business process change programme

Business Process Change Programme

Summary of Progress and Findings

www.ulster.ac.uk/businessprocess

Business Process Change Programme 2

We are good at many things

• Popular university

• Very good teaching quality and research ratings

• Very capable staff at all levels

• Clear mission

• Strong regional identity


But it is increasingly a competitive world

• Growing numbers of clients

• Expectation of good service

• Demand for 24 x 7

• Processes are not usually “reviewed from the end-user’s perspective; frequently based on past practices or crisis management

• No particular drive for efficiency


What are the needs of those who contact us?

• They want their dealings with us to be well managed, responsive and easy to pursue as well as with the best informed source.

• Enquirers with a developing relationship with us expect to be recognised by the University in the same way as they experience when using online or telephone services offered by other public or private sector organizations (e.g. airlines, online shops etc.)

• Students are paying customers and expect to be dealt with as such


Business Process Change Group

• To develop and foster a culture of working co-operatively across faculty and departmental boundaries to deliver cost effective and user-oriented services employing new technologies and processes as appropriate

• Reviewing the present decision-making and organisational structures with the aim of recommending improvements which ensure effective co-ordination and communication.

• Ensuring that funds and staff resources for projects affecting the business processes of the University are directed to achieve maximum gain for service and cost efficiency.


Changing Our Business Processes

• The Group has investigated 2 priority areas for the new approach

• The rationale is to reform one or two areas thoroughly rather than dissipate effort over a wide range.

• The two areas are, respectively, the management of the student experience from initial contact through to registration and the management of the student’s teaching and learning experience


Work Plan and action to date

Phase 1 June 2003 – June 2004

• Business Process Change Group (BPCG) establishes Student projects

• Student Process analysis leading to findings and recommendations

• Review of Committee and organisational structure by BPCG

Phase 2 June 2004 – October 2005

• Implementation of organisational and business process changes recommended in Phase 1 by BPCG

• Procurement of new Student Information System

• Introduction of student portal and new student admissions system

• Development of staff portal


Work Plan and action to date

Phase 3 September 2005 – August 2006

• First full year of new structures

• Implementation of staff portal

• Implementation of full student system


9 Guiding Principles

• Enquirers must be able to contact the University easily and gain the information or service required quickly without requiring a detailed knowledge of UU structures

• A “one-stop-shop” or “help-desk” approach should be the model for enquiry handling

• Technologies should support this service culture rather than dictate it

• Telephone, email and correspondence-based services as well as personal visits must be handled in the same way


9 Guiding Principles

• UU should be able to recognise quickly and efficiently through its ICT systems with whom it is dealing

• The bulk of information requests and formal procedures be handled electronically, especially through the Web.

• Business processes will be subject to continuous improvement

Standards for services will be clearly defined & tested.

Business processes will be operated as efficiently as possible in the interest of both the enquirer and of controlling costs


Findings - Enquiries and Contacts

• Telephone contact poor - unanswered calls, voicemail etc.• Lack of customer-friendly manner, “owning problems”• Enquiries are rarely recorded and are not linked to

applications• Marketing fragmented• Web does not sell the University; courses difficult to find on

web• Current students have to walk their problem around UU; too

many points of contact• Web structured by department, information hidden in several

layers; different authentication requirements


Findings - Admissions

• UCAS system paper-based; large numbers of forms passed between offices

• UCAS will move to paperless system in 2005

• No monitoring or tracking - P/T and other direct entry students want better response and to see what is happening via the Web

• Customers are dealing with three different departments – Schools Liaison, Registry and Faculties

• Research student admissions bureaucratic and paper-based


Findings - student records, course administration

• Module amendments not notified to UU database in timely fashion, with knock-on effects

• Course Directors heavily loaded with admin, affecting teaching, research

• Multiple student ‘systems’• Access to information by students and staff is limited and

requires navigation through our web site• No standard procedures for receipting coursework or

recording attendance• Multiplicity of student IT accounts• Computer accounts not created fast enough in many cases


Findings – Examinations• Current marks collection system is based on Access 97 and

requires substantial support effort

• Module changes are not always recorded in a timely manner

• Exam Scheduler software is not dynamically linked to Student System, requiring manual intervention

• Examination Board processes for mark amendment can be time consuming and lead to delays


Findings – Graduations

• Processes involved in contacting students and in recording replies and lodging fees are time-consuming

• Processes for invited guests are through a locally-developed Access system which is unsupported by corporate IT resources


Findings – Student Fees

• Large numbers of queries on fees - many generated by inaccurate data or individual fee agreements

• Late production of invoices

• Difficulty in allocating cash

• Availability of on-line payments is limited

• Students cannot view consolidated debt statement


Findings – Student Email and Web Access

• No guarantee that students will access Netmail

• No alerts to student that they have new Netmail

• Students may prefer to use their personal email accounts

• No facility for staff to email students in bulk from student system

• No facility to contact students via SMS texting

• Students have to remember faculty/course URLs and to navigate to these to obtain relevant information


Findings – WebCT

• Lacks penetration in a number of areas

• Not embedded in mainstream culture of university

• Module-based – lacks a ‘course’ focus

• Heavily reliant on accuracy of module enrolments

• Students have to re-authenticate themselves

• Additional email system

• Due dates not included automatically in calendar


Findings – Links to Other Systems

• A number of systems hold student records independent of the corporate system - e.g. Room Service, Torex

• Growing demand for student system to feed others e.g. Progress Files , NIIMLE projects


Overview of main emerging recommendations

• Need for One Stop Shop approach for student-related activities

• Re-organisation of admissions and marketing

• Greater standardisation (e.g. fees)

• Changes to gain improvements in timeliness and accuracy of information in Student System

• More student self-service facilities for maintaining their record


Overview of main emerging recommendations

• Enhance access to system by staff by providing web-based reporting and enabling electronic communication

• Replace Student Information System

• Introduce Student Portal

• Enhance support for WebCT


Student Portal

• Personalised ‘front page’ content

• Single or ‘simplified’ sign-on

• Alerts – assignments, email, fees

• Appropriate links to information resources with authentication

• Student Information System maintenance facilities

• Collaborative tools, including WebCT


Next steps

• Consultation exercise with areas likely to be affected by organisational change proposals

• Further visits by teams of select staff to centres of good practice & innovation

• Final costed proposals

• Detailed recommendations for organisational change

• Establish student implementation project

• Establish portal project

business process change programme

Documents

business process changes

student experience

new technologies

business processesthe

good service demand

staff resources

service cul

new approachthe rationale