Overview

The web is undergoing a dramatic shift.

Lifestyles are driving consumption across a variety of devices, such as tablets, phones, notebooks, desktops and wearable technology. Mobile is persistent, and expectations do not include limitations around location or screen size.

Portals, while once representing an integration of systems, need to be lighter and faster. Sites must provide easy search and intuitive matches for needs across diverse sources and systems.

The web has become an all-encompassing term for information retrieval, interaction and communication. Web users are not distinguishing between sites, portals and applications, which means the Internet is pushing in new directions.

The ITS Web Strategy, which is the organization's approach to all of its websites, enables the organization to have and maintain the following elements:

  • A strong foundation for website development
  • Unified visual elements on websites
  • Customer-focused usability
  • Navigation that helps users find information
  • Accessible content
  • Design that is not specific to particular devices, platforms or screen resolutions
  • Content that is easy to maintain

Flexibility is the future. Repeatable processes and best practices for design and development are needed for custom websites and applications, especially when working with vendor systems that have technical constraints. Requirements for developing new websites and updating existing ones should focus on our organization’s value propositions, while reflecting back to end users effective answers to their needs and expectations.

Vision

U-M’s IT Strategic Plan provides the vision for the ITS Web Strategy, which has three sub-strategies that consist of a mobile strategy, a portal strategy and a browser strategy.

Mobile Strategy

  • Invest in frameworks that leverage single sets of code
  • Create accessible content on all devices

Portal Strategy

  • Add value by quickly connecting users with needs
  • Allow for personalization
  • Create single points of access to services across campus
  • Aggregate from diverse providers
  • Be service-based, not provider-based
  • Provide search capability

Browser Strategy

  • Support modern browsers for consistency of experience and security
  • Leverage comprehensive test labs
  • Align procurement strategies with support strategies
  • Develop standard testing plans and procedures

Purpose

The goals of the ITS Web Strategy are to provide guidance, education, best practice and recommendations for building and improving websites and web applications, which provide information and services to ITS and the campus community.

The ITS Web Strategy allows our organization to have a consistent style based on standards, by integrating new web requests into organizational contexts. It also allows the organization to build its brand while mitigating the loss of brand equity. Systems and strategic changes become more efficient in the long run because it presents repeatable processes. Flexibility in website design is necessary when organizational shifts are required. And new web architecture offers sites the ability to evolve with the strategic direction of the organization.

Priorities

ITS will achieve its mobile, portal and browser strategies by prioritizing its efforts into six areas: