University of Washington Strategic Roadmap
for Information Management and Administrative Systems

Enhance and Renew Systems

enhance and renew systems image Enhance and Renew Systems Information for Decision Making Redesign Processes Prioritize and Make Decisions Replace the Base Redesign Processes Redesign Processes

Invest in ongoing enhancement, development, and technology renewal of all core administrative systems.

Key benefits:
  • Keep up with changing business needs
  • Continue to add to research functionality
  • Upgrade alumni, development, and facilities systems
  • Make high-value interim upgrades to legacy systems

This initiative focuses on continuing to develop and enhance the UW’s core administrative systems supporting research administration, alumni/development, and facilities and space. In addition, this initiative recommends that the UW continue to invest in high-value interim upgrades to legacy systems until those systems are replaced. This is especially important because it is likely to take five to six years to replace the legacy financial and procurement systems alone. The interim improvements will ensure that the UW can meet its shorter-term compliance and business requirements during the period before the systems are replaced.

Any interim enhancements to systems slated for replacement will be rigorously evaluated to ensure they are required for compliance or other reasons, will provide short-term payback, or will help with eventual migration to a new system.

While this initiative focuses on high-value incremental enhancements to the legacy systems slated for replacement, it is important to note that once the new systems are in place, the UW will need to continue to invest in enhancing and renewing the new systems to keep them current and ensure they do not become the next generation of legacy systems.

Research Administration

Systems that support the mission-critical area of research administration are incomplete and still missing important functionality. Enhancements will focus on creating a research portal with one-stop shopping that will guide researchers and staff through the compliance, administrative, and reporting processes that incorporate the end-to-end research life cycle — from grant submission through outcome reporting. Users will be able to view all compliance activities from this portal. Projects will focus on continuing to create streamlined, consistent, and integrated systems and processes.

Alumni/Development

In the alumni/development area, the UW already has followed a best-of-breed approach by migrating from the legacy systems to a commercial product called Advance. As a result, the alumni/development system is generally more functional, stable, and reliable than other systems. However, it is important to continue to enhance and upgrade these systems to meet the changing needs and expectations of donors and to keep up with technology changes so these systems do not become outdated. Enhancement projects will include improving integration with all major UW administrative systems, enhanced stewardship reporting, constituent relationship and life cycle reporting, and technology upgrades.

Facilities/Space

The existing systems and processes supporting facilities and space will need to be updated over the next few years. Better information on costs and usage of space and facilities is needed in order to optimize space utilization, facilitate cost recovery, and improve asset controls — especially management of hazardous materials. As with all other administrative systems, consistent data definitions are needed in this area, as is improved integration with other administrative systems.


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