10 April 2025 - Developing a Cohesive Digital Workplace During Challenging Times
Many would agree that creating a cohesive digital workplace can bring great benefits to both students and staff. While budget constraints might make it seem challenging, it's definitely achievable. Let's explore why a cohesive digital workspace is important, how it can be realistically implemented, and what it could look like.
The value of an effective digital strategy
Having a digital strategy is nothing new – and most universities already have one. But very often these can be too broad to be translated into something that yields realisable gains. However, a tightly defined digital strategy can have a significant impact on how well a university achieves its core strategic goals. Many of these goals are essentially driven by technology. Whether that’s provision of an inclusive dual learning experience that’s equally effective on campus as it is elsewhere. Or paving students’ paths to success, by ensuring familiarity with the correct technologies. Or creating an environment in which staff can thrive, through technology that enables them to perform.
Higher Education is more competitive than ever. Institutions compete with each other, especially for international students, and an excellent digital infrastructure is a great way to stand out. It has the capacity to be a key differentiator in quality of student experience. Increasingly, students have high expectations of technology: what it should be, how it can be accessed, where from, and how quickly and easily it meets their needs.
A well-defined and well-executed digital workplace strategy also brings with it a raft of efficiencies. Not in the euphemistic sense of squeezing more out of people, but by making people’s lives easier.
Providing the ‘Amazon’ experience
In our personal lives we’re familiar with the ease of access, comprehensiveness and immediacy that Amazon brings to shopping. Experiences like this, create expectations for a similar level of ‘everything in one place’ simplicity at work. And this is very much achievable, with a university-wide digital workplace providing a single source of truth. This could include news and communications, resources and policies, research and collaboration, access to tools and people directories, and more.
Universities are taking inspiration from enterprise businesses that have already embraced unified digital workplaces, successfully enhancing efficiency and cross-functional collaboration.
Combating the ‘Magpie Mentality’
Without a cohesive strategy in place it’s also easy to fall into the trap of constantly adopting shiny new tools to address immediate needs. Dubbed a ‘magpie mentality’, most universities appreciate this brings with it inefficiencies and often overlooks functionality that may already exist. Aside from contributing to a more fragmented digital landscape, it increases demands on IT staff. It complicates IT management, and makes it harder to manage information, ensure security, and provide a seamless user experience.
Whereas a cohesive digital workplace strategy will often have anticipated, and already met, the underlying requirement. Or failing that, will have in place a technology platform capable of meeting the need. All within a known, familiar, and user-friendly environment.
How can this be viably achieved?
Developing and implementing a cohesive digital workplace is a significant undertaking. But it doesn’t have to be overwhelming, and with the correct approach it is very achievable. With a clear roadmap, the project can be separated into bitesize chunks, with a phased implementation. This can reflect budgetary and resource constraints, sunk investments, as well as the needs of different faculties and departments.
Key to this is a sound process, that ensures alignment with organisational goals and effective staff and student adoption. Typically, this process will encompass defining clear objectives, assessment of current technology and processes, and the involvement of employee, student, management, and IT stakeholders. It will also include technology selection, development of a detailed implementation plan, its execution, training and support, governance, security, and ongoing evaluation.
The devil is in the detail
Stakeholder engagement is about far more than nurturing a sense of ownership. Put people first and take the time to develop a thorough understanding of what different groups need. It’s crucial that you have someone that can help translate their sundry needs into a clear and coherent set of objectives. As well as aligning them with the University’s aims. It is clarity at the beginning, that will ensure a successful outcome.
What could it look like?
Choosing digital tools that meet your objectives and integrate seamlessly with existing systems is central to any worthwhile project methodology. While you don’t want to pre-empt this stage, for most universities there’s a very strong argument for these being Microsoft tools.
The benefits of Microsoft
In the first instance, many are already paying for Microsoft 365. So, making use of already licensed capabilities is a clear cost saving. It also avoids the increased IT management and support costs typically associated with introducing previously unknown third-party tools. In contrast, IT teams tend to already have some knowledge of SharePoint. It also sits within a known and already established security and compliance model, enabling a high degree of data and access management control.
Microsoft tools already include most of the functionality universities require. But if the ‘out of the box’ functionality isn’t exactly what’s required, Microsoft tools are highly customisable. Additionally, the exceptional integration between tools further increases flexibility. We recently drew on the combined capabilities of SharePoint and Power Platform to provide a client with a fully functional events management portal. Perhaps, not something that would be seen as typical Microsoft functionality.
Although, integration within Microsoft 365 is seamless, it also offers superb integration with a wide range of third-party tools, ensuring a cohesive ecosystem.
Microsoft also scores very well on user experience. Staff and students both benefit from a familiar interface across all university systems, which also ensures ease of adoption. As well as ensuring that students use the same Microsoft technologies at university that they will encounter at work.
Finally, Microsoft 365 Copilot is laying the foundations for AI, and we expect to see these capabilities continue to strengthen. Already it is helping to organise data and streamline processes, enabling smarter workflows and the automation of labour-intensive tasks.
Creating a unified digital workplace
Although your organisation’s needs may differ from another, typically these projects provide the basis for standardising and streamlining digital practices across an entire university.
What might this look like? Experience with others suggests you’ll want to see a single, central hub for all staff, providing ‘a single source of truth’ on any and every topic. This would provide university-wide news, announcements, a comprehensive people directory, as well as the primary repository for documents and other content types.
It would also provide a series of interconnected specialist portals. Such as faculty portals providing dedicated spaces for individual schools and departments. Research hubs provide structured, accessible platforms for academic collaboration and governance and a secure HR portal.
While a student intranet would ensure that they have easy access to resources, schedules, and support.
Building a future-ready university
Establishing an effective and cohesive digital workplace is central to a university’s future success. It can support the achievement of the university’s core strategic goals, as well as releasing a host of positive efficiencies. Providing staff and students with a single source of truth, streamlining operations, and future-proofing the university’s digital strategy.
With the right approach it can be a manageable initiative that improves collaboration, efficiency, and user experience across the board.
