Message from Howard Nicholson – Chair of the Web Content Working Group
The importance of our website is ever increasing as, for many, it is the first interaction with the University. A recent review of the ‘effectiveness of our website’ has led to a number of agreed actions which will enhance our web editing capability, clarify roles and responsibilities and ensure the site serves as a more effective marketing and communications tool.
It is recognised that many individuals across the University are putting a lot of creativity and effort into maintaining web pages for their departments and there are examples of good practice across the site. However, the Web Content Review did identify some weaknesses in terms of co-ordination and consistency of material that we need to address. The following changes, proposed by the Web Content Review group have now been approved by Executive Committee to meet the objectives outlined above.
These changes will be introduced in three phases:
Phase 1 (as soon as possible)
- Faculty Web Editors are going to be appointed as part of the support service team to be established at Faculty level.
- Additional resource is going to be placed within Web Services to support the creation and management of content across our website.
Phase 2 (Summer 2010)
- An institutional framework for web structure and content will be developed, within which Faculties and Schools will still retain a considerable degree of autonomy over the content of their local web pages.
- All professional service departments will also work within the new institutional framework. Web Services will support the professional service departments to implement the new framework and will also play a greater role in co-ordinating content, particularly where content from different departments has to be aggregated at institutional level for the benefit of stakeholders. The aim will be to avoid duplication, ensure accuracy, ensure resilience in maintenance and develop information to aid recruitment.
- The Head of Web Services will have the authority to remove any web pages that do not satisfy the framework, in consultation with the Director of Policy and Planning, and with a right of appeal of the web page creator to the University Secretary.
Phase 3 (2011)
- A network will be established by the Head of Web Services to provide professional support for those involved in content creation for the web. This will allow the discussion of matters of common interest, and the pooling of good practice.
- Web Services will, after a period of consolidation of the new structure, facilitate a ’super-users’ group, to support those staff with proposals for innovation, and to consider the feasibility of adopting such proposals across the University.
Background to the review
The Head of Web Services delivered a presentation to the Executive Committee in November which posed questions about the effectiveness of our website as marketing/communications tool. Following this a working group was put together to:
- examine in detail the issues outlined to the Executive Committee by the Head of Web Services, with a view to improving the effectiveness of the University’s website through effective content management, thereby ensuring the website serves core institutional objectives and provides professional, high-quality information to all audiences
- make recommendations relating to the management of content and deployment of associated staff resource
The review was conducted by the Web Content Working Group which consisted of:
- Howard Nicholson, Librarian (Chairman)
- Professor Julian Chaudhuri, Head of the Department of Chemical Engineering
- Dr Liz Lyon, Director of UKOLN
- Alison Price, Academic Registrar
- Sion Lutley, Director of Development and Alumni Relations
- Alison Kerwin, Head of Web Services
- Mark Demmen (Secretary)