ITSM Platform Replacement Project
Project Status
December 2022: Northwestern IT successfully launched the new Service Management Portal on December 13, 2022. The IT Service Catalog, the IT Knowledge Base, and technology support ticketing are all now part of a single platform. A new Status of IT Services system was simultaneously deployed to replace the Status of University IT Services web page. The new status system is accessible from the Service Management Portal as well as the Northwestern IT website.
The Northwestern IT Service Management team will continue to collaborate with IT partners in schools and units across the University to expand and adapt the platform to further serve the University.
Project Background
The Northwestern community interacts with the IT Service Management (ITSM) platform in ways they see and many that they do not. Among the platform's many functions, it tracks IT support tickets, helps coordinate changes that IT teams implement, and notifies the community when there are problems. While the existing service management platform has served Northwestern IT well, it has not scaled to provide a good user experience to those seeking IT help, nor does it have the features needed to support IT services at Northwestern’s scale. Northwestern IT is seeking a more robust platform to improve reporting, decrease redundancy, and improve the end-user experience with our catalog of services and those of our campus IT partners.
Benefits to the Northwestern Community
As a result of the project, Northwestern IT will enhance its service delivery to all University clients. Acquisition of a new ITSM platform will allow Northwestern IT to provide:
- An improved user experience; a one-stop-shop for IT services
- Enhanced user support—easier to locate and more reliable self-help information, and an improved system for submitting support tickets
- More accurate reporting to drive continual service improvement
- Preparation for future progress on the ITSM roadmap, including deployment of additional functionality and the eventual evolution into an enterprise service management platform that is not limited only to IT services
Goals and Objectives
Through implementing a more robust and mature IT service management platform, Northwestern IT will be equipped to:
- Ensure IT services align with the changing business needs of the University
- Improve the quality and consistency of the customer experience through the delivery of repeatable, high-quality services and support
- Lessen the number of unplanned outages and service disruptions across the Northwestern environment
- Provide relevant and timely information about IT services, including overall utilization
- Enhance efficiency in service delivery through greater coordination with IT partners across the University
Timeline
The target dates below are subject to change as the project progresses.
| Phase | Target Date | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Planning | October 2021 | Complete |
| Vendor Selection | November 2021 | Complete |
| Implementation | January–December 2022 | Complete |
| Go-Live | January 2023 | Complete |
Project Team
| Name | Title | Department | Project Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sean Reynolds | Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer | Northwestern IT | Executive Sponsor |
| Joseph Kurtin | Director, Technology Support Services | Northwestern IT | Project Sponsor |
| David Gracey | Manager, IT Service Management | Northwestern IT | Project Lead |
| Deirdre Lee | Project and Portfolio Manager Lead | Northwestern IT | Project Manager |
| Serena Simpson | Communications Specialist | Northwestern IT | Project Communications Lead |