Why can't I use your data?

Alison Wildish, Head of Web Services & John Howell, Assistant Director (MIS)

Why can’t I use your data? Can Web Services and CIS work together in harmony

when it comes to the web?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zebble/6080622/sizes/l/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/quelsaa/2080736454/sizes/o/

Web Services

http://www.flickr.com/photos/quelsaa/2080736454/sizes/o/

“Trust”

“The User”

“Engagement”

“Expectations”

http://www.flickr.com/photos/ananthnarayan_s/481060575/sizes/l/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pwz/2096587340/sizes/o

Management Information Systems

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pwz/2096587340/sizes/o

“Security”

“Business Processes”

“Risk analysis”

“Our needs”

“Data Protection”

•Not co-located (Web sits with Marketing)

•Protective MIS – take ‘custodians of data’ role v. seriously

•Do Web Teams naturally think “how can we extend our project to create business efficiencies”?

•Do MIS teams think about the end user or concentrate on business process?

Don’t really work together…

Two different solutions to a problem…

(Case studies from Edge Hill University and University of Bath)

Meet… The Applicant

Need to:

•Help guide applicants through application

cycle; keep them informed

•Demonstrate our excellence; develop a

conversion tool

•Give applicants something simple; minimal

resource available but maximum results

desired

The solution…

The changing web: trends

1. Take the application details stored on Student Record System (SRS)

2. Use the UCAS Number as the unique identifier

3. Use the third party email address (submitted during UCAS application and stored in SRS) to email the applicant…

4.Pre-populate the new site

5. The applicant gets an email, clicks on a link, creates a username and password and away they go…

How it worked…

• Part of a community

• Quick responses; feeling of being supported

• Greater engagement

• Good promotional tool

The benefits…

• Creates an expectation; if I can do this… why can’t I do this…

• Online community experience isn’t reflected in ‘real life’; manual processes on campus

The problem…

Need to:

•Improve admin processes

•Enrol applications pre-arrival

•Create business efficiencies

The solution…

• New students emailed their Bath usernames & passwords

• Can only use Bath systems to register:– Check & update their details– Pay tuition fees– Agree to university regulations

• Continually adding functionality– Now includes Students’ Union registration &

links to local council• Once registered, access to all systems

available– But what for?

Registration on-line

• 91% of students register before they arrive

• No queues

• Better cash-flow

• Better resilience

Results

• Thursday 14th August– A-level results available to applicants– First returning students register on-line

• Monday 18th August– First new undergraduates register on-line

• Monday 22nd September– Freshers week

• So what can we do with this month?

The earlier the better…

The possibilities…

Community aspectsWeb 2.0 features

Admin processesAccount generation+

=Enhanced user experience; supported students,increased conversion, communities, business

efficiencies

Community aspectsWeb 2.0 features

Noticeboards: search for housing

Twitter: get updates from anywhere

Join and interact with SU societies automatically (greater linkages with SU)

Communities by course

Admin processesAccount generation

Links to other third parties,

e.g. banks?Start using web services:

-VLE, course/module email lists,

-Module “tasters”

Set up personal home pages

Further & more flexible integration with other systems