Project Name: Single Virtual Accessibility Portal (SVAP)
Lead Institution: Falmouth University
Project Lead: Alec Thompson
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Background
Falmouth University specialises in Art, Design, Media and Performance, attracting creative minds and visually attuned students. Just under one third of our students have reported or have been diagnosed with dyspraxia or dyslexic tendencies and as a result a range of specialist support services have been developed to actively support our students to maximise their potential and fully engage them in the learning experience. These services were delivered by a number of different teams located across the Tremough campus. A new building called The Exchange has been built and earmarked for the development of a student helpdesk to allow a single point to access support services and the like as part of the flexible, open learning space within it.
Aims and Objectives
While creating the new service desk in the Exchange building, this project aimed to review existing systems and processes to determine the requirements for a new IT system (Single Virtual Accessibility Portal) and to redesign the support service delivery using sector best practice. The JISC Service Design guidance has formed a key reference resource in the redevelopment of these services.
By redesigning these processes we anticipate transforming our student support facilities into a single, coherent service located in an easily accessible location (the new Exchange Building) and capable of meeting the students’ requirements in “one” visit. The SVAP will provide a virtual interface for students to enable remote any time access to information relating to the students’ enquiries and service delivery. The system will also be used by support teams to manage delivery of these services. This will significantly enhance the student experience whilst delivering a more flexible and efficient service.
Context
Falmouth University is currently undergoing a sustained period of growth fuelled by European Convergence Fund investment and as a result, exciting new facilities are/have been developed on campus. The new Exchange building provides a flexible, open learning space and an opportunity to unite these disparate support services into one central hub at the heart of the campus. This central location now provides students with a single point of contact where all of their support requirements can be discussed and then catered for. Under pinning this service is the need to implement a new IT system which will allow student support requirements to flow seamlessly across different teams and disability specialisms.
The Business Case
Due to the disparate nature of student support services and their “Silo-based” operating practices a number of disconnected systems and processes have evolved. This results in students being passed from team to team and having to repeatedly provide their personal details and support requirements leading to a less than “ideal” service. Once engaged with the service the support received is very highly regarded (as indicated by the results from the national student survey).
The project aimed to create the specification for a new system to manage elements of the student journey particularly around how students engage with, and to gain support from, a range of support services.
The system is being introduced to provide a more integrated, personalised and holistic approach to student support delivery, reinforcing and supporting the existing physical teams, and ensuring a consistency of approach to student enquiries and support, while maintaining a personalised interface and services.
Once fully implemented we would want the system to be able to manage services across a range of departments, teams and functions, while maintaining a strongly personalised approach to student support.
It is extremely important that the system is perceived to feel as if it builds on rather than detracts from this personalised approach. It enhances the student experience and strengthens service provider/user interface at our Tremough and Wood Lane campuses. For the same reasons the look and feel of the student interface and the level of customisation of the screens and wording of communications with students is of great importance.
Key drivers
Building staff capacity and Innovation –The SVAP will provide opportunities for cross training of staff to deal with a range of student support issues in one visit and will facilitate referrals to specialist support as seamless experience from the student perspective.
Student Experience –The requirement to register details on paper forms with the each separate support service has a negative impact on the student experience. Delivering the SVAP will provide the student with an enhanced experience on the current system by allowing them a single virtual point of access to all student support services and without the requirements to provide personal details via paper forms on visiting each individual service.
The SVAP project also supports Falmouth University’s core value to be internationally significant. In redesigning the support services the project will consider how to meet the wider needs of our developing international student base, such as service operating times for delivery of on line services.
JISC resources/technology used
To support this project we used the following JISC resources:
JISC TechDis. This resource was used to look at how the presentation of information can be made easier for the reader. The accessibility of information to the reader –particularly a reader that may have dyslexia for instance- is important in ensuring the SVAP will be as easy as possible to navigate. This resource provides useful information on how to set out documents; structure, styling, etc. to the reader. Falmouth University has its brand set up in a style and structure that is consistent with the guidance provided, so as long as we use the Falmouth University style on the SVAP we will fulfil best practice. On the downside, the website long winded to navigate, where you have to click through multiple pages to get to the guide information sections.
JISC Service Design Findings. The “Service Design in Higher and Further Education” briefing paper was particularly relevant to the SVAP project. It provides a best practice guide to mapping student facing services and the analysis of how well the service is performing. The idea is to take a student centric view when mapping the service and then break into further detail as required. Although not all the guide is relevant to this project (as it focused on the physical layout of service delivery) it has provided a very useful guide with regard to the process mapping elements.
UCLAN Project. The UCLAN TISSUE project focuses on delivering better, more integrated student focused support services and has the similar objectives to this project. Through communication with Lucy Nelson and viewing the JISC project blog insight was gained into the outcomes from this project. This has been useful in reaffirming the approach taken to mapping out the processes and also using the key points from the stakeholder workshop held by Lucy.
JISC CETIS Archi Tool. This software provides a set of business process objects and allows the user to produce visual representations of organisations, processes, IT systems, actors, roles etc. –you name it. It’s a free open source cross-platform tool for Enterprise Architecture. This software was used in the project quite simply to map out the organisational structure surrounding the student services as part of the “As Is” process mapping. In terms of the software capability, only small part of it was used, though I really like it styling a lot and its relatively simple to use –has hints pane to provide information on the objects and their meaning. It’s similar to Microsoft Visio with more predefined objectives and connectors you could say. On the downside was the User Guide didn’t have a table of contents for its 100+ pages, so I couldn’t find specific information on its use when I wanted it. In addition, I was unable to save files properly and had to overwrite the previous set of objects every time I wanted to create a new diagram.
Coventry Visio Template. The plan is to use this template to produce the detailed “To Be” process(es) for my project, as part of my detailed requirements specification. The Coventry Visio Template uses Microsoft Visio as a medium and builds on the objectives that are available in the standard Visio set up. It allows the user to more easily visually describe a business process and attributes surrounding it (e.g. distinguishing manual and IT system process steps via icons and colouring). The template is useful in providing the reader with extra detail on how the process is run other that simply what is done in the process step. As a big user of MS Visio I think the template adds a lot to the picture and I really like this resource.
JISC Infonet Planning a Participatory Workshop. This resource provided information on how to plan and ensure workshops are conducted well and maximise the benefit to participants. The resource was used to look at how to capture information and issues. I used the “H form” to capture what the different services views on their process and service delivery.
Outcomes
The project outcomes are improved access to the student support services via The Compass service desk (the physical service) and via the Single Virtual Accessibility Portal (SVAP), after implementation. The SVAP will enhance the student experience by reducing the burden of registering with services (via paperwork) and improving efficiency in delivery by the service (manual input of registration data/information and management of service delivery).
Achievements
The project has delivered in two main ways.
The first was the physical space and personnel that are providing the new student enquiry helpdesk, The Compass, has gone live at our Tremough Campus. They are tasked with providing advice on support services for both Falmouth and University of Exeter (UoE) students. The advisors use the “as is” business processes for student support services, mapped earlier in this project, as a reference when providing advice to students on enquiries relating to support services.
The second was in the creation of the Vision/Requirement Specification document. As part of creating this document a number of workshops were performed to capture stakeholder requirements and to provide insight into the change activities to stakeholders. These allowed the stakeholders to vent concerns, ensure that these concerns were captured and addressed, and gain buy into the ideology of the project. Following on from the set of workshops the “Vision” document was created -this is basically a High Level User Requirements Specification dealing with as much of the idea solution as possible. This document sets out the non-functional and functional requirements surrounding the following generic sub processes:
- Enquiry management;
- Appointments (and room booking);
- Case notes;
- Process tracking; and
- Data processing.
The document does not set out the individual set up requirements for each Service, but does set out all the requirements for a system to be procured (see the Appendix for a link to the document). Detailed service specific data requirements will be captured during procurement activities and when they are closed out (i.e. what functionality can be afforded and/or procured).
Benefits
The benefits from the work performed can be split into the delivery of The Compass and the requirements specification. By delivering “The Compass”, a general enquiry desk in our new Exchange Building and after procurement of the virtual portal the student can go to one place to receive advice or remotely raise an enquiry with a service(s) and/or find out what their requirements might be.
This will mean that a student can more easily find out about support service offerings and manage their enquiries and delivery of the service in their own time and without the requirement to either physically go to the service or make a phone call. The Compass Staff will have the capability to raise enquiries for the student based on their requirements and the system will allow the student to do this remotely and outside of normal working hours.
The system will be fed by the student records system (SITS) so the support services will not need to input personal details and duplicate information as they will share the same system to deal with the student.
The process diagram above is the first part of the current process for the Dyslexia Service. It can be seen that under the existing process there is a requirement for the student to raise an enquiry and provide information (done via a paper form) to the service to register details. The SVAP system (represented in red) will enable a single enquiry point and remove the requirement to provide further information to the service to register their details (remove Steps 2.1, 2.2, 3.1 and 3.2). These benefits (the reduction in paper work and registration) are the same across all the other student support services and form a significant burden to both the student and support staff.
Sharing of service information/records between services will also be easily facilitated (where this does not breach confidentiality requirements). The use of the single system for raising enquiries and recording the service delivery will also allow the services to be better managed and resources to be deployed more effectively (analysis and use of data/information by management). As a result we expect the student experience will be much enhanced by this Student Support Management System.
Drawbacks
One of the biggest problem for the project from a control point of view is the support operations are provided as shared services with the University of Exeter (UoE), provided by the third party organisation, “Falmouth Exeter Plus”. Although UoE has had little input into the project they have their own requirements and operate similar services at their main campus in Exeter via another software system. UoE want the same standards and reporting outputs so that they can operate a universal standard across Exeter and Cornwall campuses. These requirements influence the software procurement process and add a further layer of complexity through the need to map performance standards for equivalent services (i.e. their reporting on top of the implementation of the new system).
Long lead times required for information gathering and difficulty in obtaining stakeholder engagement in the project’s early stages were also problems encountered. The staff involved in the delivery of the “as is” business processes were often too busy to provide in information required to deliver the business analysis within the project plan timescales.
Key lessons
Key lessons learned during the SVAP project are as follows:
- The Importance of proper buy in from stakeholders and to ensure that the benefits they will realise are understood (in terms reduced administrative burden and student experience and perception in this case);
- Use workshops to ensure that concerns and issues can be aired and addressed has been particularly useful in establishing engagement from stakeholders;
- Project leadership and direction are key requirements to ensure that a project does not stall and/or lose its momentum;
- Use of the correct language and making information consumable by non-technical people (e.g. the idea of a calling the document the “Vision” and not a “User Requirements Specification”); and
- The potential impact and burden of external factors –in the case UoE’s requirements and influence on the joint service provision.
Looking ahead
After the delivery of the new system and realisation of benefits to the delivery staff and students Falmouth University hopes that further services providing other types of student support can be rolled out using the same IT system and enquiry management can be more effectively managed and monitored. An on going mechanism to capture feedback from students and staff will also feed into the development of the system and surrounding processes.
Information captured in the system will allow the creation of management information that can monitor utilisation of services by student types, courses and according to any trends seen through the student life cycle. It is hoped that these data will then allow better planning in delivery of services to students and inform management about the possible impact on support services of any recruitment strategies (such as targeting certain socio-demographic groups).
Appendix
Project Output Documents
As Is Business Processes
Vision document (User Requirements Specification)
Project Blog
http://ucfsvap.jiscinvolve.org/wp/
