Background

Previously, an independent consultant’s enterprise wide strategic plan reported the self-assessed technology risk at McMaster at 8.2 on a 10 point scale, making it the #1 risk. More recently, the university invested $1.8m to keep the existing 30 year old legacy systems functioning. Today, McMaster is the only member of the G13 universities to not have adopted modern technology solutions for its most critical systems.

Late last year, a request for proposals was issued for a consultant to conduct a review of the university’s systems that support student, finance, and research activities with the objective of replacing them with updated technology and improved business processes.

Gartner Consulting was selected through a competitive process to conduct this review by working with key university stakeholders throughout the spring and early summer of this year.

Consulting Engagement

Gartner conducted the review using a three phase approach. Phase 1 focused on the initial detailed project planning, document review and data gathering interviews to provide the Gartner team with a broad understanding of the university, its stakeholders, needs, challenges, constraints and capabilities. During the course of this phase, Gartner conducted more than 40 interviews involving more than 100 participants from across campus.

Phase 2 focused on defining the systems renewal program goals and principles and performing the institutional readiness assessment. While these two activities have a substantial impact on the systems renewal program going forward, they primarily focused on the current state of affairs. This phase of the project also included a current systems analysis to validate the findings and recommendations of the other project steps and project phases.

Lastly, Phase 3 focused on the systems renewal program options analysis, preliminary scope definition, and high-level governance recommendations.

Key Recommendation

Resulting from the engagement process, Gartner identified the overall mission of the systems renewal program is to: "Implement an integrated enterprise solution to provide core systems functionality that reduces risks, improves efficiency and effectiveness, implements effective internal controls, enables better management of the University and improves the stakeholder experience."

Gartner’s recommendation is that the university should take an enterprise resource planning (i.e. ERP) solution approach to implementing the systems renewal program. This approach is based on defining functional requirements for the full range of functionality required for the systems renewal program, including functionality that may be required in the future, and seeking to procure it from a single ERP suite.

Goals and Principles of Systems Renewal

Recommended goals:

1. Implement a student administration solution.
2. Implement a finance administration solution.
3. Implement a research administration solution.
4. Integrate and consolidate data.
5. Implement comprehensive reporting capabilities.
6. Implement flexible workflow capabilities.
7. Implement a solution that meets audit requirements.
8. Move onto a current technology architecture.
9. Ensure capability of the solution to leverage strong HR functionality that can be implemented in the longer-term.

Goals 1, 2 and 3 were identified as the primary objectives of the Program. All other goals were determined to be of equivalent priority and secondary to the first three goals.

Recommended principles:

1. Do not custom develop a solution.
2. Minimal customizations will be made to the solution implemented.
3. Processes will be modified to become simpler and more consistent.
4. Project risk must be minimized and managed.
5. Strong scope and expectations management.
6. University stakeholders will actively participate in all phases of the program.
7. Organizational change management will be proactively addressed at all stages.
8. Data is owned by the University.
9. Data is a valuable resource and must be maintained and accessible.
10. Technical foundations for new applications must be sustainable.
11. The eventual solution must be owned by the functional stakeholders.
12. The selected solution should enable self-service functionality.

Next Steps

The complex nature of the systems renewal program means that it will occur in phases which are being planned for implementation over the next five years. Given that ERP vendors (and systems integrators) are experienced at selling and negotiating with clients that may not have the same level of experience with the type of solution and services that will be selected, means the university would benefit from third party assistance.

Securing independent third party support will help ensure that the selection and procurement process for the systems renewal solution is transparent, unbiased and effective at addressing and balancing the university’s many requirements. Obtaining high levels of internal participation in the process, including participation from all faculties and central departments, will also be critical to identifying the solution with the best fit for the university.

In addition to identifing and selecting an independent and qualified third party to assist the university in developing a comprehensive and detailed list of functional and technical requirements to ensure the optimal solution is selected, a senior management position is being posted for a Program Director - Systems Renewal. This position will provide oversight on all aspects of the eventual implementation of the selected solution and is expected to be on board prior to the end of the year.

Having the Program Director in place along with a detailed list of functional requirements means the procurement process to select a software vendor (i.e. solution selection) and systems integrator is feasible by the end of this fiscal year.

In conjunction with the steps outlined above, the university has begun putting in place the strucuture to support all subsequent phases. The Executive Sponsors for the systems renewal program are Dr. Ilene Busch-Vishniac - Provost and VP Academic, Dr. Mo Elbestawi - VP Research, and Mr. Roger Couldrey - VP Administration.

Candidates to serve on the Systems Renewal Program Steering Committee are currently being identified, and this committee will be responsible for providing guidance and support to the program, and providing a consistent mechanism for policy decision making and issue resolution with input from the broader university community. By its membership and mandate, the Steering Committee is a primary driver and enabler of organizational change whose structure and processes need to balance the requirement for collaboration and participation with the need for efficient decision making.

Further updates on the sysems renewal program will be forthcoming as progress towards the next steps continues.