Communication Problems Re-solved

Copyright Tom Kruse and Jeanne Skul 2005. This work is the intellectual property of the author(s). Permission is granted for this material to be shared for non-commercial, educational purposes, provided that this copyright statement appears on the reproduced materials and notice is given that the copying is by permission of the author(s). To disseminate otherwise or to republish requires written permission from the author(s).

Communication Problems Re-solved Loras College

Ms. Jeanne Skul,

Vice President for Information Technology

Mr. Tom Kruse,

Sr. Dir. Information & Support Services

Midwest EDUCAUSE 2005 MWRC05

Loras College Background

Technology Rich– 250 laptops in faculty/staff hands since 2000– 1600 laptops in student hands since 2001– Focus on technology into the curriculum– 85% of classrooms technology enhanced– Blackboard course management– Everyone receives email accounts, network

storage space and e-portfolio web space– On-line student services

Assessment

Performed IT SWOT analysis Held campus forums to discuss issues Met with departments and discussed

their concerns and goals Identified common issues and

difficulties

“The Problem”

Information and services in too many separate locations

Lacking tools for collaboration on documents Too much network administration for shared

information Deficient in campus wide communication to

all audiences (faculty, staff, students, etc.

Our Answer

Revamp

our

intranet

Develop

a portal

Key Players

Endorsed by the president and cabinet Web developer and Dir. of Tech. Support

– Develop a vision– Investigate solutions

Include the marketing department

Goals & Objectives

Two main objectives – start broad– Find a better communication tool– Develop a “doorway” to everything the users need

How– Streamline information and services

Provide access in one central location

– Reduce costs through consolidation What existing solutions & processes can be eliminated Eliminate traditional methods of delivery

The Project

Research– Evaluated articles

Many definitions of “portal”

– Assessed vendors who could provide support Datatel, BlackBoard, Citrix, Microsoft….

– Visited references

Analyze– Further define our goals and objectives

First Tier Goals

Make them want to use it Centralize a location for announcements Links to needed applications Provide discussion board (threaded discussions) and

bulletin board (for sale, ride sharing, etc.) User customizable area Constituent content – different look & feel for

different audience

Second Tier Goals

Single sign on A place to initiate surveys &

results Form & document sharing Chat – instant messaging Training and other

information via streaming video & audio

Third Tier Goals

Access to portal from outside the Loras Community– Define for different constituents – parents, alumni,

Board of Regents, perspective students

Course Management - replace Blackboard Terminal services – replace Citrix “My Site” –provide network and electronic

portfolio directory space

The Project Continued

Testing– Evaluation copies from various vendors– Ease of use– Easy to administer– Total cost

Develop Governance– Who maintains– Who authorizes content

And The Winner Is……

Microsoft SharePoint Portal Sever 2003– Cost – LAN is Microsoft & campus license agreement

Already familiar with Microsoft products Client licensing already paid for in campus agreement

– Built on strengths of Microsoft Server Technology Integrates with MS Office suite seamlessly Ease of use and administration

– Another higher ed. Campus willing to help us with implementation and ideas

– Runs on SQL database, also used for Citrix and other existing apps

SharePoint Benefits

Integrate information from multiple applications and databases, including third party systems

Users can subscribe to “alerts” to automatically be notified of changes

One sign-in and you have individual, teams, and campus wide information at your finger tips

Outcomes

Announcements working well, BUT need to push to the desktop– Set this site as home page

Provided one location for accessing applications– Applications and A-Z search section– Forced them to launch from within portal– IQ – student services (grades, registration, time &

attendance)

Outcomes continued

Discussion boards not heavily used– Users don’t want to make the extra effort– Faculty using this for special classes– Looking for other ways to promote this

MySite operational– Minimal training has been provided

Shared documents and shared sites slowly developing

What’s Next

Complete and promote first tier goals– Offer training on uses & functionality

Start to plan for second tier goals Discussion on third tier goals

Any changes from our original goals?

Challenges

Finding a third party developer– First developer was local, but limited knowledge with

SharePoint– Second vendor from another state & never on-site

Getting items pushed to the desktop – announcements

Determining the “Gate Keeper” for accepting announcements

Reducing mass e-mails

Lessons Learned

Garner approval from the top– Get the president & cabinet on board– Created a site for this group as things developed

Implement in stages – Think Big, Start Small– Enough content to make it worth while for users

More than a glorified newsletter– Flexible & customizable enough for future growth– Big enough to see the benefits, but small enough to not get

discouraged Continuous updating – valuable content

INSIDE.LORAS.EDU

Here is a look at our portal

Questions?