Vision 2020

Technology Strategic Directions

Supporting McMaster's Academic, Research & Administrative Mission

Chief Information Officer - May 2010

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Background
• The Roadmap
• Strategic Directions
• Change Management
• Conclusion

Introduction

• Technology used to be about desktop computers, servers, storage and networks
• Today, technology should be about enabling the institution to meet its goals
• This involves transforming processes through the efficient and effective utilization of technology best practices
• Hence, Strategic Directions...

Background

• In 2008, $1.8 million was required to keep 30+ year old systems running
• McMaster is the last of the G13 without an ERP type system for Student, Finance, and Research Accounting
• No central repository exists for institutional data and reporting
• Lack of web strategy effects our public face (www.mcmaster.ca) and results in inefficiences (limited self-service options)
• Minimal attention to evolving and emerging technologies
• Legacy skills not keeping pace with changing technologies
• Lack of strategic focus regarding technology investment and decision-making

The Roadmap

• Current Practice:
  • Legacy systems lacking integration
  • Silo approach to decision-making
  • Data distributed and dispersed
  • Limited ability to provide or recovery critical services in times of uncertainty
  • Proliferation of standalone solutions
  • Islands of technology
• Future State:
  • Fully integrated, supported, best practice solutions
  • Formalized, representative approach to decision-making
  • Central repository of core institutional data incorporating data integrity, security and stewardship
  • Collaborative approach to requirements and solutions development
  • Institutional standards

Strategic Directions

• Five essential areas where attention should be directed to achieve the greatest results:
  • SD1: Systems Renewal and Data Integration
  • SD2: Renewed Focus on Service Delivery
  • SD3: Modern and Simplified Infrastructure
  • SD4: A Hybrid Model Supporting Cooperation
  • SD5: Technology Risk Mitigation Practices

Goal #1: To unify people, process and technology through coordinated systems renewal and data integration

• The Objective is that any university-wide soultion iplemented should:
  • be in the best interests of McMaster University as a whole;
  • provide the ability to get timely and ready access to data, especially for strategic planning, analysis, and decision making;
  • provide improved services for students, faculty, staff, and administrators;
  • be a catalyst for evaluating the way we work and the impact of the work we do;
  • Ensure the selection and implementation process will be inclusive.
• The benefits will be:
  • A single repository of core institutional data providing greater availability, accuracy, security and timeliness of information;
  • Greater automation through the use of workflows to reduce reliance on manual intensive processes;
  • Reduced operational risk through adopting standardized processes and best practices;
  • Reduced cost through quicker deployment of new applications and elimination of redundant and legacy systems.

SD1: Systems Renewal & Data Integration

• Five priorities to support systems renewal and data integration:
  • SD1.1: Enterprise-Wide Solutions
    • Establishes a foundation for future solutions
  • SD1.2: Business Intelligence and Data Warehousing
    • Every Faculty & department requires the ability to collect, analyze, review and disseminate information
  • SD1.3: e-Strategy
    • Address our "public image" and internal needs
  • SD1.4: Unified Communication & Collaboration tools
    • Unite multiple services over multiple devices/platforms
  • SD1.5: Campus-Wide Licensing Agreements
    • Facilitates sharing, distribution, and acquisition at lower cost

Goal #2: Achieve a service delivery and support model that is flexible, agile, and meets user expectations

• Objectives:
  • Rationalize service offerings for central UTS and other units, making it simpler for users to acquire services;
  • Avoid duplication of competency centres for highly complex skills that are expensive to develop and maintain;
  • Achieve greater levels of technology standardization.
• Benefits:
  • Rationalization of service offerings creates the ability to identify trailing-edge services to be discontinued in favor of strategic services;
  • Standardization facilitates the roll out of new applications faster, with fewer resources, and ensures greater interoperability between solutions.

SD2: Renewed Focus on Service Delivery

• Three priorities to support a renewed focus on service delivery:
  • SD2.1: Clarification of Roles & Responsibilities
    • Will remove overlap between UTS & other units permitting each to focus on services at which they can succeed.
  • SD2.2: Define and Promote Standards
    • Standards promoting interoperability should be applied to data architecture, applications, and infrastructure
  • SD2.3: Enhanced Communications
    • Both inform and solicit feedback

Goal #3: Finding ways to eliminate complexity and cost through Infrastructure simplification

• Objectives:
  • Provide greater application availability, especially during peak demand;
  • Lower overall total cost of ownership;
  • Optimize system performance to provide improvements in user satisfaction and productivity.
• Benefits:
  • Virtualization aids in the consolidation of resources and simplification of management to help reduce cost and complexity;
  • Reduced number of vendors necessary to conduct effective IT operations simplifies both IT infrastructure and the procurement process.

SD3: Modern and Simplified Infrastructure

• Three priorities supporting a modernization and simplification of infrastructure:
  • SD3.1: Virtualization
    • Involves a shift in thinking from physical to logical.
  • SD3.2: Consolidation
    • Reducing the number of points of managements, physical devices, locations where data resides
  • SD3.3: Automation
    • Concentrate on tasks involving a significant number of complex and time consuming steps; utilize workflows to produce increased reliability and productivity

Goal #4: Facilitate consistent IT decision making through a shared governance approach

• Objectives:
  • Promote recognition that the strategic value of IT is not about technology itself, but is about the ability of a campus to achieve its goals and objectives through technology;
  • Facilitate opportunities for frequent interaction of key stakeholders across campus to build mutual relationships based on trust;
  • Implement a shared vision approach to technology decision making in which areas providing IT functions can be defined and governed more collaboratively, efficiently and effectively.
• Benefits:
  • Central decision making for core services enables the realization of economies of scale and integration;
  • Decentralized decision making over certain services will allow flexibility in the delivery and tailoring of solutions to truly unique needs;
  • A hybrid model recognizes situations unique to McMaster while balancing needs for adopting single campus-wide solutions.

SD4: A Hybrid Model of Cooperation

• Two priorities supporting a hybrid model for cooperation:
  • SD4.1: Hybrid Governance Model of Cooperation
    • Effective models clearly specify the decision rights and accountability framework to encourage desirable behaviour in the use of technology
  • SD4.2: Supporting Alignment of UTS
    • The right IT organizational alignment is as important as having the right technology

Goal #5: Proactively identify and manage events that would negatively impact technology capital

• Objectives:
  • Know the areas within the technology environment where threat and vulnerability have the greatest potential to cause significant disruption or harm;
  • Minimize the magnitude of harm that could be caused by an adverse event on the institutions mission critical technology systems;
  • Promote awareness of privacy and security best practices;
  • Make risk evaluation and assessment an ongoing, iterative process.
• Benefits:
  • Policies and procedures that strike a balance between privacy and security ensure individuals have access only to the information they require;
  • Ensures the University is compliant with all legal requirements around access to, and protection of, personal and other information (e.g. PCI, FIPPA, and PIPEDA);
  • Considering privacy and security implications before buying or deploying new systems reduces costs and expedites deployment;
  • Ensures a regular schedule for assessing and mitigating technology risks that may result from changes to policies or from new technologies

SD5: Technology Risk

• Three priorities supporting the reduction of technology risk:
  • SD5.1: Risk Assessment
    • Used to determine the extent of a potential threat
  • SD5.2: Risk Mitigation
    • Involves prioritizing, evaluation, and implementing the appropriate risk-reducing controls
  • SD5.3: Risk Evaluation
    • The risk management process requires regular assessment to ensure new risks are routinely identified and mitigated

Change Management

• Successful change involves a smooth evolution, not a revolution
• Accomplished by ensuring everyone affected by the change has an opportunity to be consulted
• Caveat: there is a difference between change and progress
  • Change involves something becoming different
  • Progress involves a judgement that a change is moving in a desirable direction

Conclusion

• Vision 2020 is a freamwork for the future, predicated upon assumptions that:
  • Status quo is simply no longer an option
  • Success is dependent on a spirit of collaboration
• The benefits of Vision 2020's five strategic directions are:
  • Applications & services with a clear relationship to the mission of the University
  • A reduction in the number of technologies, core systems and applications in use
  • Eliminate duplication of services and improve service performance
  • Permit early adoption of emerging technologies

Comments or Questions?

Contact John Kearney, CIO at cio@mcmaster.ca.