Information Technology Planning: Letting the Users Take Over--A Federated Framework for Information Technology Planning

The management of information resources at the University of North Texas campus is a shared responsibility between the schools and colleges and centralized service agencies, such as the Computer Center, the Library, and the Instructional Technology Center. Their roles, responsibilities, and services are coordinated through a representative university council: the Information Resources Council (IRC), responsible for recommendations to the University's vice presidents and for participation in the university planning processes. The key to the success of this model is the cooperation and teamwork of all participants. Fundamental to the Council's organization is the role of the information technology user is the planning process. The Council is divided into program groups which have larger user components, and are often led by information technology users rather than information technology professionals. The UNT experience highlights how a user-centered federated IT model can overcome traditional organizational barriers and boundaries, and be highly responsive to user needs.