The State of the Web

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The State of the Web

• WebDays 2002
• Dale Foster, Chair of Web Implementation Committee

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The History

• Campus Wide Information Services (CWIS)
• Representation from CC, Library, University
  Relations
• Largely volunteer
• Created a high-quality website that received a
  number of awards

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The time had come . . .

• Senior Executive Advisory Committee on
  Information Technology (SEACIT) said . . .
• The web should be an institutional priority
• The Web will be inseparable from the business
  activities of the university
• The Web will pervade all aspects of what we do

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Commitment to the Vision

• SEACIT recommended a collaborative administrative
  structure
• New resources (in UR and CC)
• Executive responsibility vested in VP(Academic)
• Model (and resources) under continual review

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The Committee Structure
Web Policy Group Chair VP(Academic) Registrar,
University Librarian, Director CC, Director
Continuing Education, Dean Student Affairs
Services, Director Alumni Affairs Set general
policy directions for the MUN web
WIC Web Implementation Committee Chair Dale
Foster Representatives from CC, Student Affairs
Services, University Relations, Student
Recruitment Promotion, University Relations,
Library, Continuing Education Task assignment,
overview of implementation, current vision, RD,
standards templates, data harmonization issues
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Timeline

• Dr. Simpson convenes Web Policy group in April
  2001
• May 2001, WIC membership confirmed meetings
  held biweekly
• Web Manager (Paul Whittle) hired for UR in Nov.
  2001
• Position in CC is in the works

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Priorities Set SEACIT Policy Group

• Use of the Web as a institutional recruitment
  marketing tool
• Policies for
• Visual identity
• Standards for quality and content on
  institutional web pages
• Improving internal communication and collaboration

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And, we talked to the community. . .

• Focus Groups with
• Distance and Part-time Students
• (teachers)
• On-campus Students
• Faculty
• Staff
• Alumni

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And they told us . . .

• Strengths of existing site
• Easy to use
• Comprehensive, detailed
• Quick to load

• Weaknesses
• Homepage layout confusing
• Information not updated regularly
• Accessing some information is frustrating
• Too much information on homepage

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We got to work . . .

• Inventoried our website
• It reflected the administrative structure rather
  than user needs
• Dead links
• Outdated information

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Our solution . . .

• Create an INTERIM homepage
• Focus on homepage second-level institutional
  pages
• Create a learning environment for web
  development
• Integrate new people resources
• Solicit feedback to interim design
• Incorporate lessons learned into
• Identification of issues ?
• New development strategy ?
• New website

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Changes we made

• Created an interim homepage
• Weeded out dead links
• Reorganized material
• Second level pages created (e.g. Current
  students)
• Struggled with descriptors, especially on the
  homepage
• Provided dynamic content (pictures)
• And so, the original homepage . . .

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Became . . . .
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AGHHHHH !!!!!!!

• We asked for it . . .
• AND WE GOT IT!

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Lessons Learned

• Branding is Critical
• Content Rules
• Content required for functionality
• The Steak before the Sizzle
• aka Form Follows Function
• Require Development Processes

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Branding is Critical

• Website will reflect the Memorial Experience as
  distilled in the Universitys marketing plan
• University Relations is developing a marketing
  plan
• Will affect web as recruitment tool
• Will influence visual identity guidelines
• specific requirements for the web
• And we will integrate its development into our
  web strategy
• Form Follows Function

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Content Rules

• The Web will build lifelong community amongst
  stakeholders
• Stakeholders provide content (institutional
  content comments stories help)
• They interact on the web
• Ask questions and get answers
• Interact with peers
• Content will be personalized and customizable
• Recognize the potential to establish a lifelong
  relationship

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Content Rules

• The web will support the educational scholarly
  objectives of MUN
• The web will support the professional development
  and lifelong learning of staff, faculty, alumni,
  and the wider university community

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The Steak Form Follows Function (1)

• The Web can increase collaboration and
  coordination across and within campus units and
  improve communication
• Size matters The little processes
• Intranets
• Sharing documents, procedures
• Improve processes
• Faculty / staff profiles
• Calendaring software

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The Steak Form Follows Function (2)

• Bring all appropriate services to the web
• Create a Consider the Web mindset
• Identify current and envisioned services
• Identify stakeholders and champions
• Allow seamless and efficient access
• Provide a high-quality experience with measurable
  objectives and benefits
• Streamline processes, bring services to our users
  instead of users to our services

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Development Processes Required

• The web will become part of the institutional
  culture, vision and thinking
• The web will be resourced in a manner that will
  make it effective and central to the university
  mindset
• Access to resources will be equitable

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The Issues Arising

• Wheres the beef?
• Identifying the functionality
• Delivering the Full Meal Deal
• Delivering the functionality
• Providing excellent service
• Adding depth to the functionality

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Wheres the Beef? Identifying Function

• Need to identify involve stakeholders
• Need to identify key needs, processes, and the
  envisioned processes of stakeholders
• A user-centric site will require collaboration
  between units
• Umbrellas for administratively diverse but
  logically integrated things
• Collaboration will not stand in the way of timely
  development

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Delivering the functionality

• Provide Technical Resources
• Provide Hardware Space Resources
• Provide adequate, professional IT support
• For development, databases and infrastructure
• Create mechanisms for budgetary allocations to
  provide equitable access to resources
• Address the Central Unit Paradox

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Delivering the functionality

• Establish an e-business standard and
  infrastructure for Memorial (e.g. centralized
  control for transaction fulfillment)
• Security
• Authentication
• Provide alternatives for user

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Providing Excellent Service

• Provide a seamless experience to visitors/users
• Improved searching and meta-tagging required for
  effective seamless entries
• Profiling, authentication single sign-on
• Allow personalization and customization

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Adding Depth with Content

• Content Providers are Everywhere
• Assuming ownership of content
• Identifying people to do the work
• Providing structure and rewards (job
  descriptions, feedback evaluation, rewards) for
  creator stakeholders
• Providing superior training
• Dynamic content creation requires monitoring, not
  censorship
• Providing Content Management Software
• Protecting Intellectual Property while fostering
  collaboration community

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Next steps

• Applying the Lessons Learned
• Soon Launching of the Interim Page
• Development of a new web presence
• With functionality
• A consistent message
• And user centric
• Define processes in development
• The Portal Project