Working with University IT: Guide to stronger teamwork
Introduction
When was the last time you grabbed 5 minutes for a chat with your IT colleagues? You might be surprised by how much common ground there is to cover. In fact, you’ll find a closer relationship pays off in a number of ways once you’ve taken time to build that connection.
University staff who work more closely with their IT team get far more out of the systems they use. They plan projects together more successfully, and have issues more quickly resolved. They can keep up to date on system changes that may affect them or that make their job easier. With all this to gain, here’s your guide to making it happen.
Some key advantages
Practically all services require technology support, and IT colleagues are your obvious partners. So it’s definitely worthwhile getting to know them better. You’ll find closer collaboration leads to some very valid benefits. With the right IT support, university staff can explore how their services can surpass faculty expectations and bring greater satisfaction to students.
A two-way street
University IT teams will not automatically know how your department works, how students use your services, and why your systems are so important to maintain. Staff need to guide them, to take time to explain to them what’s important and why.
So it’s definitely worth sharing this information and spending some time with your IT team. They will benefit from the perspective you can provide. This way they can allocate resource and give your joint projects the appropriate level of priority.
Your guide to a better partnership
Here’s your 8-point guide to a better way of working with IT. See how many you can incorporate into your store-IT relationship. The more you include, the greater the communication flow and understanding between team members, which will ultimately translate into providing a better service.
- Learn your tech: Make sure you can explain how your systems work, what role they serve and why they are essential to the smooth running of your department. If like our Connect2 system they provide analytics in terms of students served or ROI for department assets, all the better. You can work with IT to ensure there’s understanding and recognition of the technology you rely on
- Think data and security! Be security-minded and understand the importance of this from an IT perspective. Many IT projects are motivated by security concerns due to growing risks and threats. If you’re looking to install a new system, this becomes all the more pertinent. Plus it helps to demonstrate your attitude towards data management and how this will be addressed in a new system
When it comes to Connect2, the software is continuously developed with 2-3 releases every year, maintaining its security. It also has its own in-built data retention tool. Talk to us about this and you’ll be able to discuss with IT how the maintenance and cleaning of personal data will be tightly controlled and automatically managed in the system
- Get your relationship on the right track: University staff who have built up a relationship with their IT teams have better communication. Here’s how to get started:
– Be proactive in organising regular meetings, e.g. once a quarter
– Relationship building can take time, so persevere and continue to allow for staff changes
– Encourage new staff to visit the respective team in person to start the relationship on a strong footing
– Make sure IT staff spend time in the store or wider department, e.g. invite them to shadow store workers; invite them to student shows; encourage them to speak with students using the checkout store so they understand the important role Connect2 plays for accessing resources for example
– Likewise, IT should invite store staff into their department for appreciation of their work processes
– Include both direct counterparts and more senior staff in relationship building. Senior managers are more likely to be the ones making decisions on budgets and systems supported, so it’s important you get to know each other too - Be inclusive: Be aware of the different IT roles that you need to interact with. It helps to know who they are and make sure that the right people are present in meetings, whether for new projects or system reviews. At Connect2, we look forward to getting to know university IT teams too as part of our customer support service
- Round out their knowledge: Make sure IT colleagues understand how and why you use your department’s systems in detail. For example, with Connect2 you could give them access to the system to try out making a booking. Then don’t forget to invite them to visit the store to see the checkout process too
- Communicate impact on faculty and students: Make sure each time you raise an IT support call, or work on a project specification, it includes this information. If they understand the impact, it will help ensure it’s triaged or resourced effectively. This is especially true for equipment services to students, after all, student satisfaction rests on how easily they can access essential resources. A poor experience here reflects more widely than on the store alone
- All systems go: It’s worth reviewing and refining the support ticket raising process to check it’s adequate in covering all required systems, that it’s jargon-free and that staff are prompted to pass on all relevant information for getting issues resolved
- Point of contact: Ask for a regular point of contact in IT – someone who can build up knowledge of systems in the department. It will mean they are better placed to triage issues, to raise them with the right system specialists and champion your projects. Once established, you’ll find this relationship becomes indispensable
Conclusion
There’s massive opportunity to collaborate more closely with IT. So get ahead of the game and put as many of these pointers into action as you can. You will see the benefits really pay off. Then next time you need to plan for a new project or system upgrade, there will be less disruption and better outcomes on both sides. It’s essential you work together to get it right. As always, the Connect2 team will be here to help along the way.
