Enhancing Technology Services - University Technology Services

Project Background
With guidance from the BerryDunn consulting firm, University Technology Services has taken on a comprehensive, strategic review of OU’s existing technology infrastructure and, based on this assessment, develop a plan to provide students, faculty and staff the most beneficial technology services attainable. With the prospect of such resources being put in place, UTS looks forward to support continuing, organic growth of the university.

An important focus will be to improve service and satisfaction provided to campus community members both on and off campus. UTS will look to enhance its current work to manage risk and meet emerging compliance needs tied to a complex array of information technology services.

The BerryDunn Oakland University Information Technology Operating Model Report Summary can be found here (Requires Login).

Project Approach

This initiative will be pursued in four distinct phases as noted below.

Facilitate Planning and Campus Communications
Evaluate and Assess Current and Future IT Needs
Conduct National Peer Benchmarking
Develop Operating Model and Execution Plans

Project Updates

Project Summary: May 2023 – February 2024 Progress

BerryDunn and the Oakland project team have accomplished the following items.

February - 2024
Activities Summary
Refined Scope for ETS Project
The operating model will be designed to help ensure that UTS has the capability and capacity to provide the following four services centrally.
• Information Security: Oakland’s critical infrastructure, devices, endpoints, and data security.
• Device Management: The procurement, configuration, monitoring, deployment, refreshing and support of all university devices, including classroom technologies.
• Core Services and Cloud Strategy: The management of existing critical infrastructure and systems as well as planning and architecting innovative solutions for emerging technologies and campus community technical needs.
• IT Project Management: Scoping, managing, and delivering enterprise IT projects in support of a formalized IT governance model.

November - 2023
Activities Summary
• Participated in leadership meetings to discuss Report findings and meaningful next steps for the University
• Conducted report presentations to core teams
• Planning for report distribution and campus engagement
Deliverables
• Updated report summary documents as needed
• Full Report updated with feedback

October - 2023
Activities Summary
• Conducted remote and on-site open sessions for Oakland faculty and students
• Developed IT Benchmarking Project – Full Report
Deliverables
• IT Benchmarking and Analysis Findings Presentations
• Full Report

September - 2023
Activities Summary
• Conducted remote and on-site open sessions for Oakland faculty and students
• Developed and distributed Oakland campus survey
• Developed IT benchmarking analysis and project summary report
Deliverables
• Campus Survey
• Peer Benchmarking and Project Summary Report

August - 2023
Activities Summary
• Continued facilitating interviews and focus groups with DTS staff and functional groups
• Conducted meetings with 8 peer institutions
• Began developing peer benchmarking analysis
Deliverables
• Peer Benchmarking Questionnaire
• Peer Benchmarking Analysis

July - 2023
Activities Summary
• Facilitated focus groups with DTS staff
• Facilitated interviews and focus groups with Oakland functional groups, including leadership across the University
• Developed survey analysis regarding services provided by IT staff
Deliverables
• DTS Meeting Agendas
• UTS and DTS survey analysis

June - 2023
Activities Summary
• Conducted on-site project kick-off meetings with Oakland leadership and Town Hall sessions with the campus community
• Continued facilitation of UTS meetings
• Created and distributed DTS survey
Deliverables
• DTS Survey
• On-Site Meeting Schedule and Agendas

May - 2023
Activities Summary
• Facilitated focus groups and interviews with UTS leadership and staff
• Created and distributed UTS survey
• Planned for on-site meetings and campus engagement
Deliverables
• Project Communication
• Project Kickoff presentation(s)
• UTS Survey
• Interview/Focus Group Agendas

PROJECT COMMUNICATIONS

Enhancing Technology Services (ETS) Project Update and Refined Scope

Wednesday, March 6, 2024

For the past year, we have undertaken a collaborative and comprehensive analysis of the” technical services and requirements” for students, faculty and staff. Our purpose has been to find efficient and cost-effective processes to enhance security and improve support for the ever-changing technology and the challenges it presents to the campus community.

I am writing to provide an update regarding the scope of the ETS initiative. After months of discussions, careful consideration and consultation with stakeholders, we have decided to refine the focus of the University Technology Services (UTS) operating model to prioritize the following four key services:

Information Security: Oakland’s critical infrastructure, devices, endpoints, and data security.
Device Management: The procurement, configuration, monitoring, deployment, refreshing and support of all university devices, including classroom technologies.
Core Services and Cloud Strategy: The management of existing critical infrastructure and systems as well as planning and architecting innovative solutions for emerging technologies and campus community technical needs.
IT Project Management: Scoping, managing, and delivering enterprise IT projects in support of a formalized IT governance model.

We will continue to collaborate with stakeholders across the campus community as we move forward to refine the future operating model and the implementation plan to best support their required IT services. By narrowing our focus to these four key areas, UTS will be able to enhance security measures and provide IT services consistently to the University Community.

Thank you for your input into this process, and I look forward to additional feedback. If you are interested in following the project or learning more about the development of technology services on campus, please visit the Enhancing Technology Services
Enhancing Technology Services page where we will continue to provide periodic updates as the project moves forward.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to us at [email protected].

Thanks
Bhavani

Update on Technology Services Town Hall

Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Colleagues,

As we shared with you late last month, OU is partnering with BerryDunn, an independent consulting firm experienced in higher education transformations, to evaluate university IT operating models and enhance the quality of the university's technology services.

Unfortunately, a previous communication regarding a university-wide town hall event focusing on this project included an incorrect location for the meeting. It will take pace from 10:45 a.m. to noon on Thursday, June 8, in the Oakland Center Ballrooms. All University personnel are welcome to participate.

At the conclusion of a comprehensive study, BerryDunn will provide the university with recommendations related to the IT services needed to support campus needs.

If you have any questions about this project or Thursday's town hall, please contact us at [email protected].

Sincerely,

Bhavani Koneru
Chief Information Officer

Project Schedules

Upcoming Events
Project Implementation Kick-off Townhalls - To Be Determined

Past Events

September 26, 2023 – 11am to 12pm, Remote Town Hall for All Students with UTS and BerryDunn consultants to understand the strengths, challenges, and opportunities for the way that technology services.

September 26, 2023 – 9:30am to 10:30am, Remote Town Hall for All Faculty with UTS and BerryDunn consultants to understand the strengths, challenges, and opportunities for the way that technology services.

September 20, 2023 – On-site Town Hall with UTS and BerryDunn consultants to understand the strengths, challenges, and opportunities for the way that technology services.

These events will be held in the Oakland Center, Banquet Room A

10:15am to 11am – All Student Open Session
11am to 11:45am – All Student Open Session
1pm to 2pm – All Faculty Open Session
2pm to 3pm – General Session (faculty, students, staff)

September 19, 2023 (Tuesday) – On-site Town Hall with UTS and BerryDunn consultants to understand the strengths, challenges, and opportunities for the way that technology services.

These events will be held in the Oakland Center, Meeting rooms (128-130), with the exception of the 4:15pm session to be held in Oakland Center, Ambassador room A-B (157-158)

8am to 9am – All Faculty open session
9 :15am to 10am – Faculty and Staff session for College of Arts and Sciences
10:15am to 11am – Faculty and Staff session for School of Business Administration
11:15am to 12pm – Faculty and Staff session for School of Education and Human Services
1pm to 1:45pm – Faculty and Staff session for School of Health Sciences
2pm to 2:45pm – Faculty and Staff session for School of Nursing
3pm to 4pm – Faculty and Staff session for School of Engineering and Computer Science
4:15pm to 5pm – Faculty and Staff session for OUWB School of Medicine

September 14, 2023 (Thursday) – Remote Town Hall for All Students with UTS and BerryDunn consultants to understand the strengths, challenges, and opportunities for the way that technology services.
- 12:30pm to 2pm

September 12, 2023 (Tuesday) – Remote Town Hall for All Faculty with UTS and BerryDunn consultants to understand the strengths, challenges, and opportunities for the way that technology services.
- 2pm to 3:30pm

June 8, 2023 (Thursday) – Initiative/Project Kick-off Meetings, In-person and remote session in the Oakland Center, Founders Ballrooms
- 9am – University Technology Services Staff
- 9am – Distributed Technology Services Staff
- 9am – University/Campus Town Hall

FAQ

Who is BerryDunn?
Founded in 1974 BerryDunn is a national consulting practice that works with over 150 higher education institutions. To remain independent and objective BerryDunn does not sell software or managed services and solely focuses on assisting organizations achieve desired outcomes. BerryDunn was selected to be OU’s partner through the open RFP \ bid process.

Why has BerryDunn been engaged to assess OU?

Strategic review of organic technology service growth
Improve customer service and satisfaction for on-campus and remote constituents
Manage risk and prepare for emerging compliance needs
Increase collaboration among IT staff and across the campus community
Plan for emerging technology trends
Embed and leverage technology trends in OU’s operation to improve teaching & learning and realize business outcomes

How is BerryDunn assessing OU’s current status and needs?
BerryDunn is engaging with campus in a variety of ways including meeting directly with Stakeholders, for example through Town Halls, conducting targeting surveys, as well as focus groups.

What are the expected deliverables from the BerryDunn engagement and when are they expected.
As a result of the initial engagement BerryDunn is committed to working with the OU community to deliver an Operating Model by fall 2023.

How does the Operating Model align to positions and the current reporting structure?
The operating model is focused on services and the most effective way to offer them to campus; it is not reporting structure based. For example a single centrally managed wired and wireless network provides end user consistency and economies of scale, however specialized laboratory equipment is likely to be more effectively supported within the unit. BerryDunn will be looking at how existing services are being offered and proposing how and what services should be offered moving forward.

How is BerryDunn determining what Operating Model is appropriate for OU?
BerryDunn will be doing this via a variety of methods. They will be collecting information to determine campus needs via interaction with various stakeholders including town halls, surveys, and targeted forums with staff having IT responsibilities. They will also be benchmarking OU against other higher-education institutions including peers and those who are successful in areas we aspire towards. This information will be aggregated and analyzed by BerryDunn to create the proposed Operating Model.