Description
The IT Business Analysis service is offered to the campus to support modernization of business practices. Targeted training, broad topic seminars, process analysis and improvement, digitization and automation will be available for individuals and groups who wish to increase their efficiency and reduce workload.
Standard Features
Standard Build Types
Solutions developed by IT Business Analysis are designed around the needs of the department and business process. Implementations vary, but many solutions follow one or more of the standard patterns below. Existing departments using similar solutions can provide useful examples of how these approaches work in practice.
Form and Notification Workflow
A Microsoft Form provides a simple digital intake point for a request or submission. Power Automate processes the submission and sends formatted email or Teams notifications to the appropriate people. This pattern works well when information needs to be collected consistently and delivered to another person or department but does not require extensive tracking or processing.
Example departments: Facilities Management / Custodial
Form, Data Tracking, and Workflow
A Microsoft Form collects information and Power Automate creates a corresponding record in a SharePoint list. Additional automation can provide notifications, update the record as work progresses, and support status tracking. The SharePoint list serves as a central location for departmental staff to review and manage submissions.
Example departments: Instructional Design
Approval and Review Workflow
Information submitted through a Form or other intake mechanism is recorded and routed to one or more people for review. Microsoft Approvals, Teams notifications, or email may be used to collect decisions and communicate results. The underlying record can retain the current status and history of the request throughout the process.
Example departments: Available examples vary by business process.
Custom Power App
Power Apps can provide a custom application when a process requires more interaction than a Form can reasonably provide. Applications may provide searching, record creation and editing, inventory or status management, and other functions designed around a department's specific workflow. SharePoint or Dataverse may provide the underlying data storage, while Power Automate can support notifications and related processes.
Example departments: Facilities Management / Central Receiving and Surplus
Data Collection and Reporting
Information from one or more business systems can be collected into a common data structure and presented through Power BI. Power Automate and SharePoint may be used to support data intake or movement where appropriate. This pattern is useful when departments need to combine information from multiple sources for monitoring, analysis, or reporting.
Example departments: Student Experience and Engagement
Document Generation and Processing
Information collected through Forms, SharePoint, or another source can be used to create documents or other standardized outputs. Automation can then distribute, store, or route the resulting document as part of the larger business process.
Example departments: Instructional Design / Online Teaching Certificate
These patterns can be combined. A single solution may include intake, data storage, approvals, document generation, notifications, reporting, and a custom Power App depending on the business requirements.
SLA: You can expect to have a response to this request within 3 business days.
Scope/Constraints
This service is available to faculty and staff.
The time for project evaluation, prioritization, analysis and implementation will depend on the complexity and scope of the project and will be determined through further information gathering.
Directions
When requesting please include as much detail about the process being analyzed or the goal of the training request.