Section 2 of the Smudie Project Bid

Section 2 of the project bid summarised the problem space to be addressed by the Smudie proposal:

Summary
The problem space addressed by this proposal is that of Institutional data management. The present systems at Swansea Metropolitan University, both human and technical, have evolved organically over the years and have multiple points of data collection, management and reporting that risk compromising data integrity and accuracy. This project will use key JISC resources to evaluate the existing data management systems at SMU and to design and implement a new integrated system that will deliver:

1. Data quality, consistency and currency;
2. Integrated data management and communications;
3. Improved data accessibility for management and QA purposes;
4. Agile and efficient processes, responsive to changing needs.

Underpinning the initiative will be the objective of meeting the SMU strategic objectives of continuous improvement in management structures, quality procedures, and contributing to the goal of improved cost effectiveness. The work will be carried out in collaboration with UW Trinity St David with whom SMU will be merging in 2012 and where data management integration will be a priority.

A data management team led by the Head of Quality, Learning and Teaching at SMU will coordinate student and curriculum data recording through the three key entry points in Registry, the Faculties and the University Quality Office. The project will use Enterprise Architecture modelling to optimise the management structures and procedures to enable implementation throughout the newly merged University by the end of 2012. The project will conclude in 2013 with a programme of testing and evaluation.

This objective maps directly to the priority area in the JISC Strategy 2010-12 which aims to help institutions to be efficient and effective through improvements in their corporate and business systems using technology. The project will use the selected JISC resources and will be active in the Strategic Information Practice Group as it designs and implements the new data management system. It will capture the story of how the JISC resources were used, and the value they contributed, as part of a case study on the new integrated data management system at SMU.

JISC Resources
The project will use the Archi Enterprise Architecture modelling software application developed by JISC-CETIS to evaluate the existing data management structures at the university. Having created an as is model, it will then use the same software to design a new to be model that will deliver the intended improvements. It will benefit from the EA experience gained through the JISC Bracken project at SMU.

The project will use JISC resources that have focussed on improvements in data management. In particular it will use the JISC InfoNet Business Intelligence Infokit which provides advice and tools at both strategic and practical levels. Equally relevant will be the resources in the JISC InfoNet Managing the Information Lifecycle Infokit.

The project plans to liaise directly with relevant project teams engaged in the JISC Business Intelligence programme. It will draw on the work of the Bolt-CAP project at the University of Bolton which addresses similar issues and is also using Enterprise Architecture. It will also seek to benefit from the LUMIS project at Liverpool University which has the goal of improving the quality and performance of institutional information systems.

The Business Intelligence for Learning About Our Students project at the University of Sheffield has the same concerns about the problem of data silos and multiple data sources and the outcomes of that project will be evaluated. These Business Intelligence projects are scheduled to end at the time the Transformations Programme begins. The value they will bring to the SMU project will be therefore both timely and current in terms of the technology solutions they offer.