Sam Houston State University's IR Office Organization System

The Issues  IR offices are inundated with requests by phone, , web system...etc  Requests take time, correspondence, and data (not always on hand)  Paper copies can get lost, inadvertently file 13’d, or my personal favorite “well it was here the other day….”

A Solution A system to:  track all requests  keep track of all correspondence  keep track of variables and data files  let the customer stay informed  A system that does it all…and more!!!

Why was it developed?  To increase our efficiency  To keep track of all written materials  To track our Office progress over time  To have stats available on our requests  To keep our “customers” informed about their requests

How a Request Becomes Information

The Request  A Request is received Phone Fax Web System Magically Appears

The Phone Call  A phone call is made to the customer  At this time we ask and answer questions about The process Other information needed Any Clarifications that our staff will need

A Request is Born  After the phone call The request is entered into our system It is assigned a number (IRD-Year-Request#) It is linked to a folder with the number  All information for this request will be stored here  Excel Sheets, Correspondence, SPSS syntax, datasets…etc

A Request is Born (ctd)  The request is automatically uploaded to our web site web site Customers can check their status on the web This has cut down on the phone calls we get, which also allows us to be more efficient Serves as a progress indicator

A Request is Born (ctd)  Throughout the process the folder on our common drive is populated  When similar requests from year to year come in we check past years folders  Many times we can use the same syntax, simply changing the years (or updating the spreadsheet) to produce the results

Request Completion  After slaving over a hot computer the request is completed A memo is sent along with the spreadsheet The status is updated to “Returned” It is automatically removed from the reporting schedule

The System  Elements Current Data Requests Previous Data Requests Log Files Syntax Library Variable Definitions Status Update

Current Data Requests  All data requests which have not been completed Allows easy access to all requests which are “received”, “on hold”, or “in progress” A link to the common area folder is generated New Requests can be entered here Action Updates

Previous Data Requests  Requests from previous years Searchable  Past requests can be used to verify #’s  Syntax can be reused efficiently  No more reinventing the wheel

Log Files  Accountability Log file is printed out as a report with pertinent information We use them at our Monday meetings to keep on track Gives a good idea at each time during the year what we have accomplished

Syntax Library  Organization Syntax is stored in one folder, or across requests A description is added so they can be used for other related projects SPSS, SAS, Perl,…etc

Variable Definitions  Many Files, MANY VARIABLES Searchable database of all variables Form display  File the variable is located in  Description of variable  Valid values Helps others to do data validation

Status Update  Request Progress Indicator Allows customers to see their status Reduces amount of calls relating to request timeline

Limitations  IR office must have Microsoft Access  Set-up time of the system  Updating of numbers at year end  This is a constantly evolving work in progress

Future Versions  Completely Web Based Eliminates the need for using Access More efficient storage of information Web browser access, possibilities for customer to download files, and be more involved

Our Results  Our office put this into operation in “2003”  During the next year we saw upwards of 50% increase in requests  This system has helped us to stay organized

Demo: From Start to Finish  Data Request is Received  It is assigned a number  A phone call is made  Work on request begins  Request is returned  Folder is checked for completion  Start Demo Start Demo

Questions and Comments  Brian Cordeau  Sam Houston State University  Office of Institutional Research  