Prioritizing IT Functions for a University Information System
This paper outlines a framework for prioritizing information technology functions within a university setting. It examines enterprise resource planning (ERP) as a support model for both office and customer operations, discusses communication methods shaped by emerging peer-to-peer technologies, and addresses personnel and training requirements. The paper then evaluates three core IT functions—email, intranet, and ERP—against four criteria: revenue generation, cost reduction, legal mandates, and competitive adoption. Drawing on published literature, it concludes that email holds the highest immediate priority due to cost-effectiveness and accessibility, the intranet ranks second, and ERP, while potentially the most valuable long-term, requires the greatest investment and transition planning.
- Introduction: Context for prioritizing university IT functions
- Support Plan for Office and Customer Functions: ERP as integrated support framework for universities
- Communication Methods and Personnel Requirements: Emerging communication tech and staffing needs
- Application and Function Priorities: How ERP links departments and manages data
- Strategy for Prioritizing IT Projects: Criteria-based ranking of email, intranet, ERP
- Conclusion: Email leads, ERP offers greatest long-term value
✍️ How to write this paper — guide, tools & examples ▾
What makes this paper effective
- Applies a concrete four-criterion evaluation matrix to rank competing IT projects, giving the argument an analytical, decision-support structure rather than relying on opinion alone.
- Integrates multiple academic and practitioner sources (Miranda, Yi, Kollock, Luftman et al.) to ground each section's claims in published evidence.
- Moves logically from broad framing (ERP features, communication trends) to specific prioritization outcomes, making the reasoning easy to follow.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates applied comparative analysis: it defines evaluation criteria, applies them uniformly across three candidate IT functions, and interprets the results to produce a ranked recommendation. This technique — common in management and information systems writing — shows readers how abstract criteria translate into actionable decisions.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with a brief contextual introduction, then works through five substantive areas: an ERP-based support plan, communication and staffing considerations, application priorities, and a prioritization strategy culminating in a scored table. Each section builds on the previous one, so the final ranking feels earned rather than asserted. The references section follows APA formatting conventions.
Introduction
Advances in information technology continue to change the way businesses and institutions conduct their planning and administration operations. Information technology has improved the efficiency of repetitive tasks such as payroll processing, accounting transactions, and financial reporting. However, in order to achieve the best mix of IT functions in any given setting, it is vital to understand who the customers of the system will be, and what priority must be assigned to respective functions including email, databases, and web servers. To this end, this paper provides a prioritization of a university's information technology functions, including goals, a support plan for both office and customer functions, proposed communication methods, personnel and training requirements, application and function priorities, and a strategy for prioritizing IT projects.
References
Dearstyne, B. W. (2001, April 1). The view from the fast lane. Information Management Journal, 11(3), 121.
Kollock, P. (1998). Social dilemmas: The anatomy of cooperation. Annual Review of Sociology, 24, 183–214.
Luftman, J. N., Lewis, P. R., & Oldach, S. H. (1993). Transforming the enterprise: The alignment of business and information technology strategies. IBM Systems Journal, 32(1), 198–221.
Mansell, R., & Wehn, U. (1998). Knowledge societies: Information technology for sustainable development. Oxford University Press.
Miranda, R. (2001). ERP and financial management systems. Government Finance Officers Association.
Yi, H. (2002, Winter). ERPs: The promise and the peril. The Public Manager, 31, 55–57.
Create your account
Always verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.