From the CIO

The relationship between technology and higher education is one of constant growth and change. The exponential growth of technology means we’ve gotten better at adapting, but the COVID-19 pandemic pushed the rate of change into overdrive — resulting in 15 years of change in 15 months.

While challenging to navigate, change is often good for an organization. 2021 was certainly a year of change, with an enhanced focus on continuous improvement and innovation in teaching and research technology, increased collaboration across the campus and The Texas A&M University System, and improved strength and stability of our core services.

As we look back at all the Division of Information Technology accomplished in 2021, we also look forward to the valuable initiatives and projects certain to make 2022 a year of connecting — connecting the university to high-value information services, connecting campus partners to proactive solutions, and connecting our employees to the training and resources they need to build a successful career in IT at Texas A&M.

2022 will be a year of connecting — connecting the university to high-value services, connecting partners to proactive solutions, and connecting our employees to resources needed to build a successful career in IT at Texas A&M.

Key to our future success will be a renewed commitment to collaboration and partnership with the System, state agencies, university colleges and departments. Plans are already underway to establish a highly flexible data network between the university and RELLIS campus. We will create a design-build-run organizational model to drive IT infrastructure objectives and build a new team to facilitate the offering, provisioning and continual improvement of technology services in alignment with the needs of our campus partners. Additionally, work has begun on an integrated security and identity management model. This strengthened partnership will improve all our services and benefit the campus community.

The focus of each of these initiatives is to deliver a clear return on investment in technology for the university and the System. Several collaborations have already shown increased efficiencies - saving time and money.

We’ve established six high-level goals for the future of IT at Texas A&M:

  1. Collaborative customer partnerships with a customer-centric support model.
  2. Enable employees to build careers by offering training, innovative opportunities and advanced career ladders.
  3. Proactive IT solutions that drive ROI and create value for Texas A&M.
  1. New world-class data network, designed for the needs of the future.
  2. Enhanced focus on cybersecurity, at both local and System-wide levels.
  3. Cloud and hybrid solutions targeted for research and academic needs.

The driving force behind all of these efforts is customer success. The success of the students, faculty and staff of Texas A&M is our top priority and everything we do is oriented towards empowering the university’s mission of teaching, research and service. I am very excited about the innovative work in our future and very grateful to be part of this amazing organization.

Ed Pierson

Sincerely,
Ed Pierson