanced features,eventhoughmostalreadyhavepersonalaccountswithoutsideproviders.theytendedto focusonpossiblerisksofemailoutsourcing,suchaslossofforensicdata,lossofin houseskillsets,loss ofessentialaccesstomailstreamsforresearchpurposes,andsoon.thechosenprovidermightalso changetermslateron,whichwouldputtheuniversityinanawkwardpositionwithnoviablealternative options. Apossiblesolutionisperhapstooutsourcestudentemailsbutkeepfaculty/staffemailsin house.this wouldpreserveessentialcapabilitiesandthusmakeiteasiertotakebacktheoutsourcedservicesif necessary.severaldrawbacksrelatedtotheseparationofstudentandfaculty/staffserviceswere discussed.forinstance,thestudentandfaculty/staffcalendarswouldnotbeinsync,sosomeofthe perceivedbenefitsmaynotmaterialize,butthiswouldbenoworsethanthecurrentsituation.other thanpossiblerisksrelatedtothechangeofterms,nomajordownsideofoutsourcingstudentemails couldbeidentified. Itwas,however,pointedoutthattheseparationofstudentandfaculty/staffenvironmentsmightnotbe goodfortheuniversityinthelongrun.specifically,thefollowingissueswerebroughtupforfurther discussion: 1)Woulditbemoredesirabletohavestudentsandfaculty/staffsharethesameenvironment?In principle,theuniversitycoulddevoteresourcestothedevelopmentofanenvironmentwithfeatures thatthestudentsarenowcraving. 2)Isitworrisomethatitmighttakemuch,muchlongerforfaculty/stafftoadoptcurrentandnewer toolsandenvironments?somethoughtthiscouldhappenwithoutpushesfromstudentsforcuttingedgetechnologies. MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page8
AppendixE:MeetingMinutes,12/09/2009 Present:Carlson,Carmichael,Castle,Cui(Chair),Curd,Ksander,Midkiff,Rubesch,Whiteley Absent:Castle,Donkin,Spafford MikeRubeschbriefedthecommitteeonpotentialissueswithoutsourcingUniversityemailservicesto Google(asnotedbytheattorneysinvolved),manyofwhichhavebeendiscussedbythecommitteein previousmeetings.theattorneysalsocommentedthat thereappearstobeconsiderablylessrisk associatedwitha student only approachtooutsourcing, intermsofferpacompliance. Alengthydiscussionensuedregardingtheprosandconsofoutsourcingonlyundergraduatestudent emails.themainadvantageofthisapproachisthatitwouldsatisfythemajorityofstudents,according topsg,whileretaininginfrastructuresandexpertiseandaddressingfacultyandstaff sconcerns.the disadvantagesnotedincludethelossofacommonenvironmentforstudentsandfaculty/staff, potentiallyhighcostsassociatedwiththetransition,andlong termcostsforadministeringtheservices. Thediscussionreturnedtothesamekeyquestionaskedpreviouslyseveraltimes:Whycannotstudents simplysignupforgoogleaccountstoenjoyallthebenefitsthattheyfeelareimportanttothem?the committeegenerallyfeltthattheargumentforneedingapurduelogowasnotcompelling.itwasalso feltthatthetransitionwouldmorelikelyleadtoafinancialburdenontheuniversitythansavings becausethecurrentpurduesystemisverylean(comparedtootheruniversities).therefore,the consensusappearstobethatthecommitteecannotendorseemailoutsourcingatpresent. Thediscussionsubsequentlyturnedtothequestionofconsolidationofemailservicesoncampus.The consensusisquiteclearonthisissue:itishighlydesirabletolimiton campusemailserviceprovidersto asmallnumberofdepartmentsorcentersthatrequiresuchservices(e.g.,forresearchpurposes).itwas pointedoutthatmostoftheexistingemailservicesareadministeredbysmallitteamsthatoftenlack theexpertiseindealingwithsecurityandlegalissuesandmightthusposeasecuritythreattotheentire PurdueITsystem.Thecommitteerecommendthattheusersofthoseservicesbeadvisedtomakea transitiontotheuniversity scentralemailserviceandthattheservicesbephasedoutoncethe transitioniscomplete. MORT InstitutionalCommunicationStrategyReport Page9