Updating the Value Proposition Using Services to Define

Updating the Value Proposition: Using Services to Define Your IT Organization Mark Askren – CIO, University of Nebraska – Lincoln Kimberly Harper – Director of Portfolio Management, University of Nebraska – Central Administration 1

Higher Ed IT in Crisis? Experiencing Pressure From Both Sides • Demand for IT services grows, while resources stay the same or decrease (“new normal”) 2

Change or Fade Away… Short Term Challenge is how to: • Further cut already reduced budgets • Continue to produce core mission services and innovation to meet increasing demand Longer Term Challenge is: • How do we describe ourselves and define our value? Traditional Approach New Approach Project lists with updates Services offered Organizational charts Technology forecasts Security risks & mitigation strategies Budget transparency 3

Choosing Change Our Goals • Create a better understanding of our IT organizations • Validate that our priorities are aligned and funding justified • Identify efficiency & collaborative opportunities • Improve strategic planning & decision-making, and invest accordingly • Stay relevant • Identify opportunities for services improvements 4

An Approach: Services Inventory Scope • • Identify all services provided Identify all assets that support each service Identify customers who utilize each service Identify total cost of each service Methodology • Consultant-led staff interviews • Developed service offering categories, descriptions and characteristics • Developed financial cost model for services 5

An Approach: Services Inventory Deliverables CSN UNL Data Management & Analytics E-Mail, Communication & Collaboration Hardware & Software Support Data Management & Analytics E-Mail, Communication & Collaboration Hardware, Hosting & Storage Internet & Network Connectivity IT Governance & Service Management User Access & Security Internet, Phone & Network Communications IT Governance & Service Management User Access & Security User Training & Community Enterprise Information Systems Printing, Forms & Output Management Infrastructure Hosting User Training & Community Web Development Support Classroom, Lab & Instructional Resources Consulting & Project Management Development, Integration & Support Technology Innovation Support Technology Sales & Repairs 6

An Approach: Services Inventory Different Perspective Cross-functional contributions vs. “Silo” thinking 7

The Key Lessons Learned Using IT services as the value definition is more effective than the traditional organization structure and major projects view Traditional IT becomes Service-Oriented Technology focus Process focus “Fire-fighting” Preventative Reactive Proactive Users Customers Centralized, done in-house Distributed, sourced Isolated, silos Integrated, enterprise-wide “One off”, ad hoc Repeatable, accountable Informal processes Formal best practices IT internal perspective Business perspective Operational specific Service orientation 8

The Key Lessons Learned • Decisions to continue, discontinue or develop new services have wide-spread implementations • Services inventorying and management is a longterm commitment • Challenges: – Moving from team-focus to service-focus – Resource-facing vs. Customer-facing services – Not getting trapped by what you know – Drawing lines in the sand – Staff buy-in 9

Positive Outcomes Focusing on services… Improves communication and understanding: For Executive Leadership… 10

Positive Outcomes For Customers… Many other IT organizations have created online Service Catalogs: Examples: Stanford University: https: //itservices. stanford. edu/services Ohio State University: http: //cio. osu. edu/services/ University of Texas at Austin: http: //www. utexas. edu/its/whatweoffer/ 11

Positive Outcomes Focusing on services… • Provides the starting point for measuring our efficiency • Helps establish a framework for collaboration on campus, within the system, and with our peers in the Big. Ten CIC and beyond 12

Positive Outcomes Focusing on services… • Supports our Strategic Planning & Decision Making Furthers our understanding of how changes in IT services impact the University (e. g. , what functionality is affected, which customers are affected, does it have a global impact or is it focused to a small community) Enables more accurate and timely analysis of sourcing alternatives Helps establishes the culture of continual re-evaluation of services (create new, retire existing, combine, co-source, etc. ) 13

Going Forward Today’s Requirements for Effective IT Leadership • Explain our value in non-technical terms • Align our resources with strategic differentiators • Take the cost out of core services and infrastructure • Utilize service catalogs & request processes • Implement ongoing customer feedback process • Be effective change agents and risk-positive 14

The Updated Value Equation • Expect intense scrutiny of what we deliver, and how much it costs, compared to peer institutions • Shared services: The era of one (or 20+) full-service IT department on the campus is over • It is critical to be able to define our service requirements and costs • Collaboration is now the key leadership skill, and the value of our service catalogs is how we’ll be judged 15

Contact Information Mark Askren maskren 2@unl. edu Kimberly Harper kkharper@nebraska. edu 16