About Information Services (IS)

Vision  

As a recognized Centre of Excellence for information technology, infrastructure, and service delivery, Information Services is committed to the success of our people, the University and the community.

Guiding Principles  

• Treat people with respect, consideration, and kindness.
• Participate in and support the career development, education, and training of staff and managers.
• Be open, honest, and prompt in all communication and conduct.
• Create a safe environment for the presentation of new ideas and opposing points of view.
• Be prudent stewards of the University resources entrusted to us.
• Accept responsibility for our conduct and holding ourselves accountable.

Management Philosophy 

Strategic Focus 

Service Excellence: IS will provide a set of services that meets the expectations and needs of both Clients and IS.
People: IS will undertake activities that assist people to learn, engage, communicate, motivate and lead.
Stewardship: IS will manage the resources entrusted to us resourcefully, with honesty and competence.
Making a difference: IS will proactively and collaboratively empower clients to achieve the University’s vision.

We are committed to providing a quality technology infrastructure and support service to the University that is sustainable based on an agreed to set of standards and expectations that are equitably balanced to the resources made available to provide those services.

The Scope of Services document  (employees only) is intended to provide University managers with a better understanding of the scope of services Information Services offers, including costs for service.

The Communication and Infrastructure group is comprised of five service units.

Customer Applications provides support to the University community in the area of institutional administrative system support, business analysis, project management, database administration and web services.

The Customer Applications team is made up of four functional units:

1. Applications and Data Services

The Applications & Data Services team provides technical services for in-house application maintenance and support for University funded enterprise administrative applications. Some of these applications include Banner, Banner Self Service, DOME (Web Mark Entry), Parking, Locksmith, Content 7 and Cognos. Application interface support to the Banner is provided for vendor based applications including ActiveNet, StarRez, FAMIS and FAST. Team members utilize skills in troubleshooting, debugging, analysis and programming to support these applications.

Another major responsibility for this team is the development and maintenance of the CASPUR reporting environment.

Information Services works in partnership with the Office of Resource Planning relating to report development.

2. IS-PMO (Project Management Office)

All University approved and prioritized projects involving Information Services are documented and managed on behalf of Information Services by the IS-PMO (Project Management Office). All University projects that require Information Services resources must first be approved and prioritized by the University Information Technology Steering Committee (UITSC) or one of the subcommittees of UITSC, General Administrative Systems Planning (GASP) or University Web Governance Committee (UWGC). It is in this way that Information Services ensures its limited resources are allocated to the most important projects of the University. In limited circumstances Information Services will provide support to a project of a Unit that has not been prioritized by the University Committees. In these cases the Unit must pay the full cost of the project and support resources assigned by Information Services such that University approved and prioritized projects are in not delayed.

Should this type of support be of interest to a Unit they should contact the AVP of Information Services for additional information.

3. Database Administration and Security

The primary duties for the DBA and Security team are to:

• Manage and secure the University's institutional data assets stored in databases.
• Ensure that members of the University community have the information they need, when they need it, and in the form in which it was entered into the database.

The team supports the Oracle database environment to ensure optimal database performance and security. They are responsible for the installation and upgrade support for all Banner application modules and for providing Banner security access. 

4. Web Services

Web Services staff provide technical and administrative support to the University Web Content Management System, templates, and conversion toolsets. They are neither responsible for the design of templates to be used within the web CMS, nor will they be responsible for content creation, content conversion, or content update services.

Web Services staff will assist with academic and non-academic Internet website creation, maintenance, and enhancements as approved by External Relations or the University Web Governance Committee.

IS Web Services staff will be responsible for developing, implementing and maintaining the University's intranet. This includes Banner and its application portal services as well as web service workflow for internal administrative, academic, and research purposes.

All web related projects will be prioritized through the University Web Governance Committee to ensure limited resources are allocated to the most important web projects of the University.

The Client Services division of Information Services provides customer-facing services to the University community.

• Ensuring integrity and security of data.
• Providing resources to assist with keeping your computer and data secure.
• Educating and informing on current cyber threats such as email phishing, viruses, and malware.
• Communicating best practices, policies, and reporting procedures.
• Providing "Information Security Awareness Course" for U of R staff.