Time for change as University of Staffordshire moves timetables to SaaS

University of Staffordshire is embarking on the next stage of its digital transformation to provide students and staff with real-time updates to timetables and room bookings by moving its legacy TechnologyOne Timetabling & Scheduling solution to the Software-as-a-Service enabled iteration (SaaS T&S). The move will allow University of Staffordshire to redirect their resources towards further enhancing student experience.

For over 100 years, University of Staffordshire has driven industrial, technological and social change. The move to SaaS will enable students to seamlessly integrate class timetables with personal calendars, book resources like equipment and study rooms and arrange meetings with staff and support services.

For administrators, SaaS T&S, which combines Timetabler and Resource Booker will automate the process of creating and managing class and exam timetables and room bookings using advanced algorithms and intuitive user interfaces.

As an early UK adopter of Resource Booker Touch, an interactive panel outside of classrooms displaying room availability that natively integrates with T&S, the university’s close partnership with TechnologyOne has contributed greatly to the development of fit-for-purpose IT software for the higher education sector.

University of Staffordshire Pro Vice Chancellor for Digital Transformation Professor Raheel Nawaz said: “In 2018, we were the UK’s first higher education institution to migrate its digital services entirely to the cloud, which rationalised our capital expenditure, freed up space and enabled fast and effective delivery of IT systems. Transitioning to the SaaS-enabled T&S platform continues this journey.”

“With campuses located in Stoke-on-Trent, Stafford and London, developing efficient schedules and managing room bookings is an increasingly complex task. Resource Booker Touch enhanced space utilisation and user experience for our students, so we are confident that moving to SaaS will build on that success.”

Instead of the traditional method of lifting and shifting old technology to the cloud, which can reduce speed and compromise user experience and security, T&S was redesigned for the SaaS environment, focusing on device flexibility and future readiness for universities.  TechnologyOne’s regular deployment of platform-wide security enhancements will also ensure the university is provided with optimal protection.

TechnologyOne UK Executive Vice President, Leo Hanna, said: “Our customers are a fantastic source of knowledge and by working directly with them to evolve our software to meet their changing business needs, we create better software for the entire industry. We are thrilled to continue working with Staffordshire University in their journey towards digital excellence.”