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BEYOND THE BOTTOM LINE: Contract Web Development in Higher Education Educause 2003, November 4-7 Mary Pickering, 2003. This work is the intellectual property of the author. Permission is granted for this material to be shared for non-commercial, educational purposes, provided that this copyright statement appears on the reproduced materials and notice is given that the copying is by permission of the author. To disseminate otherwise or to republish requires written permission from the author. Mary Pickering Manager, Internet Development Group University Information Services Georgetown University mjp2@georgetown.edu

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At Georgetown University, most web development is done by departmental web developers. While the vast majority of sites are hosted on servers managed by central IT (University Information Services), there is no central control over visual or application standards beyond basic security and server-specific considerations. There is however, a collective webmaster committee that successfully fosters collaboration and some voluntary standards. Departments with the luxury of hiring dedicated web developers often hire generalists to provide technical services ranging from graphic design to application development instead of communications experts to focus on content and marketing. Due to the decentralized nature of web development, departments often contract with external companies to provide technical or graphic design services, resulting in large amounts of funds leaving the university. In January 2001, in response to these issues, Georgetown Universitys University Information Services formed a small unit to offer contract web development services to campus departments. KeyBridge was given the task of operating as a commercial startup within the higher education environment.

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KeyBridge has three primary goals Provide fiscally sustainable services on a fee-for-service model. Improve the performance and effectiveness of client web sites and/or client business processes. Provide excellent service. Achievement of these goals is measured in the following ways: Percentage of costs covered. Comparison of original vs. new web sites or applications using criteria such as adherence to select university style manual standards and utilization of resources such as university authentication and authorization. Customer service surveys, returning customers.

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In FY03, KeyBridge achieved 107% cost recovery after only two full years of operation. Due to the roll-over nature of the units budget, KeyBridge is able to take payment from departments seeking to spend excess budget in order to prevent losing it at the conclusion of the fiscal year. Therefore, yearly revenue does not match precisely with the project list. A unit like KeyBridge is particularly vulnerable to budgetary fluctuations. Due to the general economic difficulties that have hit university funding, FY04 may not be as successful as FY03.

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KeyBridge has been involved in project ranging from simple content updating to highly complex applications that interface with university enterprise systems such as Student Information Services or e-commerce back ends. KeyBridge has a client base of over 60 clients, ranging from year-long interdepartmental collaborations, to small research centers. KeyBridge has redesigned four out of seven of the universitys schools and is currently working on a second redesign for one school. KeyBridge represents a fiscally sensible solution for departments unable to afford a fulltime web developer and yet who could benefit from professional graphic or application design.

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KeyBridge employs four fulltime staff and one student for 20 hours per week. KeyBridges manager is shared with the web hosting unit within UIS. Product manager: This position deals with all clients, develops estimates and manages the time of the staff and if charged with furthering the range of product offerings and overseeing tool development. Graphic designer: It has been critical to KeyBridges success to have a designer with professional training and experience beyond web design. Application developer: KeyBridge primarily works with ColdFusion, Access and SQL. Having a fulltime developer on staff allows KeyBridge to reuse code and develop tools that can be resold and adapted as needed. Production assistant: It is important that this employee is able to operate comfortably within both graphic design and application development environments. It is important for client development that they know that the time of the product managerwith whom they have most contactis not charged by the hour. Graphic design, application development and production are charged for. The hourly rate for KeyBridges services is calculated as follows: Total Costs [including all salaries, benefits and overhead] / Billable Time [3 staff X 52 weeks X 20 billable hrs/wk] = $100 per hour.

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Web branding goes beyond graphic design. It can include everything from navigation items to photography to font choices and overall look and feel. Use of the watermark seal conveys a sense of history and prestige without overwhelming the page. Building a photograph library of Georgetown students lends authenticity to KeyBridge designs and pleases clients. Similar navigation items across the whole Georgetown site aids in usability. Juxtaposing photography of DC with campus images reinforces Georgetowns location and national stature.

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KeyBridge is able to bring a consistent look and feel to Georgetowns web site without sacrificing individual identity. This consistency extends from the top tier through cross- departmental themed sites and down to research centers and administrative departments.

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KeyBridge has developed strong collaborative relationships with other brand stewards. KeyBridge partners very closely with the University Webmaster, a position also residing within University Information Services. The University Webmaster is charged with institutional management of the Georgetown top tier, development of policy and projects that influence university- wide web communications and chairing the collective webmaster committee (GUide). Working with the GUide committee allows KeyBridge to act in an unofficial advisory capacity to other web developers. KeyBridges professionalism has resulted in the approval and enthusiastic support of influential university administrators and web developers.

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Positioning KeyBridge within University Information Services enables the unit to take advantage of the myriad technologies provided by the department. These technologies help KeyBridge retain a competitive edge over external development companies that must host applications offsite and build basic tools from scratch. All KeyBridge applications use the university LDAP directory for authentication, are housed on centrally located and supported servers and often share code, allowing for easy updating and modification to accommodate changing university security requirements.

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KeyBridge has access to a vast skill set and knowledge base within the organization that enables the unit to operate with the minimum staff necessary without having to employ additional server and network administrators. A close working relationship with IT colleagues allows KeyBridge to take advantage of resources not generally available to the rest of the university community, such as dedicated servers. KeyBridge also is able to work with the university security officer directly as an application is being built. Emerging security issues are often explored in collaboration with UIS staff and KeyBridge is the first to test out solutions, to the benefit of other departments.

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With the addition of KeyBridge as a resource for Georgetown departments, there have been several projects previously outsourced that have returned to the fold. The result is a more secure environment for departments as well as a better service to the end user. Critical monies are also returned to the university. KeyBridges position within UIS gives departments more faith in its abilities to provide ongoing support as well as the necessary resources to provide the promised service. UIS staff have a high level of contact with potential clients and it is important that KeyBridge keep them apprised of new products and services.

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KeyBridge provides a rapid development environment that complements well the enterprise development of other UIS units. Where enterprise development necessitates an oversight committee to prioritize competing demands, KeyBridge responds directly to individual needs in a reasonable timeframe and affordable manner. Dealing with multiple clients within a shared educational and administrative environment allows KeyBridge to take individual needs and leverage them into enterprise-lite tools that are then available for the rest of the campus community at a lower price than if each client paid for development separately.

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KeySite [web-based content management] is used by over 55 clients, allowing staff to focus on developing content rather than worrying about HTML coding. KeyConnect [moderated discussions] is used to great effect for connecting prospective students with admissions officers and faculty as well as disseminating important information to students in a safe and anonymous environment. KeyForm [forms management] is available for free to develop simple online forms and basic data analysis. A subscription version provides additional administrative and analysis functionality.

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KeyBridge also develops custom applications, including a contact management system for Georgetowns Federal Relations Office, a slide library that allows faculty to create slide sets for display in class and exam review, and a matching service for community service organizations and researchers.

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KeyBridge acts as a very customer service oriented face for UIS. The institutional and higher education knowledge of KeyBridges staff cannot be underestimated as a selling point to clients. It is comforting to potential clients that they dont have to explain the admissions cycle or role of faculty. KeyBridge has served to help educate clients on issues such as usability and graphic design. The process to achieve the end product has helped raise the profile of web development as a profession. The end product demonstrates daily to the university the worth of spending money on what is the most visible communications tool for the institution.

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KeyBridges role as project manager in large cross-departmental theme projects helps to keep them on track, as well as providing valuable perspective on issues such as marketing, content development, usability and design. A good example of this is the role that KeyBridge played in the development of be.georgetown.edu, a health and safety site for students. A long and careful needs assessment conducted by KeyBridge identified and prioritized audiences for the site, thus determining the style and focus of the content.

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In order to achieve a fresh, hip and strong graphic to support the message of health and well-being, and that also combats the potentially dry nature of the subject matter, KeyBridge conducted a photo shoot of dozens of Georgetown students. These photos have served as the most visible and identifying aspect of the site.