University of Technology Sydney Project Summary
About the University of Technology Sydney
UTS was formed at the beginning of 1988 from the former NSW Institute of Technology, and was restructured in 1990 with the merger of the 'Old UTS' with the Kuring-gai College of Advanced Education, the School of Design, and the Institute of Technical and Adult Teacher Education, forming the current UTS. Although its antecedent institutions go back as far as 1893, they took new shapes from the 1960s. This change in profile, combined with the University's predominantly CBD location in the city of Sydney, created a new identity. UTS is a University focused on practice-oriented education with strong links to industry, the professions and the community, and with a growing research reputation and a strong commitment to internationalisation.
Background
The Budgeting, Reporting and Forecasting processes and technology at the University are serving the institution well and providing both timely and accurate information to both executives and end users alike. They do not, however, have the capacity to grow with the University’s thirst for improved processes and speed-of-thought decision making.
UTS uses a combination of source-system reporting tools, specialist budgeting applications and Excel to fulfil its reporting and budgeting needs and these are seen by both the Finance Services Unit and the end users as being somewhat restrictive, time consuming and labour intensive.
The Project
UTS has encountered technical limitations in its current set of enabling technologies in the areas of budgeting, forecasting and reporting. Rather than taking a “band aide” or ”siloed” method of resolution which would normally result in short lived gains and long term pains, UTS has wisely decided to adopt a strategic approach to formulating a strategy, vision and a ‘roadmap’ to its enablement . Once endorsed by senior stakeholders and University leadership, UTS will begin on the path of systems revitalisation.
To this end, Patrick Woods, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Resources) and Frank Laezza (Chief Financial Officer) engaged Taysols to assist the University in developing a high level vision and strategic roadmap for the abovementioned areas.
The Approach
Taysols developed a three stage approach for the University. Stage One involved a series of workshops and one-on-one interviews to establish the current position – As Is. At the conclusion of this process, a detailed review of the current processes and technologies was documented and agreed by the project’s steering committee. This document includes sections describing the desired state, ensuring that the needs of both end users and the centralised unit are recorded.
Stage Two will produce a To Be document which draws extensively on the current situation and also on the desired state. A series of alternative system architectures and processes has been suggested for ratification by the project’s steering committee.
Stage Three will see Taysols bridging the gap between the current situation and the desired state by outlining a roadmap for the University. This roadmap will guide UTS toward streamlined processes, a surefooted support model and a cost-effective platform for budgeting, reporting and forecasting.
"Taysols was selected by UTS because of its solid understanding of budgeting, reporting and forecasting processes and for its depth of expertise across a wide range of market leading technologies. These skills are supported by extensive experience in the University sector.” Patrick Woods, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Resources)