Mission Statement
The UW Partners Program is an assembly of technology professionals and
other interested individuals, working to improve the use of computer technologies and the
services and products of the Division of Information Technology by promoting and
encouraging open communication and information exchange between all areas of the
University of Wyoming campus.
Introduction
The UW Partners Program was founded on the concept of sharing
information. In the past, the combination of an abundance of technology and scarcity of
technology-oriented information has proved frustrating, cumbersome, and even tiring. There
was also the perception of a "rift" between the Division of Information
Technology and the rest of the campus. It is the goal of the UW Partners Program to bridge
this communication gap and begin filling the void with timely, and more importantly,
accurate information by creating environments where communication is open, free, and
easily available.
Focus
The UW Partners Program will have the following three main focus areas:
- Customer Research, Feedback, and Marketing for Information Technology: In keeping with
Information Technology’s endeavor to become a more customer-service oriented
organization, various methods will be tried and evaluated for gathering information about
the technology wants and needs of people on campus, and well as feedback on current
issues. The UW Partners Program will also assist in IT’s marketing efforts, such as
new product release notification.
- University and Public Relations for Information Technology: The UW Partners Program
will, at some point, address the issues associated with how the campus and entities
outside the University of Wyoming interact with Information Technology and how to improve
the "user interface."
- Communication and Knowledge Transfer on Computer Technology Issues: By bringing together
technical and computer professionals from across campus for regular and frequent informal
meetings, an open forum has been created to assist in technical problem solving, to
provide customer involvement in planning and deployment of new technologies, and promote
the smooth and unconstrained flow of information and knowledge to and from Information
Technology.
In a nutshell, the UW Partners Program is a dynamic group with the goal
of encouraging and stimulating communication about computer technology and technology in
general on the University of Wyoming campus. Anyone who has an interest in these areas is
encouraged to participate in any UW Partners Program event and use any of the
communication media.
Structure and Organization
The core of the UW Partners Program is a small group of technology
experts and professionals from various areas on campus. The initial participants in this
group are still being established but will eventually represent as much of the campus
population as possible by drawing from the various academic, administrative, research, and
student groups. These technology experts and professionals informally discuss issues and
attempt to resolve issues through cooperative action. Presently, this core group is also
charged with running any events and coordinating communication issues. The membership of
the group is intended to be dynamic to continually bring fresh perspectives into the fold
and avoid any appearance of elitism. Some of the planned functions the group will perform
are:
- Act as technical resources for each other
- Perform analysis of technical concerns and problems on campus, and how
changes to applications, hardware, and networking systems will affect customers in
specific areas
- Crisis intervention and problem resolution
- Advocate improvement and change by making recommendations to appropriate
areas within Information Technology
- Act as an informational "bridge" between IT and the various
areas represented
- Provide information in a timely manner and in a fashion that promotes
accurate perception of the issues
- Foster constructive relationships between technology professionals across
campus
It is hoped that a loosely-organized, informally structured group will
provide vital flexibility in resolving issues promptly and efficiently. It will also allow
the group to evolve as technologies and conditions change at the University.
Participation
The UW Partners Program is open to the entire campus. Any student,
faculty member, or staff member who wants to participate is welcome to attend our events
and provide input through the open channels that are being established. The current
channels are a UW Partners Program mailing list (uw-partners@uwyo.edu),
and contacting the core group participant representing your college, department, or
functional area.
