To address the situation, the Information Learning Technology (ILT) Steering Committee was created and charged by the Dean to develop both short term and long term goals and directives for ILT. Following an information gathering period with Extension staff and consultation with IT leaders and professionals outside of Extension, the steering committee hired Meritide to assess the current status of their technical infrastructure, and application development capability and environment.
Meritide was selected for the project because we offered an approach that clearly demonstrated our understanding of Extension’s problems along with an ability to develop a solution. Throughout the selection process Meritide showed technical competence and communication skills with business users, and Extension liked Meritide’s “advisory role” approach where Meritide wanted to partner with Extension’s IT team to develop a solution, rather than “starting over” as other firms proposed.
Meritide performed a Business Systems Assessment for Extension. Representatives of Meritide met with ILT Steering Committee members to understand the requirements and challenges the organization faced. Our team members defined potential technology solutions and matched talent/skills and experience to the defined challenges. The Meritide team separated the challenges into connected phases to deliver immediate value and create credibility while learning the culture, business, and management environment of Extension.
As part of the BSA Meritide addressed operations, applications and the alignment of ILT with the business needs of the University. The phases included in-depth information gathering and review of processes, technology infrastructure, services objectives and metrics, project management methodology, and finally recommendations for bringing the IT organization in alignment with the needs of Extension.
The Meritide Blueprint methodology was used for improving operational processes and blended the utilization of current systems/software with 3rd party tools and components, including open source software and custom software development (if/where required). This approach resulted in recommendations that could be implemented with systems and software already installed at Extension.