IT Outcomes 2020

Welcome!

Remember when we could walk down the hall and ask a colleague a question? Hand over a critical document? Brainstorm ideas? Remember when we actually connected with each other on campus? Held our meetings in person? Met colleagues in the Campus Center for lunch?

Then along came the big disrupter— COVID-19. With no time to prepare, we all had to pull together not only to survive but also to thrive in our new normal. Hello virtual meetings, Zoom conference calls, electronic signatures. Welcome avatar stand-ins as we explored the wider use of Immersive Reality.

IT Outcomes has always been about successful collaborations, but IT Outcomes 2020 takes successful collaborations to a whole new level. Honestly, what UMass Boston’s IT staff has accomplished within a compressed timeline is nothing short of amazing.

As time has gone by, I have become more and more impressed with the maturity of our IT organization, but no more so than now. The inherent capabilities and capacities of each member of IT are immense. Despite the need to work remotely, they have met UMass Boston’s demand for business and instructional continuity with creativity and confidence.

Throughout this publication we share stories about opportunities, collaborations, and results—where people + technology = success; and within the section titled “Operation Divide & Conquer, ” we share more successful collaborations with more than a nod to the reality that though the IT staff members have been physically divided location-wise, they have conquered each challenge, demonstrating their deep commitment to the success of our students, faculty, and staff. Prior to COVID, we, as a team, had begun working together to talk about our collective desired future state. Who do we, as a team, want to be? As an IT organization? How do we go about pursuing opportunities to bring about positive progress?

In 2019, we embarked on a 10-step visioning process with each member of IT contributing to the dialogue. The goal: articulate our mission, vision, and values (see back cover for details). And now, it is our solemn intent to fulfill our mission, achieve our vision, and live our values.

I believe, in part, that the strength of the UMass Boston IT team’s response to the challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic is rooted in the knowledge that each of us plays an equally critical role in ensuring success as we move forward.

IT staff members have been carrying the success of business and instructional continuity on their shoulders since January 30, 2020, and should feel pride in what they have, individually and collectively, accomplished. I feel immense pride in IT’s accomplishments and present IT Outcomes 2020 as tangible evidence of these successes.