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Over the last year, higher education institutions were forced to adapt to unprecedented changes and demands in response to COVID-19, accelerating digital transformation within the sector. As we look forward, we need a digital strategy to help us determine how we can make the most of this momentum to build new pathways between teaching and learning, research, administration and technology.
A digital strategy provides clear and realistic expectations of technology, services and operational practices, and ensures that the solutions we implement are approached purposefully and meet the needs of the communities that we serve. This will enable individual and institutional success, help us to understand the potential of digital technologies and associated services, prioritize our investments, and readily apply them to better serve our diverse community.
Learn more about how we developed our digital strategy below or download the PDF.
"Accessibility should be at the forefront when creating or updating software."
"We need to provide the option to participate virtually or in-person which increases participation, is easier to fit into schedules, and removes unnecessary travel."
"Our digital strategy is the thread that holds it all together."
"Laurier should maintain balance between accessibility, cost-efficiency, and quality of service."
"Digital transformation shouldn’t be a steamroller. We need to find a balance between in-person and online. We need to learn what can improve and make digital and what can stay within that physical space."
From October 2021 through January 2022, the Digital Strategy Working Group organized a series of engagements sessions for students, faculty, researchers and staff across the university. This provided an opportunity for community members to contribute to and help shape our strategy and to ensure that the digital strategy we create reflects the diverse needs of our community.
We had very high participation from stakeholders, holding 12 focus group sessions involving 118 participants, receiving more than 2,600 responses to our online survey, and holding interviews with 11 members from the senior leadership team.
Through engagements with the community and work within the Digital Strategy Working Group, three key priorities were identified as being the most important to our diverse community and imperative to our strategic success. These themes are:
Since the winter of 2020 when the Digital Strategy working group was formed, we have been engaging with Gartner, external partners, and executive leadership to determine the direction and approach that we will take.
This journey did not begin with the development of the Digital Strategy Working Group or in response to COVID-19. Our digital journey has already started through the implementation of various initiatives, including the Laurier Learning Management System (D2L/Brightspace, MyLearningSpace), a wide range of electronic resources, services and platforms available through the Laurier Library, eduroam, the Microsoft 365 migration, ConsignO e-signing solution, the COVID-19 self-reporting application and more.
Having engaged with senior leadership and the executive leadership team to get a sense of how they view our digital future at Laurier, we are working to develop a framework and story that tells our digital journey. As we continue to develop our Digital Strategy and implement new projects and solutions, this digital story will grow and evolve over time.
In the late summer and into the fall, we held focus groups, meetings and distributed surveys to define the priorities of different groups and to ensure that their input helped inform our strategy.
Over the winter term, we reviewed the information we had gathered and began to cluster and prioritise goals and objectives to develop our digital strategy. The Digital Strategy Working Group then worked closely with senior and executive leadership teams to review the strategy for final approval.
With our Digital Strategy developed, the way in which we prioritize projects as an institution will change based on how they can help us to meet the goals we have set. We will also work to establish the metrics for our strategy and look for opportunities to provide continual updates to our community about our progress towards meeting our goals.
Our Digital Strategy has overarching and integrated themes across all strategic areas of the Laurier Strategy (2019-2024) and will be essential to helping the university be successful in achieving its objectives.
“Digital strategy helps us to determine where we are going as an institution.”
The Digital Strategy Working group is made up of diverse leaders from across the university that represent various strategic priorities of the university. The group meets bi-weekly to discuss current priorities, work planning and actions required. Sponsors are provided a monthly report detailing the progress that have been made towards developing our digital strategy.
Our Digital Strategy will provide a shared vision to enhance teaching, learning, research, administration, and service through sustainable digital innovation for Laurier and for our community of partners. In developing our approach, the Digital Strategy Working Group has identified a series of values that will drive its development.
Through this strategy we will: