1. Managing Disputes through Technology
University of Phoenix
Managing Disputes
through
Technology
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

2. About University of Phoenix
Established in 1976
Based in Phoenix, AZ
Higher education programs for working students
300,000+ students
Nearly 200 campus locations
Internet delivery across U.S. and around the world via student website
Over 100 degree and certificate programs
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

3. An “Outside-the-Box” Approach
Traditional choices
Ombudsman
General Counsel
Dean of Students
Status quo
Clear process needed for students to voice disputes and reach resolutions
Comply with regulations of accrediting bodies
Centralize, track and resolve escalated student issues in a very large and highly distributed environment
Create a central office with a student service focus
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

4. An “Outside-the-Box” Approach
Office of Dispute Management (ODM) created in December 2002
Balance responsibilities of campus management
Provide centralized compliance monitoring, risk management and trend analysis
Apply modern dispute management theory
Manage resolution of a variety of student and faculty disputes and appeals
Academic appeals
Financial issues
Student discipline
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

5. Automating Dispute Process
Enhance existing student dispute management process
Promote consistent resolution process across all campuses for handling student disputes
Provide a clear process for students to submit a formal dispute
Deliver comprehensive feature set with workflow and reporting capabilities
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

6. Dispute Management System
The Solution
Dispute Management System
Develop a web-based system/process with automated functionality to support dispute management and to allow students to submit a dispute online from their student website.
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

7. The Project
Requirements determined according to need, policy and regulation
Combined disciplines from traditional project management, agile development and UI engineering to maximize results
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

8. Dispute Management System
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

9. Dispute Initiated Student reports complaint to their campus
Campus sends a link containing the online dispute form to the student’s website
Student submits dispute online from their student website
Dispute is received in Dispute Management System, the workflow begins
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

10. Dispute Status, Actions and Workflow Prompts
All disputes are categorized with a status
New
Open
Closed
Resolved
Statuses are result of an Action taken and prompts the Workflow
Actions can only be taken if user has permissions to do so
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

11. Workflow New disputes automatically assign to Campus Administrator
Only authorized campus personnel can access
notification generates to Campus
Campus Administrators must either work or assign
Closed disputes reviewed by ODM for handling accuracy
ODM officially closes the dispute as Resolved
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

12. User Permissions
User access controlled by role type which identifies permissions
Users only access disputes assigned to them
Users only perform actions established for role type
ODM officers can access any dispute and perform all actions
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

13. Email Alerts & Notifications
Notification generates to the campus for all new disputes
Alert generates each business day a dispute remains in new status
Alert generates to senior personnel when in new status for 10 business days
Notification generates to person a dispute assigned to
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

14. Architecture University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

15. Technologies Frame work Spring 2.0.4 MVC Spring MVC
View layer Ext.js, Prototype.js, JSP, AJAX, JSON
App Server Jboss GA
Data layer Hibernate 3.0
Database MS SQL Server 2000
Authentication  ACEGI,CAS,CAP
Web Services Xfire  
Tools Fortify, QTP, LoadRunner
Libraries Quartz
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

16. Technical Challenges Controlled Access Securing Legal Data
Conflicting Requirements
Outside users
Locking Feature
Communication with other applications
Securing Legal Data
Backing up secured data
Monitoring the application’s availability
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

17. Future Direction Consolidating other dispute systems
Easy access to earlier disputes
Retaliatory issues
Load Balancing
Trending
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

18. Key Benefits Automated Dispute Management System
Controls for regulatory adherence
Central data storage
Record integrity
Workflow capabilities
User permission controls
On-demand reporting
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

19. On-Demand Reporting By Location – Region, Campus Average Days
Type / Category
Compliance Performance
Resolved-Unresolved Chart
Percentage by Type
Campus by Type
Campus Activity Bar Chart
Long Term Chart
Program-Version
Average Time by Location by Days
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.

20. Contact Information
Aline Grossman, Executive Director
University of Phoenix
Traci Hardy, Project Manager University of Phoenix
Maddy Lakshmanan, IT Engineer
Apollo Group / University of Phoenix
University of Phoenix
© 2008 University of Phoenix, Inc. All rights  reserved.