Why blockchain could be the future in knowledge procurement
More applications are emerging for blockchain - a formerly obscure technology that underpins the digital currency Bitcoin. Nick Petford, chair of the Procurement UK forum and vice chancellor of the University of Northampton, is excited about its potential for procurement.
WHAT DOES GDPR MEAN FOR HIGHER EDUCATION
Rob Hunter is Managing Director and Founder of Hunterlodge Advertising. In this piece he draws our attention to the changing landscape of personal data management and the need for the HE sector as a whole to prepare for effective compliance with the GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation).
The UK Data Service: best practice in efficiency, effectiveness and value for money
UK Data Service director Matthew Woollard discusses how the provision of a single infrastructure for data resources can result in efficiency savings for research institutions and data owners alike.
We call it data – students call it life
Big data will back up the new breed of personal tutors in universities. But Brian Hipkin worries that relying on statistics without a meaningful human context will create a support system that will ultimately fail students.
Show me the numbers – making data analytics work for you
Data analytics are becoming more accessible for higher education institutions. Giles Carden, an advisor and co-designer at HESPA, offers some tips about how to make the best use of them.
Supporting an open future at Jisc
Digital technology is making new approaches to open data possible in both research and professional services. Jisc’s Catherine Grout and David Kernohan describe the work taking place to support an open future.
Raising the bar through collaboration
The Jisc-HESA Heidi lab project has brought professionals from a range of universities together to create dashboards for the sector’s new Heidi Plus business intelligence service. Anne Buckle, who took a leading role in one project team, highlights some of the benefits of this model of collaboration.
The right tools for the job: harnessing the power of student voice through HearNow
In this blog Jo Clarkson, Market Research and Insight Manager at the University of Warwick, shares how the HearNow project increased students’ feedback while minimising survey fatigue. The project by gathering students’ opinions as ‘snap-shot’ sentiments through technology and Gamification raised the number of active users from 200 to 13,000 with an average of 50% response rate.
New business intelligence service to widen access to data insights
Universities need insights about the wider environment in which they operate to help them make better informed decisions about their products and services. A new business intelligence service will be launched by Jisc and the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) later this year to support university staff in making the most of the data available to them.
Is anybody out there?
Changes to key metrics that make up the TEF will mean that universities will become more reliant on good quality outcomes data. Brian Hipkin says more demanding requirements will mean less time chasing staff for up-to-date student data but will require universities to forge a new relationship with graduates.
