UCISA: CISG-PCMG

Corporate Information Systems and Project and Change Management Groups

The annual CISG-PCMG Conference will be taking place in Newcastle in 2024.

The technologies we rely on are continuing to evolve at pace, and potentially quicker that many Institutions can keep up with. We have been here before, but the challenges we are facing now are fundamental and are causing Institutions to realign their infrastructure, systems, and services. Our business models are changing, our Institutional expectations have grown and are being driven more than ever by student recruitment, research, and financial priorities. Overall resilience, sustainability and supply chain factors are forcing us to adapt. We can no longer just fill the digital gaps and extend functionality, we must Adapt for the Future.

Project and Change Management is hugely important to our ability to adapt for the future, the new business models, new ways of working, whilst still delivering quality and timely services that offer continual service improvement and demonstrate tangible benefits to our users and stakeholders. This discipline underpins everything we do, but how are we adapting our programme and planning needs and capabilities given the levels of change we are experiencing and the financial model we are having to operate under? Who is setting your priorities and how are they doing it?

Artificial Intelligence (AI) impact and the maturity levels of the associated technology is set to radically change our business processes and delivery capabilities, and Institutions are realising that they must embrace AI across all areas from education delivery and assessment, to student and user experience, to automated processes and services, reporting, analytics and personalisation and to take advantage of big data for effective decision-making. Are we ready for this? Do we have the skillsets in place? Are we agile enough to embrace this change? What does best practice look like?

Cyber Security is the number one concern in Higher Education technology, and this is impacting our current technology landscape in terms of what we deliver and how we deliver. Institutions are increasing budgets for Cyber Security, which is good and required, but is there a hidden cost to other core provision? AI over the next period will have a significant role to play in cyber detection and defence, but potentially it is an exploitation or exposure tool as well. What does this mean for our core IT and legacy systems and services?

Financially the sector is being challenged by Government and funding body requirements and targets, and fluctuations in domestic and international recruitment levels, and they are influencing the size and shape of university offerings and operational capabilities. Sector budget constraints are biting, we are seeing budget cuts internally and from Government and a range of universities have advertised Voluntary Severance Schemes to try and address shortfalls. How are we planning and adapting for this period of financial instability?

Systems interoperability and data integration has become key to how we operate. But is how we deliver now looking to the next stage? Institutions are reviewing their business systems, from curriculum management systems to timetabling provision, from Web to CRM to Student Information Systems, and there also looks to be a renewed interest in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP). How are we evolving our Enterprise Architecture to support and deliver new and enhanced capacity? What innovations are happening in your areas? How are systems being brought together or leveraged?

Adapt for the future

Is there a silent understanding that we need to change, retire old systems and architecture, but that we do not have the resource to do this? Are we frustrated by traditional models of delivery, inflexible licensing, lack of consultancy in the market, reduced resources, limited agility and skillsets and vendor self-preservation? What is the development resource and skillsets needed to deliver and support the change we require?

The Conference offers a great opportunity to network with your peers from across the Higher Education community, as well as the chance to engage with your suppliers who stand ready to support you as you ‘Adapt for the Future’. Come join the conversation.

About UCISA

UCISA is a membership organisation that represents almost all the major UK universities and higher education colleges with a growing membership among other educational institutions and commercial organisations interested in information systems and technology in UK education.

We're proud to support UCISA at the CISG-PCMG Conference as exhibitors.

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