V. Information Technology Executive Council Charter

Purpose: The Information Technology Executive Council (ITEC) is a standing body within the University System of New Hampshire. ITEC advises the University System of New Hampshire (USNH) Administrative Board, and is charged to assist the Presidents and their institutions to achieve their stated vision and mission objectives.

ITEC is responsible for examining existing technology capabilities and services provided by the Enterprise Technology and Services (ET&S) organization against emerging needs (both single and multi-institutional), resource constraints, and technology and cybersecurity risks to assess and prioritize strategic improvements to the IT enterprise.

To that end, ITEC will regularly assess where economies of scale can be leveraged, where skill sets can be leveraged across the University System for to improve effectiveness, efficiency and/or quality of service, cost savings and cost containment, and in continuously expanding and enhancing opportunities for cross-institutional collaboration. This focus will consider institutional strategic plans and priorities.

Guiding Principles: ITEC will be distinguished as a collaborative group with consultation across all its members on agenda items; planning for matters such as relevant Trustee Committee and Administrative Board agendas; identification of responsible individuals to undertake tasks agreed to by the Council; and other work products of the Council.

• ITEC will ensure appropriate, timely and broad USNH community engagement with USNH Executive Councils and business office leaders in support of all product and service initiatives.
• ITEC will focus on the ways technology can help USNH institutions improve effectiveness and efficiency, and engage all institutions in shared and common goals.
• ITEC's membership is inclusive of all USNH member institutions, and the USNH/UNH Chief Information Officer (CIO). ITEC supports fact-based decisions and recommendations, seeks consensus, and resorts to voting and escalation only when it has reached an impasse.

Membership: Membership is comprised of the four campus IT site leaders of the USNH higher education institutions (Granite State College, Keene State College, Plymouth State University and the University of New Hampshire) and the USNH/UNH CIO, who will serve as chair.

Objectives:

• Advise and guide the USNH Administrative Board on Technology opportunities and risks;
• Provide consistent and comprehensive USNH technology leadership that is aligned with the strategic priorities of individual institutions and the University System;
• Support the appropriate agenda and preparations for the USNH Board of Trustees as requested by the USNH Administrative Board;
• Follow established processes/procedures that ensure individual institutions are appropriately consulted, represented, informed, accountable and/or responsible regarding the planning, deployment and operations of system-wide technology;
• Ensure that processes, behaviors, and procedures are in accordance with policies and within tolerances to support decisions (risk management);
• Facilitate efficiency and effectiveness through system-wide collaboration and the provision of technology shared services, while maintaining institutional academic autonomy;
• Facilitate technology and system development practices that successfully evaluate, select and execute implementation of system-wide technology.

Council Chair: The Chair is responsible for convening ITEC and its meeting logistics, agenda creation and triage. The Chair actively promotes the collaborative nature of the group and ensuring that, to the fullest extent possible, items of collective interest are shared in a timely fashion so as to permit thoughtful consideration of potential actions and advice from other members and the institutions they represent. The Chair serves as primary point of contact for the USNH System Office, Executive Councils and the Administrative Board, and is responsible for ensuring the relationships between ITEC and other committees are maintained.

All ITEC Members’ Responsibility: Each member of ITEC will be expected to:

• Proactively engage with “home” campus committees, councils, and other bodies as warranted and/or assigned, to maintain appropriate levels of communications and achievement of strategic goals and priorities.
• Monitor and ensure transparency regarding costs and campus allocations.
• Manage - either directly or through an assignment by the Chair - ITEC’s engagement with committees and business offices.
• Ensure shared deliverables are completed.