my.Harvard IT Projects and Prioritization
Who is this for?
FAS students, faculty, and staff
my.Harvard Optimization
The FAS Registrar's Office is one of the business owners of my.Harvard, the student information system. We keep track of new features and changes that FAS students, instructors, and administrators need. We prioritize work on behalf of FAS that needs attention and collaborate with Harvard University IT (HUIT) and stakeholders to determine the order.
The Registrar also works on or leads other large-scale projects that may not be on our regular priority list. They might be new ideas or big changes that the FAS Project Review Board sponsors. Sometimes, the projects support central University offices or the professional schools, which also use my.Harvard.
How We Choose What to Prioritize
Our team looks at our list of priorities often and works with HUIT to decide what's most urgent. We give each project a grade based on a few key factors:
- What are the benefits to students, faculty or staff
- What are the risks of not prioritizing
- Is it needed to comply with a policy or regulation
- Whether the project save money, time or resources
When necessary, we will reprioritize a project that's been waiting a long time, even if it's not the most urgent. We strive to balance priorities with current and changing institutional and educational needs. It may become necessary to re-evaluate the criteria of a project if there is a temporary work around.
When something isn't functioning correctly or needs to be changed, we add these fixes to our list as well. We then prioritize how important they are compared to the other projects. The list is continuously updated to make sure we're always working on the most important or timely projects first.
Project Grade Criteria
Project grades are assigned based on criteria for impact and urgency and ensure we are working on projects in proper order of importance.
| Impact | Urgency |
|---|---|
Creates equity |
Scale |
Improves efficiency |
Required deadline exists |
Enhances student experience |
Compliance or risk issue |
Time of year (for collaborations) |
Requires modification to function |
Evaluation Matrix
Grade B
Moderate Impact, High Urgency
Meets two or more criteria for urgency, at least one for impact.
Grade C
Significant Impact, Low Urgency
Meets two or more criteria for impact, at least one for urgency.
Project Categories
Projects are grouped into three categories: Veritas, Ivy, and Crimson. These categories are based on the project's purpose and scope. The open and completed project lists include work for the last term or academic year.
Veritas Projects
- Either very complex projects or projects that affect a significant percentage of FAS students, faculty, and administrators
- They help implement changes related to new policies, regulations, or initiatives
- These projects usually take more than one academic term to complete
- Are mission critical for Harvard College or Harvard Griffin GSAS
Open Veritas Projects
Completed Veritas Projects
Ivy Projects
- These projects have a broad impact on a whole school within FAS including Harvard Griffin GSAS, or Harvard College
- They affect the Registrar's Office and several other departments
- They may also have a significant impact on students in the College or Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
Open Ivy Projects
Completed Ivy Projects
Crimson Projects
- These projects aim to improve day-to-day operations or make work tasks easier for users
- They focus on enhancing efficiency and usability