Advising Higher Education - Northwest Florida State College

Project:  Strategic Technology Plan for Northwest Florida State College

Project Outcomes:

 

  • Developed a 5 year plan that details specific projects, expected costs, and anticipated benefits.
  • Provided best practices and institutional research to help evaluate the current environment.
  • Created a college-wide IT planning process that includes Administrative, Academic, Library, and Marketing.
  • Involved over 50 campus stakeholders from the President to current Students.

 

Background:

Northwest Florida State College is one of Florida’s 28 community colleges, with approximately 16,000 students.  BDMP was engaged by the college to conduct a comprehensive strategic technology planning project which will provide the college with a roadmap for technology solutions, staffing, and other initiatives over a five-year planning horizon.

Project Description:

BDMP is working with OWC’s IT Strategic Planning Committee to:

  • Conduct an assessment of the current state of the College’s IT environment.
  • Determine the current and future IT needs of the College.
  • Identify “gaps” between current IT performance and future IT needs.
  • Identify opportunities for improvement.
  • Identify constraints imposed upon the IT planning process by the culture and environment of the College.

 

BDMP developed recommendations related to staffing; IT funding models; optimal infrastructure, equipment, and software; business processes; and maximizing the accessibility and usage of the information systems available to students, staff, and faculty.

Why do an IT Strategic Plan?

Many colleges and universities across the globe do regular IT strategic planning so as to deal with the need for improvement in IT while also being responsive to the budgetary needs of the institution.  IT strategic plans must be aligned with the college’s or university’s overall Strategic Plan and provide a clear road map for solving technology challenges.