A New Way to Frame IT Projects
What does this mean to the campus IT division? It suggests a new way to frame projects. Many IT projects are justified on their ability to reduce institutional costs in the long run. This should remain an important focus.
IT leaders should also be thinking about projects with positive ROI’s for the student—projects that may increase costs to the student but will result in measurable increases in the value of the degree or potentially reduce time to graduation.
Business Schools often operate in this mindset charging premiums for an MBA even at public universities realizing that the MBA will lead to higher paying jobs than degrees in other areas of study. Since pursuing an MBA is primarily an investment decision, students have been willing to pay this premium.
While not increasing business school tuition, my university recently invested over $100,000 setting up a lab equipped with 12 Bloomberg Terminals. These terminals connect to the database that has become the “coin of the realm” for investment and financial decision-making.
Our students now have the opportunity to complete a multi-hour proprietary online course to become “Bloomberg Certified.” One student reported to me that after completing his certification he resubmitted an online application for a job where previously he had been rejected almost immediately. With the only change in his resume being the addition of “Bloomberg Certified,” he not only got an interview but also made it to the finalist pool.
IT divisions should be working with academic and student services divisions to find other “Bloomberg” opportunities where increasing costs can increase value.
Not every project that increases value, however, justifies funding. Return on investment applies to increases in value just as it does for decreases in costs. Thus, it is incumbent on IT managers to develop effective metrics for these projects allowing for sound ROI decision making.
There is no question that increasing college tuition is frightening. On the other hand, if our perspectives at the university are solely focused on reducing costs, we could end up making the situation worse for students and their parents.
IT has a long history of in-depth analysis of projects weighing costs and outcomes in a rigorous fashion. Broadening the overall university model to look at both the affordability and the value sides of the equation will increase the impact of IT on the university and benefit parents, students and the university in the long run.
[Editor’s note: This post was originally published on Optimal-Partners blog.]
Elmore Alexander is a writer for Optimal-Partners blog and dean of the School of Management at Marist College.
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