As digital options increase, a Digital Strategy becomes increasingly important to organizations. For information-intensive and content-rich industries like media, publishing and advertising companies, digital is the way of life. Some of these businesses were “born digital”, while some have become “digital only”. To these organizations, digital strategy is a critical capability for success. Other industries are catching up to this business model. The digital disruption spans both the private and public sectors.
The digital opportunities are greater than the threats, and increasing all the time. In education, for instance, they span online research, remote learning, open-instruction models and “ flipping” education (where home is for study and class is for “homework”). And the opportunities include not just performing better at our current businesses, but entering new businesses or even creating new industries based on digital capabilities.
The new digital opportunities and threats must be addressed if businesses are to survive the next five to 10 years. At some point, digital will simply be embedded in everything we do, but until then, we must ensure that appropriate digital leadership exists to overcome “analog inertia” and generate the necessary digital momentum. Recently, the North American universities and colleges are increasingly realizing the need to adopt a digital strategy.
Gartner has found that businesses interpret “digital” as many different things — connecting digital marketing and channels, connecting factory and IT networks, empowering staff with social networks, and on and on. Hence, some terminology clarifications are in order.
Statistics from Gartner show that among the organizations adopting a digital strategy, 90% of them are optimizing to improve existing business and 10% are transforming to create a new digital business model. In comparison to transformation, digital optimization poses lower risk, is less disruptive and has the potential for faster ROI.
As identified in Seneca’s 2017-22 Strategic plan, the higher education landscape is changing due to the changing nature of work, changing student population and fast-changing improvements in technology. The strategic plan places emphasis on leading through excellence with focus on quality, innovation in teaching and learning, and determination to improve continuously. Adopting a digital optimization based digital strategy aligns well with Seneca’s strategic plan. Using this approach, Seneca will leverage on digital technologies like mobile, Artificial Intelligence, IoT, cloud, analytics, and Blockchain to build a digital strategy.
The strategy will focus on the following areas.
Operational Efficiency
Identify innovative digital technologies to eliminate manual or paper based operations to significantly improve productivity and efficiency
Student / Faculty experience
Leverage on Artificial Intelligence based tools like predictive analytics, Chat Bots and Block chain to improve student experience
Digital Learning
Introduce teaching & learning technologies to support hybrid / online learning, experiential learning, digital assessment, secure deployment on course content on BYO devices and so on.
Smart Campus
Harness the power of Internet of Things to monitor, measure, analyze and improve waste management, lighting, washroom usage, automated partking, digital displays, etc
Digital Workforce
Improve productivity with advanced data analytics, Service chat Bots, Virtual phones, and more….
A key consideration of this approach will be to develop a workforce that understands how to operate in a digital environment. Digital optimization will require a new set of KPIs to measure performance and to measure success. The IT operating model for digital business no longer has IT as service provider. Instead, IT is a true partner with the business, jointly accountable for business outcomes. Almost every facet of the organization requires the use of technology.
The digital strategy initiatives will be funding through Seneca’s integrated planning process. The implementation of the digital strategy will be reported to the Seneca Senior Executive Committee (SEC) on a quarterly basis.
Gartner defines Digital ambition as below:
Digital ambition is a clearly identified, desired digital outcome of a digital optimization strategy — shaped by a digital industry vision and an enterprise's response to that vision. It is a compass, clarifying the direction for digital business.
Listed below are Seneca’s digital ambition goals from 2019 to 2021. This list will be reviewed and updated once a year.
Paper based processing
Electronic document approval software, Workflow automation packages
Response/Processing time reduced from 3-5 days to 2-4 hours
Records Management
Electronic records management system
Queue Management
Increased self-serve through mobile apps and application software tools
75% of students self-serve for fee processing, schedules and document requests
Significant reduction in queues & in-person counter dealings, including through international student portal
Student Success
Intervention by faculty initiation based on monitoring of LMS course based activity and assignments. Intervention by advisers - supporting the whole student rather than the course based approach
30% of all at risk students are identified using the predictive analytics tools and data
Improvement in student graduation rates
Recruitment Inquiries
Cognitive engagement using ChatBots / Virtual Personal Assistants
Recruiters use chat tools to answer queries
50% of all inquiries to be automatically answered by chatbots
24x7 support, faster response, multi-lingual support
Advising Support
Advisers use email to answer student queries
80% of most frequent questions to be automatically answered by chatbots
Digital Marketing
Predictive Analytics using Eloqua AI & Website activity monitoring
No automated prospect follow up
Automated tools to track website activity to launch targeted email campaigns
Better student engagement
Smart recruiting
Salesforce Einstein & Eloqua
No automated lead follow up
Automated tools using Salesforce Einstein to identify potential leads and launch targeted email campaigns
Better conversion rate from lead to confirmation
Digital Credentials
Blockchain with SecureKey
Verification of credentials – students and employees – services such as National Student Clearinghouse
Paper based degrees, diplomas and certificates
100% of all Seneca awarded credentials will be available on blockchain platform
Real-time validation of Seneca credentials. Potential revenue source for Seneca
Digital OneCard
Mobile Payment, Mobile Wallet
Debit and Credit card based payments. Physical One Card
Flexible payment options that work from anyone in the world
Online, hybrid and digital enhanced learning
Wide variety of tools used to support online learning
Cloud based tools to enhance learning
Active learning classrooms with remote learning capability
Learning Management System
Baseline of part time and fulltime courses: fully online, hybrid. Targets for 2020 to be established based on 2018/19 baseline.
All courses employ context relevant digital tools.
Course specific targets will be determined through the digital learning strategy
Rich use of priority cloud based tools across a wide range of programs.
Flexible learning opportunities to students
Enhanced digital literacy skills for students and faculty
Enhanced marketability of graduates
Digital Learning community
Expanded access to learning, scalability, augmentation of class materials and Enhancement of regular course content.
Digital, sociable recognition
Interactive Experiential Learning
Simulation
Simulation with using AR/VR/MR
Riipen
Simulation, using technology tools are implemented in many program areas.
Baseline use of AR/VR and MR and evaluation of tools needed.
Virtual training & live experience on a number of scenarios which was earlier possible only with field trips.
Student Assessments
Digital Assessment
Mastery based learning
Virtual Proctoring
Many courses use publisher materials with algorithmic assessments.
Mostly in-person assessments.
Virtual proctoring (B Virtual) used for OntarioLearn and some fully online courses.
Anywhere access to assessments reducing the need to travel to the campus and to Canada for international students
Content Management
Enterprise mobility management (EMM)
Content manually managed by Faculty & Admin
Ease of access, Secure deployment of Seneca proprietary content
Smart Waste Management
IoT sensors that sense how full the cans are. The system connects via the cloud to inform when the recycling units need emptying
Manual emptying
50% improved operational efficiency
Optimizing collection frequency and improving labour utilization
Smart Lighting
Wireless and Bluetooth beacon enabled smart IoT sensors that control switching, intensity and mood driven lighting
No smart lighting capability
2019 will pilot the use of smart devices. Targets to be determined on successful pilot.
Energy saving up to 60%, improved working conditions and improved space utilization.
Virtual Phone access
Cisco mobility, SIP trunking
Fixed desktop phones
Increased mobility , Cost saving
Smart Parking
Automated Vehicle license plate recognition based automated parking system, supported by mobile payments
Fixed gates at each parking location, payment by parking meters
Hassle free parking experience, promotes ride sharing, special parking spots promote electric vehicles
Reporting and Analytics
Cognitive insight using Augmented Analytics
Query based reporting tools supported by Excel and PowerPoint. Few BI options
50% of all enterprise data reporting is done using Augmented analytical tools
One version of truth. Deep dive data insights using machine learning.
Service Desk
Cognitive engagement using Chat Bots / Virtual Personal Assistants
Service Desk managed by Personnel for Tier-1 support
50% of all inquiries are answered by Artificial Intelligence driven chat bots / VPAs
Productivity improvement, Financial saving.
Proactive Monitoring
Advanced Analytics using Artificial Intelligence and IoT sensors
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