Educational entities are already aware of the costs associated with working with obsolete systems such as paper or outdated programs. Despite this, many have not made the change.
Universities must adjust their organizational structure to optimal data usage. They must bear in mind key elements that we will cover in this post.
Education Advisory Board in the Hallmarks of the Data-Driven University study point out the fundamental cornerstones for a university to consider for data management.
Data governance structure
Due to the specific duties of universities, it is very important that they define how available data is is being used and secured. This process is called Data Governance.
According to the website Dataversity, Data Governance is a set of administrative practices and procedures established within an organization in order to ensure improved data quality and management. A structure must be created to define the roles and responsibilities of an organization.
This is an essential step since the data governance structure must be sustainable over the long term.
Data management
The growth in the volume and type of institutional data makes managing it a challenge. This means higher education institutions are increasingly turning to platforms for managing their data.
If data manager roles are clearly defined, at least one aspect of management will be resolved; over time the data will have no repetitions, inconsistencies or quality problems.
There are various processes for ensuring quality data that will be of utmost importance for making an analysis. From the outset it will be necessary to know which questions to answer so that the required data sources can be selected, information filtered and data with relevant characteristics included. The analytical eye of a Chief Data Officer will enable selecting the most appropriate information.
Organizational structure
We are talking about a change in the institutional DNA. This in-depth process deserves commitment that will give rise to new ways of interacting, new tools and even new ways of working. Leaders have to embody the institution’s digital culture, which means they must be active users of new technology. In the case of universities, the academic vice-rectorate and its subareas are an excellent option for handling this role.
As explained by Forbes, one of the first stages in designing a digital conversion is building a team with digital knowledge. They will be the primary allies on this journey. Always remember that this is not a project with an end date, but it is a process of continuous improvement.
Institutional strategy
Business Intelligence (BI), according to Jisc, is any strategic information that a company analyzes, predicts and monitors to facilitate decision-making. Integrating BI is a key step for concretizing the objectives set within Higher Education. These may include generating new income, organizing courses, improving student experience, or student retention.
As Jisc’s article states, BI helps identify and solve problems to get potential benefits such as those indicated below:
1. Time saving
Being able to centralize information saves a significant amount of the staff’s time, thus reducing costs.
2. Accessible data
The personnel at a higher education institution must have access to all information they need. This data should be in a format that is relevant and can be easily analyzed.
3. Networks and knowledge sharing
Despite how competitive the university market has become, this does not affect the fact that they are a source of knowledge for society, since it is essential to share ideas, best practices and experiences.
4. Opportunities for experimentation
Having a centralized service for business intelligence that does a large part of the difficult work would free personnel to experiment and become more innovative.
5. A sectorial view
Guiding the strategy at the institutional level is not the sole key aspect here, but also knowing how the sector is progressing at the wider scale helps institutions learn from industry errors and stay up-to-date with trends.
Conclusion
There are two key points to bear in mind when planning a change for a higher education institution to base its administration on data: roles and relevant information.
Continuous improvement consists of emphasizing the availability, integrity, usability and security of the data obtained from the various areas of the institution. It also helps create procedures for those who will share information, those in charge and the strategy chosen to take advantage of all elements and make the best decisions possible.
