Building the University of the Future: People and IT in Partnership

The conference will be a vehicle for effecting change, building on the experience of universities which have moved Information Systems from a service provider role to that of a full partner in the development and delivery of university strategy. Over recent years there has been increasing recognition that IT is strategically essential and a catalyst for change. Cardiff University and the Leadership Foundation believe that now is a good moment to showcase that change and to begin to shape the next stage of embedding it, hence their joint sponsorship of the event.

The conference will also offer the opportunity to present and discuss the findings of the joint JISC/Leadership Foundation study by Dr Jon Duke and Dr Andy Jordan, of Duke and Jordan Ltd, to identify issues and development needs relating to awareness, current practice and potential of the integration of technology into institutional strategy.

Expectations from the students coming to our universities are changing rapidly and universities need to evolve quickly to exploit the potential of new ways of working using communications and collaboration tools which extend well beyond e-mail and other technology that we are already comfortable with. The leadership skills required to implement what is probably the most significant cultural change within higher education for some time are varied and challenging. This major conference offers a high profile platform for a debate which is crucial to the sector.

The debate will range across the main areas of higher education: the strategic role of technology in research, teaching and learning, student support, collaborative ventures. It will draw on experience from overseas and in a number of universities in the UK.

Audience

It is expected that delegates will be working at levels where they can effect strategic change: vice-chancellors, pro vice-chancellors, registrars and equivalent, and directors of information services. It is particularly important that the audience is not simply the converted but those who can be inspired to engage in new developments across higher education in the UK.

Speakers

Dr David Grant, Vice Chancellor and Martyn Harrow, Director of Information Systems at Cardiff: a university where the strategic role of technology is well embedded
Ted Dodds who, as Chief Information Officer and Associate Vice-President-IT at the University of British Columbia, Canada spearheads their e-strategy framework
Dr Paul Rullmann from TU Delft, The Netherlands, who will focus on technology in support of institutional merger and change
Professor Tim O’Shea, Principal of Edinburgh University and Chair of JISC (from January 2009)
Professor Denise Kirkpatrick, Pro Vice-Chancellor - Learning, Teaching and Quality, Open University.
Margaret Coutts, University Librarian, University of Leeds
Dr Phil Richards, Director of IT, Loughborough University

Timing and Venue

The event will be held in Cardiff, at the Mercure Holland House Hotel and Spa and will run from lunch time on Monday 24 November to lunch time on Tuesday 25 November. There will be a formal dinner with broadcaster and writer, Laurie Taylor. The dinner has been sponsored by JISC.

Delegate Fees and Booking

Early Bird Discount for bookings up to and including Friday 31 October 2008: £220.00

Fee for bookings after Friday 31 October 2008: £250.00

The Conference Booking Form is available as a Word document which can be saved onto your computer hard-drive and typed into. Please return completed applications to Melissa Scuteri by email, post or fax.

The Conference Programme can be downloaded here.

The conference fee includes all sessions, conference documentation and other available documentation, tea/coffee breaks, lunch and dinner.

Please note that the delegate fee does not include residential accommodation. Please contact the Leadership Foundation for the list of other recommended hotels in the area.