Co-creating a unified vision to drive innovation at Penn State

What sparked the need for change?

“Penn State has been working through a multi-year initiative to reimagine shared assistance and services across the university. We engaged PwC to help identify an affordable approach to IT operations that considered security, evolving requirements and the diverse experiences of all users, ranging from faculty and students to potential students. Connecting and consolidating the IT organization will not only save the university money, but will also help us meet stakeholder needs faster, helping drive collaboration to support our mission — shaping a better world through education, research and service.”

What solution did the teams unlock by working together?

“Starting with data collection, PwC led interviews and surveyed university leaders to better understand the unique needs of our 64 disparate IT units, their operating models and governance. The PwC team facilitated workshops with various campus, college and administrative leaders to map the IT journey, helping address current issues and considering the future direction of our IT operating model along with a proposed roadmap.

The team visited different IT teams and identified 1,700 different applications. We've been working together to find opportunities to combine licenses, deciding which apps we really need, and identifying potential areas for investment. Ultimately, all the recommendations, beginning with the application inventory and prioritization exercise, work together to improve cost efficiency, enhance security and better align IT services with stakeholder needs. In phase two, PwC will help implement the resulting recommendations.”

Where did tech innovation meet human ingenuity?

“PwC’s use of surveys and design thinking workshops helped us understand our pain points. Their strategy helped align our leadership on how to integrate and enhance people, processes and technology. It suggests consolidating redundant technology, creating cost efficiencies when it comes to software licenses, aligning staff to the new operating model and establishing governance functions. PwC combined these tech insights with stakeholder know-how to help us drive holistic and enduring change.”

What was the real-world impact of approaching things differently?

“The team at PwC had an unparalleled ability to demystify complex IT operating model concepts for a diverse set of academic stakeholders. They were able to tailor solutions that incorporated each group’s voice, helping deliver a strategy that was uniquely shaped by Penn State’s input and guided by PwC’s real-world experience. Because everyone felt heard, and their feedback was incorporated into the solution, the results were collaborative while fostering buy-in for the transformation that lies ahead.”