The pandemic forced schools and universities around the world to digitize teaching, learning, services and operations. While this process was painful and challenging, it led to a period of “forced innovation” that had a silver lining. Institutions found that some activities could be performed equally well or better remotely. For example, some students preferred learning in a secluded environment because they were able to concentrate better without the distraction of classmates. Teachers and instructors have transformed their classes through “flipped learning” to make them more active, assign new content for homework, and use class time for active problem solving and engagement. Services like tutoring, counseling, and parent-teacher conferences were conducted remotely through platforms like Webex, eliminating the need for travel and making planning easier. Because of these and many other innovations, global education institutions have maintained and even expanded remote and hybrid models as they provide more flexibility for all and deliver better outcomes for students.
This shift to digital means that institutions are now even more reliant on the availability of the network, applications, data and resources located both in the cloud and on-premises. The question for IT leaders is simple. How do we extend cloud agility to our on-premises infrastructure? The cloud operating model is the answer.
The cloud operating model extracts key principles that drive agility in the cloud and applies them to your on-premises infrastructure. The result is consistently improved agility. It also promotes greater operational consistency because it extends to the entire IT team, allowing them to speak a common language and use similar processes.
The key features of the cloud operating model are guided by several key principles defined by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST):
- Cloud management: More intuitive interface, automation to streamline manual tasks, making execution easier and eliminating some manual errors.
- Access anywhere: Related to cloud management. Can access administration and tools from anywhere. You no longer have to be on site. Can be changed centrally. Saves time and money
- Visibility: You can’t manage what you can’t see. Visibility makes troubleshooting easier because you can see the entire network and the relationship of devices.
- API extensibility: The tool for expanding network capabilities. Can now integrate new learning technologies or specialized technologies and applications.
The Cloud Operating Model helps IT build and manage an infrastructure that allows it to quickly diagnose and resolve network problems so that teaching, learning and service delivery can continue without interruption. As schools and universities continue to introduce new applications and tools to improve student engagement and success, they need to be able to integrate them quickly and easily, and the Cloud Operating Model allows them to do just that. It also transforms the The way IT teams work, shifting from 80% troubleshooting and 20% innovation to 80% innovation and 20% troubleshooting. At a time when educators and staff are dropping out due to stress and burnout, the Cloud Operating Model helps institutions recruit and retain IT staff by making IT roles more attractive.
Learn more about promoting a cloud operating model in education Watch the webinar.
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