Live projects
PCG project portfolio
The list below summarises the projects in the portfolio that are currently
live.
Each box expands to show a summary of the project and any additional
information available. You can also contact the relevant project manager/sponsor
to find out more.
Summary of live projects
-
Agresso development project
Project manager/sponsor: Marc Albano (Finance Section)
Project aim
This project is the keystone of the 'Financial Management and Budget
Development Plan' as it provides a sound, more future proofed systems platform,
enhanced functionality and the opportunity to introduce process change on the
back of the training required in the use of the new system. It is therefore
timely and fortuitous that the review of budgeting, Agresso system review,
finance development strategy and the forced need to upgrade are synchronous.
As a separate project, SUMS reviewed Tuition Fee Budgeting which resulted in
a report which highlighted a convoluted and manual system of budgeting for
University income. As a result of this review it has been decided to
fundamentally review how income is budgeted for and reported. This extends to
implementing new functionality with Agresso and getting various University
systems transferring data to ensure consistent and efficient reporting. In order
to deliver the project in Finance, there is a key dependency to the Student
Projection and Analysis Model (SPAM) project being run by the Planning Office.
This project will provide data required by Agresso to feed the budgeting model.
For Agresso to manage the budget setting process the system needs upgrading to
5.6.3 to have the required functionality.
Project to be delivered: December 2013
Additional information
-
Automated Board of Examiner letters
Project manager/sponsor: Carla Constable (Academic Section)
Project aim
There is no current automated system to provide letters to students following
up their on-line web results after board of examiners meetings. The current
service is not meeting students' needs as they often have to wait for days after
the results go live on the web to receive more detailed advice in the form of
individualised letters. This in turn can affect the quality of the decision they
make or delays their decision-making in relation to their academic career,
registration and graduation. Registry staff are currently manually producing
nearly 1800 letters in the post exam board periods. After the main boards this
is condensed over a three week period and in September a one-week period. These
are already stretched and time critical periods. All letters then have to be
transferred to the students' electronic files, which is also a very
time-consuming activity. The impact of delivering the project will be:
- Clear and timely information to students affecting their
academic career;
- Accurate record of student correspondence;
- Staff time savings in the Registry.
Project to be delivered: November 2013
Additional Information
-
CADENZA
Project manager/sponsor: Jo Andrews (Human Resources Section)
Project aim
- support the University to demonstrate strategic and
operational engagement with the UK Professional Standards
Framework for those teaching and supporting learning in higher
education (UKPSF); and
- support a coherent approach to the delivery of key
performance indicators in the Student Experience and Supporting
Staff Strategies.
Project to be delivered: September 2013
Additional information
-
Corporate Sharepoint Upgrade
Project manager/sponsor: Rob Mossop (Information Systems Services)
Project aim
For some years now SharePoint has been the system of choice for University
document management and a very popular tool for improving productivity through
collaborative working. As such SharePoint probably represents the biggest single
infrastructure innovation in the ordinary office environment since the advent of
e-mail.
By upgrading to SharePoint 2010 the following immediate benefits should be
realised:
- Improved data management leading to reduced backup volumes
and faster disaster recovery
- Improved storage architecture making the overall
infrastructure easier to manage and maintain
- Improved end-user development and management facilities
making it easier to develop and expand our general levels of
SharePoint expertise
Project to be delivered: March 2013
Additional Information
-
Data interface MIS - CMIS (Timetabling)
Project manager/sponsor: Melissa MacGregor (Academic Section)
Project aim
CMIS is the University's timetabling system. In order to produce the
timetable and maintain online timetables for students, data has to be interfaced
from MIS into CMIS.
The project will:
- replace the MS Access database with functional buttons on
MIS enabling the CTO staff to interface data for courses,
modules, available and compulsory modules, students and student
enrolment; and
- allow the CTO user to view data that has been interfaced.
Additional information
-
Enhancement of wi-fi service
Project manager/sponsor: Bryn Morris (Registrar and Secretary)
Project aim
To significantly increase the number of wireless access points at all
campuses to create a service that has comprehensive coverage and sufficient
capacity for continued growth. There is interest in the use of the wireless
network for supporting location aware services, particularly wayfinding and
facilities promotion. The wireless enhancement project would include enabling
technology for such services where possible.
Project to be delivered: July 2013
Additional information
-
e-Portfolio (Phase1)
Project manager/sponsor: Elizabeth Guyar-Brown (Academic Section)
Project aim
The project will review the software available for creating a system to allow
each students to create a personal portfolio. It will select a system that most
needs requirements and implement. An ePortfolio system will give students on
line resources to support employability and personal development planning, a
place to collect material that demonstrates their skills, abilities and
experience that can be shared with future employers. It allows students to
reflect on their progress and can form a comprehensive curriculum vitae. For
some Departments an ePortfolio may form part of the assessment process.
Phase 1. An initial scoping exercise to understand the requirements. This
will include mapping the links into current systems such as the VLE and Online
Course Submission system. It will also clarify the roles played by different
departments/sections and their students.
Project to be delivered: November 2013
Additional information
-
e-Procurement
Project manager/sponsor: Marc Albano (Finance)
Project aim
University of Essex is a diverse organisation with devolved and individual
departmental purchasing needs. In order to effectively control expenditure,
implement good purchasing practice and deliver significant savings there is the
requirement to encourage centralised procurement practice and have a robust
procurement system infrastructure.
The aim of this project is to give staff a simple procurement tool which
ensures that the users has an ‘Amazon like’ shopping experience while the
University ensures it is using approved supplied and delivering best value for
money.
Project to be delivered: November 2013
Additional information
-
Essex Social Sciences Experimental Laboratory (ESSEXLab)
Project manager/sponsor: David Sanders (PVC Research & Enterprise)
Project aim
As a result of this project Essex researchers including social scientists and
others will be able to run laboratory experiments in which people interact and
make incentivized decisions.
The laboratory becomes a resource helping researchers to win grant money, which
increases funding available to departments within and beyond the faculty.
Innovative forms of teaching are enabled using the laboratory, e.g. Essex Summer
School courses in experimental methods. The lab is also being referenced in the
bid to establish Essex as a Quantitative Methods Centre.
The laboratory helps to
maintain Essex’s reputation as a university at the forefront of social science
methodology and contributes to its research excellence mission.
The project
aims to:
- To establish a state-of-the-art modern experimental laboratory
facility at Essex enabling interactive experiments on human decisions and
interactions
- To support the development of experimental social science at
Essex to establish it as a leader in the field
- To facilitate the training of
research students in laboratory experimental methods
Project to be delivered: June 2013
Additional information
-
Exam paper preparation
Project manager/sponsor: Gemma Aitchison (Strategic Planning and Change
Section)
Project aim
This is one of the four projects identified as priority projects by the
Faculty Administrative Review. The project aims to create a secure IT-based
system that uses SharePoint, to support the life of the exam paper from the
point of creation to permanent archive. It will ensure a clear audit trail for
the evolution of each paper and control access at each stage.
Project to be delivered: November 2013
Additional information
-
Flexible Study Project
Project manager/sponsor: Melissa MacGregor (Academic Section)
Project aim
The project will facilitate the recording of the non-standard study modes,
modules undertaken on top of main degrees and will create a more scalable course
structure by:
- Creating a master course structure with multiple study modes
- Introducing a flexible study mode that will enable mapping a
proposed study pathway that is individual to both part-time and
modular study students.
- Assessed modules on existing student records (e.g. Languages
for All, Essex numeracy (potential) and the Employability
modules)
Impact analysis to be delivered: March 2013
Additional information
-
iHR (stage 2)
Project manager/sponsor: Donna Scott and Marc Albano (Finance Section)
Project aim
Following the completion of Phase 1 of the project we now have a stable
foundation to begin roll out additional modules of iTrent. This will result in a
single integrated solution relating to all aspects of employees life cycle
whilst at the University of Essex.
Project to be delivered: January 2014
Additional information
-
Languages for All ENROL
Project manager/sponsor: Melissa MacGregor (Academic Section)
Project aim
ENROL is the University’s online module enrolment system which enables students
to choose their optional modules in a website environment. This system
interfaces with MIS to create, capture and record a student’s academic record
during their stay at the University.
Following the establishment of the Languages for All programme (L4A),
the “front” end of the ENROL website, displaying all the navigational screens
from entrance to the start of the submission screen will require redesigning and
enhancement to incorporate the servicing of students submitting modules under
the Languages for All.
Project to be delivered: April 2014
Additional information
-
MIS services review
Project manager/sponsor: Rob Mossop (Information Systems Services Section)
Project aim
- Determining the current breakdown of MIS staff activities in
terms of support, systems analysis, routine enhancements and
more significant developments;
- Determining the methods by which clients contact/interact
with MIS staff in the delivery of services;
- Understanding if there is a need to restructure existing
working practices so as to facilitate a more flexible and
sustainable long term support and development model in MIS;
- Create a change proposal to be presented to the senior
management.
Project to be delivered: March 2013
Additional information
-
Making Electronic Feedback Effective
Project manager/sponsor: David Pevalin (Dean of Science and Engineering)
Project aim
Improving assessment and feedback is a high priority for the University. This
project would aim to address the matter of giving electronic feedback to
students, improving the awareness and availability of systems to enable
academics to digitise their feedback process.
The specific aims are:
- To improve quality and quantity of feedback for students
- To allow students to engage with academics regarding their
feedback
- To make marking and writing feedback electronically easier
for academics
- To reduce workload on department administrators
- To make assignment processes more consistent
- To reduce the amount of paper used for printing assignments
The impact of this project could be high in efficiency of staff time,
increase in student satisfaction and providing a springboard for the University
to raise awareness of the importance of good quality feedback in further
campaigns and projects. This project has already received a TALIF grant of
£10,000 to aid with the delivery of improvement in assessment and feedback.
Project to be delivered: January 2014
Additional information
-
Moodle at the Heart of Students Learning
Project manager/sponsor: Anthony Griffin (Faculty of Law and Management)
Project aim
The project will be part of the move to bring all relevant learning materials
into the Moodle portal. Currently course materials can be held in either Moodle
or CMR, the course handbooks are displayed in many places but not held in the
obvious and coherent one for students, which is in their module. The aim of this
project is to ensure that when students log into Moodle and look for their
module they will see the course module handbook and materials related to the
course.
Coexisting with this project is another whose intention is also to
improve the collection and publishing of reading lists and also include this in
the student Moodle portal. There is no intention to prevent the course handbook
more course materials being held elsewhere if this is required.
- Place course
materials that exist and or are maintained in CMR into the relevant module in Moodle.
- Ensure the course handbook for module is displayed in Moodle.
Project to be delivered: October 2013
Additional information
-
MoveOn
Project manager/sponsor: Ivan Hutchins (Academic Section)
Project aim
New MoveOn IT System for Essex Abroad
Project to be delivered: April 2013
Additional information
-
MyEssex for Applicants Stage 8
Project manager/sponsor: Melissa MacGregor (Academic Section)
Project aim
- Provision of myEssex for applicants, Stage 8, for all new
students allowing students to view and update their student
record and other information related to their studies prior to
starting their course.
- Accurate information displayed for new students on myEssex
for applicants, Stage 8, including any updates made by the
student.
- Provides a mechanism for students to set-up their external
email address and passphrase, providing an accurate record of
the external email address for our records.
- An increased number of new students activating their
University of Essex login and password before they arrive, which
will reduce the number of enquiries received by the Computing
Helpdesk upon arrival.
- Contribution towards reducing the number of enquiries
received from new students by the Registration Office, in terms
of what they can and cannot do, view and access before they
arrive
Project to be delivered: August 2013
Additional information
-
Planet FM - mobile deployment to craft teams
Project manager/sponsor: Mark Vinter (Estates Management Section)
Project aim
It is proposed to implement mobile deployment to the craft teams utilising
mobile PDA's to which their work would be deployed on a daily basis.
EMS presently uses Planet FM Enterprise to deploy work to the craft teams via
paper works tickets that are printed in each workshop. Craftsmen then carry out
the work and update the paper job sheet. The craftsmen then complete a paper
timesheet at the end of the week. The paper job sheet and timesheet are
processed by a member of staff to update the job status with time allocated for
the work.
The project will eliminate the need to manually input job cards and time
sheets. This will be an efficiency saving. It would give real time information
on a job status, identifying who work has been deployed to and whether the work
is in progress. It will improve the management information available to the Help
Desk and improve the management information for customers remotely.
Additional information
-
Professional Services Review Phase 1
Project manager/sponsor: Sonia Virdee (Strategic Planning and Change
Section)
Project aim
The scope of the review will cover all Professional and Support Services in
Central Sections, Faculties and Departments. The review will have the following
aims:
- To provide assurance to the University community and Council
that Professional Services at the University are contributing
actively, effectively and consistently to the delivery of the
University's mission by:
- supporting academic delivery across Learning
& Teaching, Research and Knowledge Exchange;
- contributing to academic development (e.g.
curriculum development, business development,
pre-award support);
- ensuring that the campuses are good places
to study, work and live;
- maintaining a proportionate focus on
standards and compliance requirements;
- delivering value for money and
cost-effectiveness.
- To identify areas for change, where current practices are
not delivering against the priorities outlined above;
- To establish a set of metrics (and means of capturing
performance against them) against which to monitor the
performance of Professional Services in supporting the
University on an ongoing basis;
- To identify enablers that will need to be in place to
support a cycle of continuous improvement across all
Professional and support services.
Project to be delivered: February 2013
Additional information
-
Reading List Revision Project
Project manager/sponsor: Clare French (Library)
The project will review the current reading list collection and purchasing
and redesign the processes and software underpinning the collection of 1258
module reading lists.
Efficiencies gained will be:
- Reducing the workload in creating new reading lists by using
previous years as the template.
- Saving library staff time by automating contact of course
leaders
- Reduced time from Library staff following up unanswered
emails.
- Automated orders to book suppliers.
- Increased coverage of reading lists, from 44% to100%
- Ensuring that lists are available by the start of a module
Project to be delivered: September 2013
Additional information
-
Research and Enterprise Office review
Project manager/sponsor: Janice Pittis (Research and Enterprise Office)
Project to be delivered: March 2013
Additional information
-
SOFACX - JISC course data
Project manager/sponsors: Joanne Tallentire (Communication and External
Relations) and Rob Mossop (Information Systems Services
Section)
Project aim
The University of Essex is participating in a JISC-funded project entitled
'Course Data - making the most of course information'. The central objective is
to develop and implement a XCRI-CAP feed publishing service for the production
of clear course information based on a universal standard, across the entire
breadth of the University's offering, thereby meeting a range of new and
existing internal and external needs for information and information exchange.
Additionally, the project will, at a higher level, develop and publish an
effective information management policy in respect of the University's course
information as well as, at ground level, implement the technical systems needed
for the publication, storage, input and maintenance of this data.
Project to be delivered: March 2013
Additional information
-
Staff timetable
Project manager/sponsor: Melissa MacGregor (Academic Section)
Project aim
The aim of the project is to produce online staff teaching timetables. The
staff timetables would work in a similar fashion to the student timetables using
the data held in CMIS and would be updated at 10pm each night.
Teaching data would also be interfaced into the academics calendar on MS
Outlook. As teaching events are constantly changed within CMIS, all changes
would also have to be reflected in the Outlook calendars.
Currently during the period after the draft timetable has been produced and
the final timetable is published on 1 September, staff are sent the timetabling
spreadsheets and use these to determine any problems with their teaching event.
Project to be delivered: September 2013
Additional information
-
Student Tracking - Access, Retention and Success (STARS)
Project manager/sponsor: Glenn Dunn (Strategic Planning and Change Section)
Project aim:
The aim of the project is to create and improve the ability for the
University to undertake 'whole life' tracking of students from first contact
with the University, through application, study and on to continued engagement
as alumni.
To enable:
- Monitoring the performance of specific cohorts identified in
the University Access Agreement;
- Monitoring the performance of students admitted via
progression/compact agreements (i.e. 2+2);
- Identification of cohorts for targeting of support activity
e.g. relating to retention or employability;
- Monitoring the value of international recruitment agents;
- Standardisation of reporting (e.g. cohort definitions) along
student lifecycle.
Project to be delivered: March 2013
Additional information
-
Student Projection and Analysis Model (SPAM)
Project manager/sponsor: Ray Lashley (Strategic Planning and Change Section)
Project aim
The aim of the project is to enable greater flexibility in financial planning
by making the student numbers projections model accessible to faculties and
departments.
This includes:
- converting the model from an Excel spreadsheet to a database
with interface;
- enabling the model to project not just student numbers but
also other key planning information; e.g. fee income, bursary
costs, and, if possible, performance outcomes;
- enabling modelling at a level below that of the 'department'
(either at the level of courses or groups of courses); and
- enhancing model to meet needs of users, and training users
how to use the system and understand results.
Project to be delivered: April 2013
Additional information
-
Student Services Centre
Project manager/sponsor: Wendy Clifton-Sprigg (Academic Section)
Project aim
This project will create an improved, co-located and integrated student
administrative service in the new Student Centre at the Colchester campus.
It will use the opportunity of co-locating these services in a new,
student-focused building to:
- review existing business processes to identify opportunities
to improve the efficiency of operations;
- reinvest 'savings' in extended opening hours and in
providing an extended range of services; and
- provide improved levels of service, including through
improved use of technology.
The project will cover face-to-face, telephone, email, on-line and
self-service interactions, as well as back-office processes.
The aim is to provide a high-quality customer service to students and other
users at a time when the University needs to enhance the student experience and
campus environment in order to maintain and improve its competitive position. It
will involve staff in Accommodation, Finance (Income and Payments), Registry and
Student Support.
Project to be delivered: January 2015
Additional information
-
Student Support client update
Project Manager/Sponsor: Carla Constable (Academic Section)
Project aim
The aim of the project is to improve the student experience by improving the
efficiency of the data we record on the advice we give to each individual
student and using data already held on MIS to ensure our advice is fit for their
individual circumstances. In addition, the updates would save staff time in
keeping dual paper and excel systems in order to compensate for the failings of
the current system. This time can be used to respond to students rather than to
administer the systems.
Project to be delivered: August 2013
Additional information
-
Timetabling data collection
Project manager/sponsor: Melissa MacGregor (Academic Section)
Project aim
The Project will:
- enable departmental staff to enter the timetabling data in a
more efficient way, ensuring that all module and teaching
constraints are considered and entered. Major efficiency gains
for CTO;
- ensure that teaching events mirror the module information
held on MIS;
- make more accurate information available to students via
their online timetables thus improving the service to students;
and
- reduce the number of changes after the timetable has been
produced again leading to improvements in the student and staff
experience.
Project to be delivered: February 2013
Additional information
-
Transcripts project
Project manager/sponsor: Melissa MacGregor (Academic Section)
Project aim
Project will enable additional information to be displayed on transcripts
Project to be delivered: June 2013
Additional information