This article was published in CAUSE/EFFECT journal, Volume 22 Number 4 1999. The copyright is shared by EDUCAUSE and the author. See http://www.educause.edu/copyright for additional copyright information.

Cross-Campus Partnerships That Work
by Gair English and June R. Quackenbush

Not only can a university computing organization and bookstore form a successful partnership to sell computers to students, but that partnership can also include a third-party service vendor, the campus purchasing department, the office of residence life, and deans of the various schools and colleges. We know it is possible because we have done it at Syracuse University.

In the beginning…

Until the early 1990s Syracuse University did not sell computers directly to students. We outsourced those sales at a time when computer literacy was not nearly as widespread as it is today. At that time students and their parents relied heavily on the university to provide specific direction and service for computer purchases. However, outsourcing was a dismal failure because vendors did not provide the specifications and support that our students needed, customized to their course of study. The university had to develop its own computer sales operation.

It seemed unreasonable to expect the central computing organization to open a store since no one on the staff had retail experience, so Computing and Media Services (CMS) approached the bookstore and �suggested� they might want to get into the computer business. At the time, the bookstore�s computing presence consisted of some word processors and one six-foot display case of software in the basement of a multimillion-dollar, three-story operation. The bookstore liked the proposal because it would address two of their issues: improving student support and generating additional traffic and corresponding revenue.

Laying down the ground rules

Before we proceeded further, we came up with some basic caveats:

• We agreed that the bookstore would sell only hardware that the computing organization had evaluated and approved. The bookstore agreed to that because it made their life easier, and if they had problems, they could turn to CMS for help.
• We agreed, in turn, that CMS would support the hardware the bookstore sold. CMS agreed to that because they felt it was their responsibility to support what they recommended. That support was (and continues to be) an important factor in the decision-making process of new students and their parents.
• We agreed that the bookstore and CMS would endorse specific software applications that CMS would support.
• We agreed there would be no secrets. For example, CMS staff who are directly involved in the student computer sales know what the cost versus retail figures are. Note that this is very difficult for many of the bookstore staff, as those numbers are typically confidential.
• We agreed that key meetings with vendors would be joint affairs. This is often a difficult venture for the vendors! They have some discomfort with sharing cost information with the computing organization and revealing technical nondisclosures to the bookstore staff.
• We agreed to share the bad news along with the good. We have lived up to this agreement; we practice �unafraid, plain talk.�
• We agreed to collaborate on a mailing to incoming students, focused on computing at Syracuse University. First we develop recommendations on what computer is appropriate for each student�s course of study, in consultation with the computing support staff and the deans of each of the 12 schools and colleges within the university. The mailing includes these recommendations as well as information on the student�s computer account and how to use it, the computing resources available on campus, and a list of specific computer configurations available for purchase from the bookstore. Staff from both CMS and the bookstore are then available to consult with students and parents on the recommendations and the purchases.
• We agreed to communicate. While on the surface this might seem trivial, it turned out to be a major challenge. We met that challenge, but it continues to be an area that needs constant attention. Being from different organizations in a large university, our units never appear on the same organization chart. There are never any �natural� occasions that bring us together. We had to forge and maintain this new relationship ourselves and find reasons to talk with each other.

Evolution of the partnership

When we started, the computer the student bought was frequently the first computer for the family. This is clearly no longer the case. It has become a lot easier for people to buy computers, so instead of encouraging students to buy a computer, we encourage them to buy the right computer. That means we will recommend (and offer for purchase) a computer that is compatible with their course of study (as determined by our conversations with their deans), that will run reliably on the Syracuse University network, and that is supportable because it meets our standard specifications.

One of our initiatives has centered around creating a purchase program that focuses on the �value-added� features as much as on the computer itself. We include items like �triage coupons� for student computer consultants to provide assistance to students who buy their computer through the bookstore. We continually enhance the summer mailing that goes to the homes of incoming students.

New partnerships have formed. Along with increased computer ownership among students has come a growing number of calls for help with those computers (for nonwarranty issues). Students, like all of us, delete files they shouldn�t; install ink cartridges incorrectly; and have trouble cabling computers, printers, fax lines, and network connections together. Thus CMS felt a new service was needed to help these students, provided the cost of the service could be recovered.

Our solution was to put together a team consisting of representatives from the office of residential life, the bookstore, CMS, and the general student population to create a new service called ResCOM. The goal of this team was to come up with a program that would provide a good service yet would be self-supporting. We developed a plan whereby students could purchase coupons at the bookstore that could be redeemed for one helpful �house call� from a student computer consultant. The residential life office provides space in the residence halls for �roaming help desks,� the bookstore sells the coupons and processes payment to CMS, and CMS trains and employs the student consultants. Interestingly enough, it was the students on the team who were the most vocal and who strongly lobbied for a higher-priced coupon. They felt very strongly that we needed to provide the service and that students should pay for it.

Where we are today

This program does take a lot of effort, but the results have always proven to be worth it. There is continual staff turnover in all of our departments, but we have discovered along the way that as long as the staff changes don�t take place within all of the partner organizations at the same time, the �grounded� partners have been able to bring along the �new guys� with much less effort than when we formed the original collaboration.

One of the university�s most recent initiatives is a campuswide task force on e-commerce composed of seven staff members representing the university bookstore; CMS; purchasing; and business, finance, and administrative services. This core group is interacting with other units on campus to assess their e-commerce needs, expectations, expertise, current practices, and any projects under development. Our contacts have included staff from student programs, alumni relations, the development office, academic departments, residence and dining services, continuing education, and the bursar�s office. In addition, a group of graduate students from our School of Information Studies has taken us on as a class project, both helping us with needs assessment and looking at the big picture and suggesting some alternatives for us to explore more deeply.

Moral of the story

What makes this story important is not that the bookstore sells computers or that CMS gets to pick the selection or that we have a new campus task force. What is important is that we�ve broken down traditional barriers. Doing so allows us to offer a better service to our students than we could possibly offer without these partnerships.

Not only have we figured out ways to improve services to students, we have also learned new respect for each other, our roles, our missions, and what we have to do to get our own jobs done. We have delved deep enough into each other�s operations that we have empathy for each other�s pressures and respect for each other�s decision making. And we have laid the groundwork for future cross-campus partnerships.

Gair English ([email protected]) is director of the Syracuse University Bookstore and June R. Quackenbush ([email protected]) is manager of SyraCWIS and CMS Communications, Computer Media and Services, at Syracuse University.

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