HUMANE Seminar: Does informationtechnology change university management?

1. Perspectives and expectations of the University in rebuilding their processes in research, teaching and administration HUMANE Seminar: Does informationtechnology change university management? University of Lisbon, 2010 November 19 & 20 Hans-Jürgen Simm, Chancellor of the University of Bielefeld

2. The German Research Association‘s recommendations for information processing in universities 10/2010 „An efficient IT infrastructure for research, teaching and health care will be the decisive prerequisite for success at universities and university clinics facing national and international competition.“

3. What do you want your university to achieve? Your university is or is to become a highly regarded, successful university or college of applied sciences with outstanding achievements in research and / or teaching.

4. To reach this aim you need • Highly motivated academics who are passionate about teaching and research • Students who study with passion Both prepared to make every effort to fulfil the highest expectations

5. What is it (often) like in the real world? • Academics who complain about • lack of money • lack of time • excessive bureaucracy • impenetrable processes • muddled BA /MA structures • administrative inflexibility • lack of efficiency and so on

6. Protesting students who complain about • lack of freedom in their studies • excessive workload • lack of transparency in grading and exam structures • overcrowding in seminar rooms and lecture halls • unclear distribution of responsibilityand so on

7. Malicious tongues claim: the discrepancy between aim and reality could not be bigger!

8. Responsibility lies with: • Politicians • Bundestag (German Federal Parliament) • Landtag (provincial parliament) But: What is our contribution? What can we do to help academics and students research, teach and study with enthusiasm?

9. In our universities we can together shape those elements lying within the growing domain of university autonomy Point of departure: Expectations of our academics and our students

10. Outline • Expectations of academics and of students • Why do we not fulfil these expectations? • What needs to be changed? • Example: introduction of process-oriented SAP in the University of Bielefeld • Conclusion

11. Expectations of academics and students 1.1 What sort of people are they? 1.2 What do they expect of the university?

12. 1. Expectations 1.1 What sort of people are they? Digital naturals • with wide knowledge of IT-technologies • used to obtaining unlimited information from the internet with notebooks and extensive W-LAN provision • communication via Facebook or Twitter • music via I-Tunes • online-banking and online travel-booking They are (we trust) highly intelligent, have the highest of standards, but also the potential to be highly critical

13. 1. Expectations 1.2 What do these people expect of the university? (The academic and student perspective) • An intellectually stimulating atmosphere • Outstanding quality of content • An organisation which permits full focus on research, teaching and study

14. 1. Expectations • Transparent, speedy and simple access to content, to scientific information (knowledge services) • Guarantee of optimal processing of this information for research, teaching and study • World-wide access (mobility) • Secure processing and communication procedures • Constant access • High quality of service

15. 1. Expectations Concrete examples in research: • Virtual research environments in which services can be combined as one likes (mash-up) • With cooperation projects: basic support for cooperative work • Cooperation platforms • Use of shared resources (data service centre)

16. 1. Expectations Concrete examples for students: • Dynamic teacher / student portfolios: joint work of students and teachers on information made available via the internet (collaborative learning, interaction between teachers and students) • E-learning • Knowledge services, acces to publishing companies • Fully computerised routine processes of academic administration (e.g. registration of students, signing on for courses, credits, certificates)

17. 2. Why do we not fulfil these expectations? 2.1 People and philosophies of yesteryear… 2.2 Structures of yesteryear

18. 2. Why do we not fulfil these expectations? 2.1 People and philosophies of yesteryear • Teaching: in large lecture halls • Research: in splendid isolation and freedom • Financing: input-oriented, no differentiation between research and teaching • Philosophy of self-regulation • Administrative philosophy

19. 2. Why do we not fulfil these expectations? Philosophy of self-regulation • Vested-interest oriented • Power-oriented • Hierarchy-oriented • Rule-oriented • Safety-oriented

20. Administrative philosophy organising regulating enforcing supervising Orientation The law 2. Why do we not fulfil these expectations?

21. 2. Why do we not fulfil these expectations? 2.2 Structures of yesteryear • Professorial, institute and faculty structures • Administration: hierarchical structure • Function-orientation • IT-structures based on function-orientation

22. Function-orientation 2. Why do we not fulfil these expectations?

23. Problems of function-orientation Isolated solutions Compartmentalised thinking Many intersections More coordinatory effort required Duplication of work Communication breakdowns Insufficient information Department-level responsibilities 2. Why do we not fulfil these expectations?

24. 2. Why do we not fulfil these expectations? IT-structures up to 1990: large-scale central solutions from 1990: decentralised small-scale solutions based on function orientation Thus: increased efficiency through unchanged adoption of existing processes in IT-systems

25. 3. What needs to be changed? 3.1 People and philosophies 3.2 Structures

26. 3. What needs to be changed? 3.1 People and philosophies • Teaching: lectures • Research: splendid isolation and freedom • Financing: input-oriented, no differentiation between research and teaching • Philosophy of self-government • Administrative philosophy • Interactive forms of teaching and learning • Additionally: cooperation, target orientation • Output-oriented, separation of research and teaching • More entrepreneurial-orientation • Cost-efficiency and service orientations

27. 3. What needs to be changed? Service orientation for the clients (customer relationship-management) For instance: campus management system Different types of customer (interest groups) • Professors • Students • Administrators • External groups The challenge: understanding the needs of customers and aligning these with the options of the IT-organisation.

28. 3.What needs to be changed? 3.2 Structures • From function to process orientation • From decentral function-oriented IT-processes to integrated IT solutions

29. 3.What needs to be changed? Process orientation

30. Advantages of process orientation Trans-sectoral thinking Fewer interfaces Quicker processes Standardisation Clearly defined cooperation Transparency 3. What needs to be changed?

31. 3. What needs to be changed? Processes The following process types must be distinguished: • Processes within the universities (internal processes), e.g. the Bologna process • Processes in the framework of scientific cooperation (cooperative processes), e.g. E-learning, SPAM-protection • Processes with participants outside academia, e.g. licence providers, publishers

32. 3. What needs to be changed? It is not the function of the management direction • to organise the process level • to organise the data level But to secure • the harmonisation of the infrastructural level of IT-operations inclusive of portfolio management

33. 3. What needs to be changed? Up to 1990 Large central solutions From 1990 Decentral small solutions Today Integrated solutions: networked, process oriented

34. 3. What needs to be changed? Integrated information management • No physical separation between the systems science and administration • Everything accessible via the net (Cloud) • Everything accessible via portals • Business processes and supporting IT-processes comprehensively synchronised • The links between the individual systems largely automatised and independent of human intervention

35. 3. What needs to be changed? Consequences of integrated information management: • Alignment of processes • Alignment of structures - Organisation and process structures, e.g. traditionally separate services such as telephone, media, data centres are now integrated and organisationally optimised - The organisational sub-division of the university no longer determines action - The data centres are now IT service centres providing not only basic IT but also administrative services Integrated information management processes can thus become innovative power-engines for modern universities

36. 3. What needs to be changed? A major problem Responsibility, status, power With regard to • administration - faculties • central admin - decentralised admin • central IT (RZ) - decentralised IT • Admin dept., head office - Admin dept., head office

37. The power issue: central or decentralised becomes irrelevant against the background of integrated processes 3. What needs to be changed?

38. Outcome re 3. What needs to be changed? • Target orientation • Service orientation • Cost-effectiveness orientation • Process orientation • Integrated solutions

39. 4. Example Process-oriented SAP-introduction at the University of Bielefeld

40. HISSVA HISKBS HISFSV HISBes HISCOB

41. Aims Enhanced quality Increased freedom of action Acceleration of processes Greater transparency Avoidance of redundant activities Optimisation of resources Greater satisfaction of academics and students 4. Example

42. 4. Example: level concept and process architecture Anzahl Modelle Prozesslandkarte mit Prozessbereichen 1 Ebene 0 WKD Prozessbereich mit Hauptprozessen 2 WKD Ebene 1 Hauptprozess mit Prozessen 12 Ebene 2 WKD Prozess mit Aktivitäten 75 EPK + FB Ebene 3

43. 4. Example: processes concerned Personal Personal einstellen Personal umsetzen/Finanzierung ändern Personalkosten planen Stellenübersicht erstellen Finanzbuchhaltung & Kasse Einnahmen buchen Leistungen/Kosten verrechnen Stammdaten pflegen Beschaffung Bedarfsanforderung erstellen Kontierung prüfen Anforderung genehmigen Bestellung durchführen Wareneingang buchen Processes concerned Drittmittel Drittmittelprojekt bewirtschaften Drittmittelprojektnachweise erstellen Finanzcontrolling & KLR Budget planen Leistungen und Kosten verrechnen Stammdaten pflegen

44. 4. Example: Level 2 – Bank book-keeping (WKD)

45. 4. Example: SAP – The solution for the University of Bielefeld WMD X-Flow SRM Bestelltool FI Finanzen AI Vergabe FI-AA Anlagen MM Material-wirtschaft PS Projekt-system CO Controlling HCM Personal SAP

46. 5. Conclusion • If we are to fulfil the expectations of current and of future generations of academics and students, we must order our own affairs optimally • Central role of university IT in generating increased efficiency • Developing strategic university IT is one of the main functions of university administration

47. 5. Conclusion Does information technology change university management? Yes, at least with regard to the provision of service infrastructure in all fields of research, teaching and administration.

48. Thank you for your attention.