3.
Scoresheet
Value
Points Criteria
10% 1. Targeted Technology X: describe the targeted technology in technical detail
20% 2. History and Evolution of X: describe its history and evolution, its current capabilities
and use, including a discussion of the social impacts, positive and negative.
20% 3. Evaluation Plan for X: create a set of criteria and an evaluation plan with which you
(or another practicing manager) could use to evaluate both the technology, in general, and
a particular implementation of it, which could be a vendor's offering, or an organization's
own creation. These criteria will be based on feedback from a student survey that we
craft and administer. This should look like a table for easy “apples to apples”
comparisons with weights, scoring, and user instructions. Important: be very detailed and
clear about how to use this plan and criteria, make it so that you could hand it off to
someone and they could figure out how to use it from your report. Social impacts should
be included.
20% 4. Evaluating The Top X: use your criteria and evaluation plan to evaluate the top 24
product offerings.
10% 5. The Future of X: predict the next 25 years of the technology, where it will likely add
business value, where it will likely cause more problems than value, etc. (you may wish
to blend points 2 and 5)
20% 6. Writing (see following pages)
3
6.
failed. The guidelines are meant to provide CIO Chief Information Officers at higher education 5
institutions a formula for success:
● Develop a Strategic Vision for the College
● Develop Objectives for a new system
● Identify Specific Functionality Requirements
● Understand the Technical Requirements
● Create a Budget for the Total Cost of Ownership
o Purchase Price
o Implementation
o Hardware Implications
o Maintenance of Staffing 6
Most research and information on the targeted technology addresses ERP in general for higher
education and does not specify financial aid services. The reason for this is the expectation of
higher education institutions is for one ERP to integrate all or most operations, including the
financial services.
Mills IT Structure and Service Integration
The Mills IT Department is organized into seven important subdepartmental functions
that serve the entire campus (See Appendix Figure 11):
● Systems/servers
● Managing the Portal and Banner/ERP
● Desktops on campus
● Training of faculty/staff/new students and Purchasing
● Mills email
● Network infrastructure: cabling and the wireless services
● Audio/Visual services
Many IT services are housed outside the IT department, making the service structure at
Mills unique. For example, the Mills College website is managed by the school’s Marketing
Department and the Blackboard system is run by the Provost. In addition to the school’s main
website, the Marketing Department manages web pages for most individual departments on
campus. The Housing Department manages its own website due to the large departmental size.
In an interview (see Appendix for full interview), Bruce McCreary, Mills College Senior
Director of ITS, provided history and context for the IT Services offered at Mills. Currently,
Mr. McCreary and his colleagues implement and adapt systems to meet the needs of the Mills IT
Services. Mr. McCreary does not make all decisions about which software is purchased for the
various needs of Mills students and staff in the many different departments. The Mills Cafe for
example purchased their own software to manage the purchases of food and beverages. Mr.
McCreary explained that the Financial Aid portion of IT is managed by two system
administrators, Alison Ross of the MCenter and Victoria Jenner of the Finance Department.
Ross and Jenner are two of four “funky techs” that work at Mills. Funky Techs are the
functional technicians that manage the code and hook ups specific to their respective portions of
the Banner and CashNet services.
5
Educause. ERP Systems for Higher Education: Evaluating and Selecting The Best Fit For the Institution
http://www.eduserveinternational.com/documents/EduServeEASEmodel.pdf
6
Swartz, Orgil. Higher Education ERP: Lessons Learned https://net.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/eqm0121.pdf
6
12.
System provides realtime updates of payment and billing
information.
.05
Students enrolled in automatic payment plans receive
notifications of payment instead of reminders to pay. Their
notifications are distinct from students who are not enrolled in
autopay.
.03
If payment requires transfer to an external system or website,
the transfer out of the ERP is clearly communicated to the
student user
.03
Due amounts automatically appear as suggestions when
students key in their payments
.03
Financial Aid Award
A calendar showing expected loan disbursement dates is
prominently available
.03
The most up to date and recent financial aid information is
shown first (i.e. information for current semester and year)
.03
Dates of past and future financial aid disbursements are
clearly displayed
.03
Key information is available on a single page .05
The cost of attendance is clearly labelled as an estimate that
determines a student’s allowance for financial aid
.03
The system sends accurate notifications about requirements
for scholarship and access
.03
Electronic refunds are easy to sign up for .03
Refund dates are easy to find and understand .03
Loan acceptance links ands instructions are prominent .03
Grants and scholarships are clearly and understandably
labelled by source
.03
Refunds are clearly and understandably labelled .03
The interface shows funding from student assistantships .03
12
13.
Mobile Access
Students account/financial aid information is easy to access
from Android and IOS mobile devices
.03
Students account/financial aid information is mobile
responsive
.03
=100%
Total Weighted Score X
Total Possible Weighted Score 5.00
Weighted Score as a Percentage of Possible =X/5.00
Evaluation of the Top 2 Education ERPs
Evaluation of Banner
Criteria Weight
Score
05
Weighted
Score
Cost
Cost to students: Will the ERP result in higher tuition and
fees, lower fees, or is the ERP budget neutral?
.07 N/A in
this
example,
info not
available
for
competitor
N/A in this
example,
info not
available for
competitor
General Usability
A stepbystep tutorial is available to teach students how to
access their finance and financial aid information
.03 1 .03
FAQs are available and relevant .03 1 .03
The interface has a modern look and feel with visually
driven navigation (as opposed to being textdriven)
.03 2 .06
13
14.
The color scheme of the interface contributes to user
understanding. Important links and information appear in
more noticeable colors
.03 2 .06
Once inside a student account, less than four clicks are
needed to access current financial aid or student finance
information
.05 1 .05
Financial aid and student account information can be seen
in the same tab/page
.07 1 .07
Bill Payment
It is easy to understand how much a student owes to the
university and when it is due
.05 2 .1
The payment function is easily located on multiple pages .03 1 .03
Easy to make a payment .03 1 .03
System provides realtime updates of payment and billing
information.
.05 1 .05
Students enrolled in automatic payment plans receive
notifications of payment instead of reminders to pay. Their
notifications are distinct from students who are not enrolled
in autopay.
.03 1 .03
If payment requires transfer to an external system or
website, the transfer out of the ERP is clearly
communicated to the student user
.03 1 .03
Due amounts automatically appear as suggestions when
students key in their payments
.03 1 .03
Financial Aid Award
A calendar showing expected loan disbursement dates is
prominently available
.03 1 .03
The most up to date and recent financial aid information is
shown first (i.e. information for current semester and year)
.03 2 .06
Dates of past and future financial aid disbursements are .03 1 .03
14
15.
clearly displayed
Key information is available on a single page .05 1 .05
The cost of attendance is clearly labelled as an estimate that
determines a student’s allowance for financial aid
.03 1 .03
The system sends accurate notifications about requirements
for scholarship and access
.03 1 .03
Electronic refunds are easy to sign up for .03 1 .03
Refund dates are easy to find and understand .03 1 .03
Loan acceptance links ands instructions are prominent .03 2 .06
Grants and scholarships are clearly and understandably
labelled by source
.03 2 .06
Refunds are clearly and understandably labelled .03 1 .03
The interface shows funding from student assistantships .03 1 .03
Mobile Access
Students account/financial aid information is easy to access
from Android and IOS mobile devices
.03 1 .03
Students account/financial aid information is mobile
responsive
.03 1 .03
=100%
Total Weighted Score 1.13
Total Possible Weighted Score (in this scenario, without
taking cost into account)
4.65
Weighted Score as a Percentage of Possible 24.3%
15
16.
Evaluation of PeopleSoft
Criteria Weight
Score
15
Weighted
Score
Cost
Cost to students: Will the ERP result in higher tuition and
fees, lower fees, or is the ERP budget neutral?
.07 N/A in
this
example,
info not
available
N/A in this
example,
info not
available
General Usability
A stepbystep tutorial is available to teach students how to
access their finance and financial aid information
.03 1 0.03
FAQs are available and relevant .03 1 0.03
The interface has a modern look and feel with visually
driven navigation (as opposed to being textdriven)
.03 5 0.15
The color scheme of the interface contributes to user
understanding. Important links and information appear in
more noticeable colors
.03 5 0.15
Once inside a student account, less than four clicks are
needed to access current financial aid or student finance
information
.05 5 0.25
Financial aid and student account information can be seen
in the same tab/page
.07 5 0.35
Bill Payment
It is easy to understand how much a student owes to the
university and when it is due
.05 5 0.25
The payment function is easily located on multiple pages .03 3 0.09
Easy to make a payment .03 4 0.12
System provides realtime updates of payment and billing .05 5 0.25
16
17.
information.
Students enrolled in automatic payment plans receive
notifications of payment instead of reminders to pay. Their
notifications are distinct from students who are not enrolled
in autopay.
.03 5 0.15
If payment requires transfer to an external system or
website, the transfer out of the ERP is clearly
communicated to the student user
.03 3 0.09
Due amounts automatically appear as suggestions when
students key in their payments
.03 5 0.15
Financial Aid Award
A calendar showing expected loan disbursement dates is
prominently available
.03 5 0.15
The most up to date and recent financial aid information is
shown first (i.e. information for current semester and year)
.03 5 0.15
Dates of past and future financial aid disbursements are
clearly displayed
.03 5 0.15
Key information is available on a single page .05 5 0.25
The cost of attendance is clearly labelled as an estimate that
determines a student’s allowance for financial aid
.03 5 0.15
The system sends accurate notifications about requirements
for scholarship and access
.03 3 0.09
Electronic refunds are easy to sign up for .03 5 0.15
Refund dates are easy to find and understand .03 5 0.15
Loan acceptance links ands instructions are prominent .03 5 0.15
Grants and scholarships are clearly and understandably
labelled by source
.03 5 0.15
Refunds are clearly and understandably labelled .03 5 0.15
The interface shows funding from student assistantships .03 4 0.12
17
18.
Mobile Access
Students account/financial aid information is easy to access
from Android and IOS mobile devices
.03 1 0.03
Students account/financial aid information is mobile
responsive
.03 1 0.03
=100%
Total Weighted Score 3.93
Total Possible Weighted Score (in this scenario, without
taking cost into account)
4.65
Weighted Score as a Percentage of Possible 84.92%
PeopleSoft
Banner’s primary competitor is PeopleSoft Campus Solutions which is produced by
Oracle. It was founded in 1987 by Dave Duffield, currently of PeopleSoft and Ken Morris.
PeopleSoft too was created to streamline business functions for companies. Due to the
acquisition of PeopleSoft by Oracle it has added to the strength of the company and through its
corporate success has been able to create tools for the Higher Education market. The California
State University system began using a variety of PeopleSoft products in 2012 to manage its
technical systems and operations. The CSU system consists of 23 campuses and is the largest
public university system in the United States proving that PeopleSoft now has a key portion of
the market.
Peoplesoft Campus Solution focuses more on the student and their ability to easily and
effectively maneuver through needed menus. The package for Higher Education includes:
Enrollment and Degree Planning, Student Financing, Learning Management Integration, Mobile
Campus, Oracle Campus Analytics, and Alumni Management and Integration. It is with these
packages PeopleSoft has made it easy for the campus to “automate the sharing of information
between any learning management systems used on their campuses with their student
information system.” By doing this information remains easy for students to understand and 7
remains the most accurate and up to date. Examples of the ease of PeopleSoft for students
included below:
7
"PeopleSoft Campus Solutions | Applications | Oracle." 2011. 27 Apr. 2016
<http://www.oracle.com/us/solutions/052356.html>
18
27.
o Increased customer service training for anyone who interfaces with students.
Presently, we are treated as if we are annoyances or distractions instead of the
main reason they work here.
o Send notifications about turning in scholarship information so we stop getting late
fees for processing errors.
o Look at how a CSU does it. They're much better at it.
o Explicit explanation of when loan refund will hit account.
o Every single bill has been wrong and misleading. Please get the numbers right.
Student Focus Group Recommendations
Initial Portal In General Page Responses:
● MyMills Main Menu should be a main destination.
● Confused by the Registration, how to get classes added.
● (Our team suggestion: Create step by step guides) Develop a pdf sample outline with
images for students to as a reference in order to help them better navigate Financial Aid
and Student Accounts, a howtoguide.
MyMills Menu Page Responses:
● The grants from the department don’t show up, adding confusion. Other participants say
they do see their grants.
● A lot of clicks to even see the award. Need way less tabs. The key info should take up
one page. (Also true for the entire Portal).
● Difficult to differentiate which years’ information you’re accessing.
● TOO MANY TABS
● Font Size and text: Times Roman easier to read.
o Alison: Color of font is possible, but most things we’d like to change we don’t
change because then that feature won’t be supported by Banner.
● Student Accounts >Account Summary> A more accurate picture of your personal
finances.
o Alison: Financial Aid and Student Accounts must be separate from Cost of
Attendance tab
Student Refunds:
● Not clear where you would get refund.
● Headers and footers easy to change.
● Charge or refunds not clear.
● Attaching dates to the charges.
● Not clear the first time. Eventually after talking to the M Center I was told to sign up for
the erefund. Cashnet takes forever to become current.
o Alison: Cashnet statements are not in real time. Cashnet is not readable.
Participants: Make a link between Cashnet and the Student Accounts.
● Where do you look to show when loans and financial aid are dispersed.
● Alison: we could publish a ballpark calendar for this issue. Would be interested in seeing
what could be done in terms of coding for this problem. She will go back and have a
look to see if there’s a way to make “expected disbursement” work.
27
28.
Pain Points:
● Too many clicks
● Relationship between CASHNet and student accounts
● Make clear the movement of one system to the other
● Portal Homepage: Clicking one (picture) will have you logged in, Clicking the other (the
words) is not logged in.
Alison Ross shared that it would be possible to update terminology for students in Banner. It
currently uses industry specific terminology which Financial Aid and Student Accounts have
used but are not easily understandable to students.
Exhibits
Figure 7
Screenshot of
Mills Portal
Figure 8
Screenshot of
Current myMills
Resources
28