To lay the foundation for effective communication and engagement between the Administrative Transformation Program (ATP) and the UW System, Jim Langdon, ATP Executive Sponsor and UWSA Vice President for Administration, and Joanna Wang, ATP Chief Technology Officer – Program Executive, along with members of the ATP Change Management Strategy Team, visited 13 UW campuses in May and June of 2022. The primary goal of the campus visits was to listen, learn, and address feedback about the challenges and opportunities of ATP at each institution.
Campus visits also allowed ATP representatives to:
- Report the outcomes of the Planning Stage (ATP scope and schedule)
- Introduce and outline the work of the Architect Stage
- Review a timeline of program activities and associated resources
Additionally, the Change Management Strategy Team introduced the concept of Readiness Teams, to be set up at each UW System campus. Conversations centered on convening Readiness Team Leads and assembling members for the Readiness Teams. A key feature of ATP’s engagement plan, these teams will provide a strategic communication flow between ATP and the institutions.
The open, welcoming discussions allowed participants to share feedback, express concerns, and voice support for the work that ATP is doing. Some common themes, which ATP is working to address, emerged across institutions.
Common Themes and Next Steps
Engagement and Readiness
ATP received support from all institutions to develop Readiness Teams. The Chancellors have assigned Readiness Leads, who will serve as the main point of contact between their institution and ATP. Readiness Leads will work with their Readiness Teams to ensure engagement activities are completed, communications are distributed, and two-way feedback is facilitated. Readiness Teams will be in place fall 2022.
End-User Training
During campus visits, many considerations for training were raised, with appropriate timing and delivery method cited as top priorities. Feedback on the development of end-user training includes:
- Timing: Determine a training period that is earlier than in previous implementations, but not so early that it impacts knowledge retention.
- Staff Capacity: Provide a time estimate for employee training so they can plan accordingly.
- Modality: Offer a variety of delivery methods. Preferred delivery methods varied and underscored the need for a layered approach to meet diverse employee and institutional needs.
- Coordination: Consult academic and financial calendars when scheduling training to coordinate space and resource needs.
Resource Needs
Institution leaders were encouraged to communicate resource needs to ATP leadership for escalation if the additional work related to ATP shows the potential to strain staff resources.
Data and Reporting
Across all institutions, similar questions were raised about the accuracy, continuity, and new capabilities for reporting. ATP plans to provide the new data and reporting strategy to the institutions and work with stakeholders to address questions and concerns.
ATP Scope
Several participants provided feedback about the integration of and future plans for student information. Workday’s Student Information System (SIS) is not within ATP’s scope at this time and will be evaluated at a later date.
Additionally, ATP plans to keep institutions informed about the integration or discontinuation of the hundreds of ancillary systems used now to fill functionality gaps in the Human Resource and Shared Financial systems. ATP’s IT Strategy Team is currently engaging stakeholders to identify these ancillary systems.