Discovery Process Improves Use of Technology at MIT

Janet Littell

Do you have an idea about how an MIT academic or administrative
service can be performed more effectively using information technology 
(I/T)? A Discovery team can collaborate with your department, lab, or 
center in the reengineered I/T environment to explore options 
and identify paths toward a solution.

Discovery is the one of five interrelated processes for managing I/T 
projects at MIT (the other processes are Integration, Delivery, Service, 
and Support). Discovery identifies a need or promising idea, then brings 
I/T and business partners together to quickly evaluate the impact, 
return, costs, and risks. If the Institute approves the Discovery 
report, work begins on delivering the recommendations.

Inside Discovery
The Discovery process welcomes ideas from any member of the MIT 
community. (Contact information is given at the end of the article.) 
Discovery ideas can also come from reengineering efforts, vendors, 
other schools, government, or the business community at large.
 
If an idea looks promising and is likely to have an impact, the 
Discovery Process Leader checks that the idea has a strong sponsor - 
the senior academic or administrative officer in the area of proposed 
change. The Discovery Process Leader collaborates with the sponsor and 
other key stakeholders to write a charter that describes the opportunity 
and a stakeholder view of the improved process.
 
The Discovery Process Leader then staffs a project team of I/T and 
business partners. For 5 to 8 weeks, the team focuses on understanding 
the current process and desired outcome. After setting up an I/T 
conceptual design for realizing the improved process, the team compiles 
a cost and resource estimate and identifies issues and possible 
roadblocks. In cases where there are significant drawbacks, the 
recommendation might be an explicit "no go" - but this can still result 
in a better understanding of future options.

While a Discovery team works together to develop recommendations, the 
sponsor is the project's business advocate - in collaboration 
with IS. The sponsor is committed to supporting the Discovery team's 
recommendations, and works with IS to persuade the 
Institute to allocate needed resources.

Recent Discovery Projects
Three recently completed Discovery projects are

* Electronic Proposal Submission: a design for creating and managing 
  MIT's research proposals 

* Writing Requirement: a plan to upgrade the technology for 
  administering the program

* Alumni Network Services: recommendations for electronic services 
  for MIT alumni all over the world.

Delivery work has begun on all three.

Contact Information
The I/T Discovery Process maintains a home page at 

http://web.mit.edu/ist/discovery/ 

Visit this site for information about Discovery projects or to submit 
your ideas. You can also reach Greg Anderson, the Discovery Process 
Leader, at <ganderso@mit.edu>.