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Dr. NeeCee Cornish matches technology, processes, and people to university endeavors

It was at the height of a pandemic and on the heels of a major reorganization when Dr. NeeCee Cornish assumed the dual role of Associate VP of IT and Deputy COO at Western University of Health Sciences (WesternU), a graduate health professions institution with campuses in California and Oregon.

鈥淓veryone was still unsettled and trying to disentangle processes and responsibilities,鈥� she recalled.

Adding to the situation, rising costs and enrollment erosion continue to stir higher education institutions across the US. 鈥淐olleges are struggling with questions like, 鈥楬ow do we continue to deliver that student experience?鈥� and 鈥楬ow do we innovate and still keep costs down?鈥� 鈥� Cornish noted.

She emphasized the need for IT professionals to join the conversation and lead with solutions: 鈥淭he role of CIO is in a state of change. We can no longer just focus on network infrastructure or automation. We must be at the table thinking about business and institutional needs.鈥�

Seeking guidance for realignment

For years, WesternU functioned in reactive mode without an established IT strategy, but Cornish knew planning a new approach could be costly and time-consuming. 鈥淚t might take months and it may never even come to fruition,鈥� she said.

As an IT leader who started as a database programmer, then took on leadership roles and earned a doctoral degree in business administration and management, Cornish owns her space as a matchmaker of technology, processes, and people. She and her team of almost 60 IT professionals sought research-driven guidance and best-practice methodologies for recalibration.

Establishing a unified IT strategy within a week

WesternU scheduled an IT Strategy Workshop with 91制片厂 to uncover business needs, align scope, and plan actions. 鈥淲hen you get a workshop from Info-Tech, you鈥檙e talking to experts. They know what questions to ask,鈥� Cornish said.

She described the four-day experience as intense and inclusive with valuable output. 鈥淲e involved the voices of our IT team and the voices of the business 鈥� we made our vision and mission in half a day鈥檚 time, maybe even less. And it鈥檚 a vision and mission that really resonated with everybody.鈥�

With Cornish鈥檚 leadership, the workshop provided a space for all participants to be candid about concerns and ideas. Within days, the unified team established a structure and initiatives to serve as its blueprint.

The streamlined effort also proved cost effective. 鈥淚t saved me tons of hours and tons of money,鈥� Cornish related. 鈥淲e would have needed to go through all our applications, all of our products, all of our contracts, all of our everything. We saved at least $100,000 by doing the IT Strategy Workshop.鈥�

"With the Info-Tech IT Strategy Workshop, we involved the voices of our IT team and the voices of the business and we made our vision and mission in half a day鈥檚 time, maybe even less. And it鈥檚 a vision and mission that really resonated with everybody.鈥�

- Dr. NeeCee Cornish, Associate VP of IT and Deputy COO, WesternU

Transforming IT with precision and efficiency

With the strategy in place, Cornish and her team could evaluate all IT efforts, keeping only services indispensable to university goals.

First, Cornish worked with Info-Tech analysts to refine WesternU鈥檚 organization design. Together, they ran scenarios and ensured the result serves its users. 鈥淭hat was such a beneficial guided implementation,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey reminded me to make sure I鈥檓 taking the people aspect into the equation and lumping groups together that make the most sense. By the end, I made some changes 鈥� I realized my initial plan wasn鈥檛 the right thing to do.鈥�

WesternU then took a deep look at its application portfolio to reveal essentials and redundancies. 鈥淭hat saved us about $60,000 to $70,000 annually,鈥� Cornish noted. 鈥淲hen the contracts came up for renewal we knew which ones we didn鈥檛 consider strategic vendors anymore.鈥�

Cornish and her team realized additional savings by reviewing contracts. In one case, Info-Tech analysts reworked phrases within a 60-page document, ensuring verbiage remained favorable to WesternU. 鈥淲e thought, 鈥楾here鈥檚 no way this company is going to accept all of these red lines,鈥� 鈥� Cornish said. 鈥淪ure enough, they accepted every single one of them, which saves us $40,000 in maintenance on an annual basis.鈥�

Refining operations with data-driven insight

Cornish welcomes tools, templates, and programs developed by Info-Tech analysts to match her people to empowering processes and technology. 鈥淭he diagnostic programs tell the real story of what鈥檚 going on,鈥� she explained.

For instance, assessments from the IT Management and Governance Framework exposed over- or under-servicing, and stakeholder metrics from the CIO Business Vision elevated coordination. 鈥淚鈥檓 going to run diagnostics every year because every year they鈥檙e informing me of what we need to do differently and reaffirming what we鈥檙e doing well,鈥� she said. 鈥淲ith this guidance, I have a team that trusts me to lead them.鈥�

鈥淐IOs, especially those of higher education, are going to have to be thinking less about technology, and more about how we鈥檙e going to move the business forward by matching the right technology to the right people and processes.鈥�

- Dr. NeeCee Cornish, Associate VP of IT and Deputy COO, WesternU

Renovating student and faculty experiences

WesternU advanced certainty with its new IT approach. Then, armed with its fresh strategy and insight, the university gained a springboard for cost-effective modernization.

鈥淚n education, we鈥檝e got to do more with less,鈥� Cornish related. 鈥淥ne of the things a CIO and IT can assist with is helping to innovate, bringing novel ideas to some of those traditional problems.鈥�

Among the new initiatives designed by WesternU, team members created an artificial intelligence system that tracks moods of students and faculty. For student convenience, the university also released a chat bot, enabled electronic signatures, and offered automated after-hours support.

As challenges arise, Cornish engages with her executive counselor from Info-Tech. 鈥淚 look to my executive counselor for guidance, for helping me have difficult conversations, and for leadership challenges that I'm having. I really believe that I wouldn't be where I am today without that service.鈥�

Through it all, Cornish plans to keep matchmaking. 鈥淐IOs, especially those of higher education, are going to have to be thinking less about technology and more about how we鈥檙e going to move the business forward by matching the right technology to the right people and processes.鈥�