The story of two data analytics sisters called WANDA and WENDY

Presenter Information

Ravi RAVISHANKER, CIO & Associate Provost of Wellesley College

Event Title

Meeting at the Crossroads: Collaboration across Departments and Institutions - A Joint Conference Presented by the Library and ITSC

Streaming Media

Additional Streaming Media

Document Type

Conference

Language

English

Location

MBG06, G/F, Patrick Lee Wan Keung Academic Building, Lingnan University

Start Date

17-11-2017 9:45 AM

End Date

17-11-2017 10:30 AM

Description

Wellesley College is a small private liberal arts college for women. When I arrived in 2010, I heard loud and clear from the faculty and staff that the technology landscape was in disarray and far behind the peer institutions and that we needed a drastic transformation. In this talk, I will describe a highly successful and transformational journey with a few examples. I will share techniques we used to overcome the fear of change and some of the cultural barriers. One of the most successful transformations is the implementation of a data analytics and business intelligence system based on Blackboard Analytics software that provided reliable, accurate and easy access to institutional data. This was one of our hardest journeys but the end result is a high level of satisfaction. I will describe this journey in greater detail and demonstrate the two systems, WANDA, a system for student and faculty data and WENDY, a system for alumnae data. Based on how these sisters have turned out, we are being asked to produce more siblings. We are in the process of delivering them soon.

Presenter Bios

Ravi Ravishanker, CIO & Associate Provost
As the CIO and the Associate Provost, I am responsible for leading Library & Technology Services (LTS), the Registrar’s Office, and WellesleyX through which we offer Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs). Since coming to Wellesley in November 2010, I have helped transition and reorganize LTS into a highly service-oriented organization that has gained the respect of the community. We have implemented several major initiatives and important policies in areas covering both the library and technology. We have also committed ourselves to continually evaluating developments in both of these areas and strategically adopt those that improve the experiences of students, faculty and staff. I have played a significant role in helping the College adopt open access and intellectual property policies and in receiving two major Mellon grants. One of the Mellon grants is for implementing blended learning, which has proven to be a tremendous success, and the other is “Teaching and Learning about Learning and Teaching at a Liberal Arts College”. LTS led the adoption of a modern data analytics and business intelligence software that has vastly improved access to data by members of the community. We are in the process of modernizing and implementing much needed business process changes by moving to Workday, a new administrative system. Prior to my current job, I was the Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Pace University in New York from August 2009 until November 2010. During this short tenure, I helped reorganize and transform the IT organization, which supported a complex multi-campus institution, into an organization aligned with the academic mission of the University. I led many of the key institution-wide and transformational projects, such as the Electronic Portfolio and the Business Intelligence project, both of which continue to play significant roles at Pace. I began my professional career at Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT, where I worked from 1986 until 2009 in various capacities; I was the Director of Technology Support Services before becoming the Associate VP in June 2006. I managed or contributed significantly to almost all major technology implementations while at Wesleyan. As an avid software developer, I contributed to several significant projects including the development of the University’s portal, a new registration system, and a web content management system. I received my MSc in Chemistry from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, in 1978 and completed my PhD in computational chemistry from Hunter College and MA in Computer Science from Queens College of the City University of New York in 1984. I was a Research Associate in Chemistry and an Adjunct Assistant Professor of Computer Science at Hunter College from 1984-1986.

Recommended Citation

Ravishanker, R. (2017, November). The story of two data analytics sisters called WANDA and WENDY. Presented at the crossroads: Collaboration across departments and institutions: A joint conference presented by the Library and ITSC, Lingnan University, Hong Kong.