February 26, 2004
BizTech Showcase: The place to see technological solutions to everyday problems
University staff might want to mark their calendars for March 26, when the very first “BizTech Showcase” is planned at the HUB. The showcase is a chance to see, all in one place, a variety of technological tools designed to assist with the work that staff members do.
Take facilities work requests, for example. In the old days, a staffer would call Facilities Services and make a request, then fill out some paperwork. After that it was a matter of waiting and maybe making more calls to find out what was happening with the work request. Then, in 2001, an online work request system debuted — a system whose continual improvement has been customer driven.
“The new feature we’ll be demonstrating at the showcase allows departments to customize the routing and approval of their own work requests,” said Paul Smith, technology officer at Facilities Services. “When a request is entered, it can be automatically routed to the person who has to approve it.”
Like most of the technology on display at the showcase, the system was created in response to and in collaboration with the people who use it.
“One of our goals in business services is to partner with our clients, to join with them to give them the service they need,” said Sandra Lier, associate vice president for business services and co-chair of the BizTech Showcase. “We want to do what the clients need us to do. So at the showcase, we want to not only demonstrate the products, but recognize the people who have worked hard to create them.”
Each booth at the showcase will be staffed not only by technical support people, but also by “super users” — staffers who really know how to use that system. “It’s a way for people to have a chance to see what’s available and to get their questions answered,” Lier said.
The system that Holly Campbell will be demonstrating for the University’s Motor Pool is similar to the one from Facilities Services in that it will allow departments to track vehicle rentals and required approvals.
“We’ve had a system in which people can rent a vehicle online,” Campbell said, “but now departments will be able to monitor their rentals more closely.”
She explained that in the past, when someone rented a car, he or she provided a budget number and received a rental agreement. But because the Motor Pool sends bills monthly, those whose budget was charged didn’t necessarily know about the rental until they received a bill. Under the new system, when a budget number is used, an e-mail will automatically go to the person in charge of that budget. He or she can contact Motor Pool if there’s a problem.
Not all the booths will be spotlighting systems for completing everyday chores. Computing & Communications, for example, will demonstrate a new system — to be available in summer — that allows frequent customers to schedule conference call reservations via the Web. Rather than contract this service out, C&C will provide conference call services with all the bells and whistles of an outside vendor while providing customized service to the UW community.
Not only that, but additional features allow conference call participants to share spread sheets, Power Point presentations and more on the Web site. “For example, 10 people could be participating in a conference call discussing, viewing, and editing the same spreadsheet on their PCs,” said Lynetta Holifield, account manager for C&C’s ComTech.
And C&C is partnering with Disability Services to show off specialized keyboards, mice and other equipment.
In addition to the booths, the showcase will feature eight informational presentations and some mini-classes. That schedule hasn’t yet been pinned down.
The showcase came about when Ed Lightfoot, director of information systems, visited a similar event at the University of California in San Diego and talked about it at the executive vice president’s management group meeting. Lier, who attends that meeting, said she was familiar with the same type of event in her former position at UC Irvine.
“It seemed like something that would be useful for people here, so we decided to try it and Ed and I volunteered to be the co-chairs,” Lier said.
Support staff and their supervisors are the target audience for the event, although interested faculty are welcome as well. It runs from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. in the HUB East Ballroom. Executive Vice President Weldon Ihrig has written to deans, directors and chairs, asking them to encourage staff to attend the showcase.
“We’re hoping people will be given release time for the showcase,” Lier said.
If it receives a positive response, the showcase will likely become an annual event, and might become the place where units routinely debut their new systems.
“We’ll be eager to see what those who come have to say in their evaluations,” Lier said.
