All the Moving Parts: Designing a Merged Library/IT Organization EDUCAUSE Mid-Atlantic Regional...

All the Moving Parts: Designing a Merged Library/IT Organization

EDUCAUSE Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference

January 10, 2006

Presenters

Todd A. Heckman

Partner, Smart and Associates, LLP Robert Renaud

Vice President & CIO, Dickinson College

Agenda

Institutional Context Factors Leading to Reorganization Key Decisions Organizational Design Initial Outcomes Key Learnings Web Site

Institutional Context

Institutional Context

Budget problems in the 1990s New leadership Dickinson College Strategic Plan,

FY 2001-2005 Focus on measurable outcomes

Factors Leading to Reorganization

Strategic Plan review in 2004: Budget balanced Selectivity increased National visibility enhanced Library organization stabilized IT services issues identified

Smart Associates engagement

Key Decisions

Decision to merge, April 2004 Decision to adapt initial design to

Dickinson culture Decision to create CIO position Decision to keep existing units essentially

intact Decision to use summer to implement

initial changes

Primary User InterfacePrimary User Interface

College Governance StructureCollege Governance Structure

Dickinson College Strategic PlanDickinson College Strategic Plan

Campus NetworkCampus Network

Functional ApplicationsFunctional Applications

Administrative Academic

How the strategy is managed & translated

Primary First Line Response to Campus

How the unique departmental

requirements are supported by technology

The common foundation for driving economies of scale

The primary driver for technology strategy

Organizational Design

Organizational Design

Primary User InterfacePrimary User Interface

College Governance StructureCollege Governance Structure

Dickinson College Strategic PlanDickinson College Strategic Plan

Campus NetworkCampus Network

Functional ApplicationsFunctional Applications

Administrative Academic

CIO

InstitutionalSystems

InfrastructureSystems

AcademicTechnology

UserServices

President

LibraryServices

Organizational Design

LIS Departments Academic Technology Services Infrastructure Systems Institutional Systems Library Services User Services

LIS Cross Functional Teams Global Education and Language Instruction Web Design and Management

Organizational Design

Administrative

Initial Outcomes

New management team in place Decision to replace ERP Migration to new network OS WiFi deployment Broad deployment of PDAs Dramatic gains in front line service Integrated Web presentation

Initial Outcomes

Staff pushback Resistance to integrated Web site Confusion over library Poor alignment with governance

structure Space and logistics problems

Key Learnings

Manage expectations at all levels Align organization with governance

structure Involve staff in decisions affecting

worklife Separate organization and public face Understand cultures within merged

organization

Key Learnings

Manage expectations at all levels Tension between need to absorb change

and show results Poor understanding of rationale Challenge of communicating to divergent

groups

Key Learnings

Align organization with governance structure Initial LIS structure incompletely mapped

to faculty committees Gaps caused miscommunication Committee structure changed in Fall 2004

Key Learnings

Involve staff in decisions affecting worklife Issue of speed of changes History of little change New CIO, new directors Issue of work space

Key Learnings

Separate organization and public face Fallacy of one to one matching of

organizational structure and services Case study of the library as brand Role of the Web

Key Learnings

Understand cultures within merged organization Neither library nor IT side is monolithic Divergent professional cultures Inheriting past baggage

Web Site

Key Learnings

Understand cultures within merged organization Neither library nor IT side is monolithic Divergent professional cultures Inheriting past baggage

Key Learnings

Understand cultures within merged organization Neither library nor IT side is monolithic Divergent professional cultures Inheriting past baggage

Key Learnings

Understand cultures within merged organization Neither library nor IT side is monolithic Divergent professional cultures Inheriting past baggage

Key Learnings

Understand cultures within merged organization Neither library nor IT side is monolithic Divergent professional cultures Inheriting past baggage

Questions and Comments

All the Moving Parts: Designing a Merged Library/IT Organization

EDUCAUSE Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference

January 10, 2006