What the Office of the AVP & CTO did this summer

It was an active summer as Associate Vice-President and Chief Technology Officer Gayleen Gray and team moved forward with the McMaster IT Strategic Planning process! The beautiful weather, campus environment and challenge at hand helped to keep the team energized.

Here’s a look back at what the summer held: Based on feedback and demand stemming from the initial five IT community sessions held in June, four additional sessions were held in July and August to gather input. One session was held with administrative leaders, another with an additional group of IT community members, and a third with a group of undergraduate students and last but not least, a session with Student Affairs directors. All four sessions incorporated activities to reflect on the new McMaster IT vision, campus IT culture and to craft inspiring ‘Digital Moments’ which involves collaborative storytelling to capture the potential of transformative technology and services at McMaster.

The project team continues to leverage the creative input from these sessions and map against recommendations from the campus wide IT Services Review, completed in 2016. The outcome provides the framework for the three-year strategic objectives for the McMaster IT Strategic Plan.

Robust consultations were also held with the McMaster IT Strategic Plan Steering Committee and the IT Executive Committee to discuss progress and gather their valuable feedback on the process and next steps. These groups will come together again in September.

Looking ahead:

Efforts are now  focused on the actual development of the McMaster IT Strategic Plan with a draft plan anticipated for the fall semester. In the meantime, Gayleen and team will begin to socialize the elements of the plan with various stakeholder groups across campus. A presentation and discussion focused on the Strategic Plan is also planned for the upcoming McMaster IT Forum taking place October 11. Communications and engagement activities for sharing the plan broadly will be forthcoming.

Keep an eye on your inbox and the CTO website for more updates!