Digital Transformation in IMC University of Applied

Sciences Krems: An Analytical Report

Omar Shaaban 28 Dec 2020

ABSTRACT: Digital transformation in higher education goes beyond technology.

The objective is to adopt new ways of working in order to continue to provide user-centric services in

the face of changing technology, competition, audience needs and behaviour.

Digital (core) services, educators and students with digital skills, decisions that take into account

available evidence are some of the hallmarks of digitally transformed higher education.

In conditions of great uncertainty and competition higher education must move from wondering what

the future might hold to predicting the future - making proactive decisions and acting based on that

information. Evidence-based, quantitative, and predictive decision making is a quite reliable way of

gaining competitive advantage (Šereš, Laslo & Pavlićević, Veselin & Tumbas, Pere. (2018)

KEYWORDS: Digital Transformation. Modern University, Digitalisation., IMC cognitive centre,

Future of Universities.

Introduction

Like the observation about the future often attributed to the science fiction writer William

Gibson, digital transformation (DX) is already here, but it's not yet evenly distributed.

Educause research shows that 13% of colleges and universities are engaging in digital

transformation today, 32% are developing a DX strategy, and another 38% of higher

education institutions are exploring DX. With only 17% of institutions investing no time in

DX, higher education truly is driving digital transformation ( Educause,2020)

Universities should rethink their role in society the local economy and its contribution to

international development, the traditional role was learning, certification, and researching.

However, IMC University has clear statements in its Strategic report but they are still under

the traditional theory, I think the modern role should adopt a new Mission which is

surrounding the “Making the future” concept instead of “targeting the future”.

The purpose of this report is to present the result of a research project that investigated and

analyze IMC University business in order to develop a digital transformation strategy suiting

the Global trends in the education industry.

And the objectives of the project were to identify and understand the Business capabilities, the

digital maturity, and the customer experience factors so that affect the Digital transformation

strategies. At the end of this Analytical report, I will write a list of recommendations in order

to exercise the business model innovation as a suggestion for future improvement

Method

I relied on the online library, web searching, strategy report for IMC University, the

government reports about education and universities in Austria and Germany and I have

divided my project into four steps in order to do the following:

Firstly; initiation, I analyze the IMC business model, defining who is the target customer -

what does IMC offer to the customers - how will IMC create a value proposition- how IMC

will generate revenue. Secondly: Ideation by learning from the 55 Business model patterns

from The St. Gallen Business Model Navigator and develop a new model that fits IMC.

Thirdly: Integration by examining all four questions in the new business model, check the

Consistency.

Lastly, implementation design of a business model as fundament for a pilot, and I have

planned my project as the following map:

For analyzing IMC business, I used:

1- Porter's Five Forces Framework which is a method for analyzing the competition of a

business. It draws from industrial organization (IO) economics to derive five forces that

determine the competitive intensity and, therefore, the attractiveness (or lack thereof) of

an industry in terms of its profitability. (Wikipedia contributors. (2020, December 8)

2- SWOT analysis to evaluate the internal strengths and weaknesses, and the external

opportunities and threats in the IMC university environment. The internal analysis

identifies resources, capabilities, core competencies, and competitive advantages,

(Sammut‐Bonnici, T.2015)

3- I use also the Customer Journey Map (CJM), The fundamental idea behind CJM is

relatively simple; it is a visual depiction of the sequence of events through which

customers may interact with a service organization during an entire purchase process.

CJM lists all possible organizational touchpoints customers may encounter during the

service exchange process.

4- Digital Maturity Assessment (DMAT) is the status of a company’s digital transformation.

Digital maturity is an important construct for further scholarly inquiry as insights on the

paths different organizations take, allow for a more profound understanding of this

ongoing socio-technical phenomenon.

5- Also, I used the Value Proposition Canvas (VPC) in order to set a vision for the digital

business model and developing a value proposition is a laborious process. It requires fully

understanding the customers and other stakeholders in order to design a solution that

really provides internal and external value then Business Model Canvas (BMC1a ) as a

tool to facilitate innovation, it is a visual chart with elements describing a firm's or

product's value proposition, infrastructure, customers, and finances. It assists firms in

aligning their activities by illustrating potential trade-offs. (Wikipedia contributors.

(2020b, December 14).

In terms of recommendations:

1-I have innovated a new business model which is often the key to capturing value from

innovation within the IMC university

2-Also. I write POPIT Advices, which refers to the Technologies and Data as IT, Process as

P, Organization as O. and people as another P.

3-Finally, mindset advice in terms of Vision – Culture- Adoption- Execution-Growth.

I also utilized the internet and literary resources in my research, which still informed the

recommendations I offer in this report, I explored topics such as the high education industry

in Europe, insights regarding Business analysis in the high education sector, and the suggested

development strategies in Digital transformation, In this report, I assimilate these subjects and

evaluate how they could inform Digital transformation strategies in IMC University, As such

internet and library resources allowed me to reach bound experiments to locate strategies from

external environmental initiatives that could enhance Digital transformation journey in IMC

University.

As noted above I condensed my project into four phases, each phase required a unique

adaptation of internet library research methods detailed above

Results

Business Analysis; Porter 5 forces

P5F Diagramm (Dr. Roger Hage, 2017)

The following (Table 1), shows Threat of New Entrants, Competitive Rivalry, Supplier

Power, Buyer Power and Threat of Substitution.

Threat of New Entrants:

1. Minimal infrastructure

requirements allow international

trainings and education start-ups to

venture into online earning and

vocational study sector

2. new training centres and high

schools from east Europe create an

Competitive Rivalry:

1.High competition between online

universities

2.High loyalty to high ranking universities

3.competitors have a strong financial

support

4.Some competitors have a government

background

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC

BY

intensified competitive environment

for higher education institutions.

Supplier Power:

The suppliers of the online part of the

education industry consists of

teachers, administration, software, and

technology.

Buyer Power:

1. BA Students

2. MA students

3. Student researchers

4. Parents

5. R&D sections in industrial

companies

6. Local Government

Threat of Substitution:

1.Online degrees

2.certification houses

3.training centres

4.specialized and skill-based courses offered by the Public sector

5.home schools and conventional schools. companies offering software and programs

created to improve study

SOWT the Internal and external analysis

Internal University Strengths and Weakness

Strengths:

1. Positive reputation in the local industrial community

2. Governmental support

3. Skilled and experts’ lecturers in digital transformation

4. Faculty and staff supporting the campus mission

5. Facilities include new and well-maintained, attractive buildings and grounds with

growth potential

Weaknesses:

1. Less Vision’s clarity toward Digital transformation

2. Incompatible digital transformation Culture

3. Highly competitive market for diverse faculty and staff

4. Low ranking among Austrian and German FH and Universities

5. very low international lining up (Zeit campus CHE Ranking , 2020)

External University Opportunities and Threats

Opportunities:

1.Diversity of region (students – industry)

2.External Community and University relationships: Interest in academic program

expansion - Interest in expansion of cultural activities - Interest in University services

3.Societal trends: Increased value of higher education completion: Growing demand

for graduates

4.Increase demand for mid-career redirection and lifelong learning

5.Increased interest in global initiatives especially the high education institutes from

west Europe and the US

Threats:

1.Development of other FH and Universities locally and internationally

2.Spreading the Non-degree short education programs such as certification and

specialized learning paths

Mastrer student Journey Map (CJM)

The following (Table 2), shows detailed journey map for a Master student from France as a

Persona.

Technology analysis Digital maturity assessment

(Table 3) shows the influences of Customer experience, Operations, Business model, Vision,

Engagement, and Data governance on the IMC University Digital maturity, as I found it, it is

in between Beginners and Conservatives.

Value Proposition Canvas (VPC) ,In the following (Table 4) also shows Gains, Pains ,

Creators of gains and Pain relievers , then the Customer job to be done

IMC Business Model

In the following (Table 5) the Business Model Canvas (BMC) as is.

Customer Segments

1-tuition from Domestic

student

2-tuition from International

student

3- Industry research

4- Donor

5- Government fund

Customer Relationships

1-Virtual and real shows

2- Open days

3-in High Schools

promotions tool

4- Digital communications

Channels

1-On campus

2- Online

3- Partnership

Value Proposition

1- offer a considerable range

of higher education

2- Research and

development

3- reputation

Key Activities

1-Teaching

2-Learning

3-Research and

Development

Key Resources

1-Staff

2-Students

3-VR and other Laps

Key Partners

1- Industry agents

2- Government

3-Alumni

4- Schools

5- Other universities

Cost Structure

1- Staff cost

2-Student services

3-Maintenace

4-Infrastructure

5-Back office cost

Revenue Streams

1- Tuition

2- Research charges

3-Grants and donation

4- Courses fees

Discussion and Recommendations

According to the findings above, I would recommend IMC university to start moving toward

the future and build their modern Business model, hereunder the Innovated model:

(Table 6) Innovated Business Model Canvas (BMC) to be

Customer Segments

1- English speaking at-

home learning students

2- German speaking at-

home learning students

3- Domestic in-campus

students

4- International in-campus

students

5- Research students

6- International researchers

7- Industry professional

internationally and

locally

8- Start ups

9- Childhood online

education sector

10- NGOs and United

Nations institutes

Customer Relationships

1- Students , researchers

and start-ups Digital

services

2- Personal mentoring

3- Self-service and

automated platform

4- Thesis supervisors

5- Research methods guides

6- Customers Mobile app

7- Alumni support

8- Parent relationships

9- IMC Children events

Channels

1- digital channels (

courses, research

platform)

2- partnerships Advertising

3- Mobile apps

4- IMC Children magazine

with stories and paints

5- Local Events and

festivals

Value Proposition

1- academic and non-

academic fermium content

2- Accelerator service

3-Research and development

1- Modern Skills

2- Development

3- International reputation

4- Trainings

Key Activities

1- teaching and learning in

multifunction learning

platform

2- New and verity courses

certification

3- B2B E-commerce

platform between

international researcher

and R&D in companies

4- online magazine to

create and distribute

contents

5- A start-up technical and

advisory incubator

collaborative program to

help new start-

ups succeed

6- specialized academies

such as Innovation

academy and “Jonior

Wissenschafler” online

platform for Children

7- Professional Mentoring

paid services for students

outside IMC.

Key Resources

1. staff

2. Labs

3. researchers

4. Study digital

platform

5. B2b platform

6. Start ups

7. Parents

8. Partnership

9. Local and

international NGOs

8- Special courses for

NGOs and United

nations , targeting

special ethnic and

regional groups

Key Partners

1- Alumni

2- high Schools and

elementary schools

3- research centres

4- Public and private HE

institutions

5-shared services

6- other content providers

7- parents

8- Fundraising institutes

9- NGOs and United nation

organizations

10- Companies for train

students

Cost Structure

1- staff cost

2- student service

3- CRM

4- outsourced service cost

5- shared service cost

6- International Public

relation cost

7- start up in house and

online supporting cost

8- new technology

instalment cost

9- Back office cost

Revenue Streams

1- certification fees and

study tuition

2-Grants

3- content sales

4- B2B commissions

5- Government fund

6- NGO and UN designed

courses fees

7- start up services fees

Firstly, About the new business model:

1- IMC Modern University business model is mixture from the following patterns;

(table 7)

1- Add-On ; IMC MOOC courses are

free and charge for certification and

exams

2- Affiliation : by B2B research-industry

platform IMC will support researchers to

sell their intellectual products to

companies and get commission

3- Auction: by offering financial

supporting for certification for

specifics courses and specific groups

4- Hidden revenue : by make advertisement

to other brands with IMC products and

gain money

5- Crowd souring : by asking researchers

and students around the world to

provide new ideas can be a start for

disruptive innovation via IMC

Community.

6- Customer loyalty : by creating emotional

connection between IMC and the enrolled

Children and their parents , they have the

power of WOM

7- Digitization : turn courses into digital

variants

8- Direct selling : students and others will

buy directly from IMC e-commerce

platform

9- E-Commerce : providing products

through online channels

10- Freemium : IMC MOOC courses free ,

Special courses and certificates for charge

11- Leverage customer data : collecting

customer data and selling to third

party or use it to increase advertising

12- Licence : developing researches and ideas

and licensed to other manufacturers

13- Make more of it : by using IMC know

how to help Start-ups and

Manufacturers to build their products

14- Mass customization : customize courses

for international NGO interest which

targeting special groups

15- Open source: free accessibility to IMC

research platform and scientific blogs ,

money earned from support,

16- Peer to Peer : IMC offer online meeting

points to sharing experiences and

researches

17- Revenue sharing :additional profit

from the high demanded courses will

shared with lecturers and content

creators

18- Reverse engineering : IMC obtain ideas

and insights from other MOOC institutes

to design own courses and saving

investments.

19- Reverse innovation : adaption courses

to the emergent countries

20- Self-service : by self-paced courses

21- Solution provider : provide full

learning and training and researching

and mentoring services

22- Target the poor : offering low price

certification , and gain from higher

enrolment

23- Two-sided market : B2B IMC

platform offer service from

researchers and enterprises .

24- Used design : IMC providing start-ups and

researchers and student with the necessary

support in order to help them to produce

their own

25-White label: produce courses and allow NGOs and UN to distributed under their brands

2- IMC should Enter MOOC market ,the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) Market size

is expected to grow from USD 3.9 billion in 2018 to USD 20.8 billion by 2023, at a

Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 40.1% (MOOC report , 2020) , and the most

futuristic Roles related with Robotics, Augmented and virtual reality, Autonomous

transports , Greenpower ,Cloud security, Machine learning , Space exploration , Data

science, Senior health care, Biotech (Galvis, N. (2020).

3- Following new courses categorizing being closer to the Market, According to the annual

workforce report , the most demanded jobs in the future are related with high technology

such as Artificial Intelligence and Autonomous transports , Data science ,Digital

transformation , Automation and robotics , and business services and development (World

Economic forum. 2020).

4- Establish "Jonior Wissenschafler" Future academy for children offer variety courses online

for kids in German and English .

5- Establish Innovation academy , short courses with certification .

6- Design more certificates according to Work force annual report mentioned above.

Secondly, POPIT Advices:

1- Technologies and data:

a. Creating multifunctional platform for Students, researchers and R&D in

companies

b. Mobile Apps for students and researchers

c. Blockchain -E commerce full services integrated with the Platform

d. Artificial intelligence to provide more personalized courses and streamline

admin tasks and make global classrooms available

e. Online data base and communications service

f. Chatbot available 24 hours and

g. M2M communication

2- Organization structure:

a. creating new roles

b. empowerment

c. digital lab incubator

3- People:

a. digital skills training

b. recruiting new skills

c. global training program

d. innovation academy

4- Communication:

a. designing Digital handbook to be as a bible for IMC University stakeholders

b. being sociable sharing scientific analysis for public

Finally, Digital Organization Mindset

1- Vision: winners in the digital transformation race execute a strategy that takes what

they've learned in their improvement of manual business operations and turns them

into digital ones starting with exposing key business data via APIs.

2- Culture: Digital transformers foster the right culture for digital change and it's not just

about getting the right people with the right skills in place. The culture around

everything , and getting a commitment from senior management is crucial , because

without sponsorship, the innovation of the business model is bound to fail.

3- Adoption: it starts with knowing how to get buy-in across business, academic and non-

academic products , technical and operational leadership.

4- Execution: in order to deliver better digital customer experiences, digital

transformation leaders ensure they have the resources in place to execute. They make

operational decisions using analytics to improve engagement with customers and

partners.

5- Growth: take advantage of monetization opportunities for IMC education and

research services before the competition does.

6- KPIs: Don't put too much emphasis on KPIs in the short term, it takes time to

innovate.

Limitations of the Report

Due to the short time, I couldn’t analyze the competitions in the Austrian market, Europe and

Internationally as well. And could not have in the consideration the BA students, researchers,

and R&D from local communities and local government experiences that was due to the lake

of time and the new year vacation.

References

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