Key Messages and
Talking Points
Master Slide Deck
Version 1
Prepared for:
17 Feb 2012
Table of Contents
Contents
Page
1.
Introduction
2
2.
ctcLink Definition
3
3.
ctcLink Project Scope
4
4.
Benefits
6
5.
Leadership Involvement
7
6.
Stakeholder Involvement
10
7.
Cost and Funding
13
8.
Pace of Implementation / Project Timeline
15
9.
Rationale for Purchasing an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System
17
10. Standardization
18
11. Impact on the CTC Community
19
12. Why Now
20
13. Critical Success Factors
21
14. How to Get Involved
22
Introduction
Document Usage
 Communication Team members are being asked to support standard and consistent
communications throughout the project.

This document has been created for use by ctcLink college communications
coordinators and their college team members to develop and disseminate
communications regarding the ctcLink to stakeholders.
Document Maintenance
 Key Messages and Talking Points will be updated on a regular basis to reflect the
current project status and address new stakeholder needs as they are identified.

Suggestions regarding changes to this document should be provided to:
Janelle Runyon
ctcLink Communications Lead
jrunyon@sbctc.edu
(360) 704-1014
Document Storage and Access
 The most recent version of this document may be found at:
http://sbctc.edu/docs/collegeaccess/it/_i-ctcLink-resources.aspx
ctcLink Definition
Key Message
 ctcLink is a web-based Enterprise
Talking Points

ctcLink is the implementation of a new,
integrated software solution to support
the educational and business processes
of the entire community and technical
college system.

System-wide data will be stored in one,
central location and all 34 colleges will
use the same software to access
information and resources.

Business processes will be standardized
across the CTC community, allowing the
colleges to operate as a connected
whole, while still maintaining individual
college identity.
Resource Planning (ERP) system that will
be deployed to all CTCs and SBCTC to
provide standardization and support
improved service delivery and efficiency
across the following business processes:
̶ For students: admissions, registration, degree
audit, advising, tuition and fee payment,
financial aid, and workflow technology.
̶ For faculty & staff: student records,
streamlined grading and advising processes,
room scheduling, tuition and financial aid
processing, advising, student tracking,
enrollment reporting, transcripts, state and
federal reporting, accounts receivable/payable,
payroll, purchasing, employee recruitment
tools, benefits administration and workflow
technology.
ctcLink Project Scope
Key Message
 The ctcLink Project includes the selection,
procurement, and implementation of the
CTC enterprise resource planning (ERP)
solution that most effectively addresses the
CTCs’ defined business and technical
requirements (see ctcLink Definition for
scope of functionality to be included by the
ERP).
 Critical to project success will be the
improvement and standardization of
business processes in alignment with
selected ctcLink software and industry best
practices.
Talking Points

ctcLink is a large and complex project
that will require multiple phases
executed over approximately six years.

Project phases include:
– System selection and procurement
– System design and implementation
– FirstLink College(s) (pilots)
– Deployment

All 34 colleges will implement the same
solution, configured to meet unique
campus needs as appropriate.

Existing systems being replaced by
ctcLink will be shut down following
successful acceptance of the new
solution by end users.
ctcLink Project Scope (continued)
Key Message
 The ctcLink Project includes the selection,
Talking Points

The major project tasks include: hardware
and software installation and configuration,
platform infrastructures, ERP application
suite licensing, data migrations, functional
and business process analysis and
configurations, integration with external
interfaces, functional user testing, FirstLink
(pilot) college implementation, extensive
user training and ongoing support services.

ctcLink will be deployed to colleges in
multiple waves.

Required project resources will include
both business and technical CTCs’ staff
along with ERP and implementation
contractor resources, as needed. An
independent resource will also be
contracted to provide external quality
assurance.
procurement, and implementation of the CTC
enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution
that most effectively addresses the CTCs’
defined business and technical requirements
(see ctcLink Definition for scope of
functionality).
 Critical to project success will be the
improvement and standardization of business
processes in alignment with selected ctcLink
software and industry best practices.
Benefits
Key Message
 The implementation of the ctcLink ERP
solution will:
̶
provide improved administrative
support (functional capabilities and
processes) to all CTC campuses and
SBCTC,
̶
improve efficiencies by implementing
best practices and
consistent/standardized processes,
̶
provide CTCs with the flexibility to
modify processes as its business
needs change,
̶
and remove the dependence on
legacy systems nearing the end of
their lifecycle.
Talking Points

Specific benefits of ctcLink include:
̶
Students will have a single electronic
record with one ID number, available to
all 34 colleges
̶
Future students will have one admission
application process regardless of where
or when they decide to attend
̶
New and returning students will have a
single financial aid application process
̶
Students will be able to monitor their ‘time
to degree’ and advisors can audit the
process
̶
Students will have access to a
centralized catalog of courses
̶
Faculty and staff will have a single
electronic record with one ID number
̶
Colleges will be able to consolidate
purchasing and payroll processing
Leadership Involvement
Key Message
 CTCs and SBCTC leaders are fully
committed to the ctcLink project as
exhibited by their internal and external
advocacy efforts, presentations to the
Legislature, and allocation of budget and
staff resources to this critical initiative
 Presidents (WACTC) have fully supported
ctcLink and, as a WACTC body, have
approved the overall project.
Talking Points

Leadership will ensure the ctcLink
Project has the required resources and
buy-in and support from stakeholders.

Leaders will communicate results and
request full participation from key
stakeholders as needed.

Each college president has formed a
ctcLink project team that is responsible
for managing ctcLink activities and
keeping the president informed and
engaged as needed.

Presidents formally adopted the project’s
guiding principles and the ctcLink
funding mechanism. They have also
affirmed value of the project throughout
the system’s budget-cutting process.
Leadership Involvement (continued)
Leadership
Position
Participation to Date
Future Role(s)
State Board
Members
 Approved ctcLink project
 Approved Gartner contract for
Phase 1 and 2
 Discussed project at board
meetings
 Contractual approval authority;
 Responsible for approving the budget and
any finance decisions that are made
related to ctcLink
Presidents
 Approved concept/plan based on
GoForward recommendations
 Approved project’s guiding
principles
 Standing agenda item on WACTCTech; Presidents’ Academy topic in
April and June
 High priority ranking when
discussing budget issues
 Organizational Change Management
Leaders;
 Project Advisors (regarding ctcLink scope,
budget and schedule);
 Decision makers on Resource
Management for their Colleges
Trustees
 Advocated for HB1909; TACTC
board made ERP a 2010-11 policy
priority; project update on January
2012 conference agenda
 Advocates with the Legislature and other
external groups;
 Work with Presidents on impacts at the
Colleges
Leadership Involvement (continued)
Leadership
Position
Participation to Date
Future Role(s)
Project
Executive
Sponsor
 Has sponsored presentations to
SBCTC members; held decisionmaking meetings; supported key
communications to presidents;
represented agency and advocated
in administration arenas and to
Legislature in support of ctcLink
 Primary Liaison to State Board;
 Liaison for the Legislature;
 Final Decision Maker (e.g., scope, budget,
schedule)
College VP’s /
Executives;
College
Administrators
– Deans /
Directors; and
College IT
Leaders (CIO;
Director of
Technology;
etc.)
 Presentations at commission /
council meetings; service on
RASAT (readiness assessment
team); opportunity to attend
summer 2011 regional meetings;
appointed to ctcLink college teams
and on team listervs; college team
ITV sessions and feedback loop;
participated in Requirements
Definitions sessions; ITC members
helped develop Technical
Requirements; power users
participated in Functional
Requirements workshops.
 Project Advocates and Change
Management Leaders;
 Resource Management for Colleges;
 Advise Presidents on Functional Impacts
Stakeholder Involvement
Key Message
 A broad range of stakeholders are being
Talking Points

engaged at all stages of the ctcLink project to
ensure:
Stakeholders have been engaged in
identifying key requirements for ctcLink.
̶
the ERP solution selected addresses the
majority of stakeholder needs and
requirements;
̶
the system is implemented in
accordance with stakeholder
expectations;
̶
CTC community members are engaged
in business process improvement; and
̶
the system is adopted by end users.
̶

Approximately 600 workshop
participants, representing all colleges
and the State Board, attended functional
requirements sessions in October and
November.
Other opportunities for stakeholder
involvement include:
̶
An RFP evaluation team will be recruited
by Core Project Team
̶
Evaluation will include software demo
evaluators who will be selected based on
functional expertise
̶
A steering committee will be created to
deal with policy and management issues
Stakeholder Involvement (continued)
Key Message
 A broad range of stakeholders are being
Talking Points

Stakeholders will be asked to provide
critical expertise and resources necessary
to complete project activities (e.g., process
improvement, ERP system design and
phased implementation, organizational
change activities, and training).

Stakeholders will be involved on College
ctcLink project teams to ensure input from
all potentially impacted parties is taken into
account when making decisions (see
following pages for list of project teams and
their members).

The list of College Teams and Subject
Matter Experts is at:
http://sbctc.edu/docs/collegeaccess/it/_ictcLink-Resources.aspx
engaged at all stages of the ctcLink project
to ensure:
̶
the ERP solution selected addresses the
majority of stakeholder needs and
requirements;
̶
the system is implemented in
accordance with stakeholder
expectations;
̶
CTC community members are engaged
in business process improvement; and
̶
the system is adopted by end users.
Cost and Funding
Key Message
 The ctcLink project is estimated to cost a
Talking Points

In 2011, the Legislature recognized the
value of technology initiatives by
establishing the CTC Innovation Account.
This account is funded by depositing up to
3 percent of tuition into the account.

SBCTC has requested legislative authority
to sell up to $50 million in Certificates of
Participation for financing over the life of
the project, which will be repaid from the
Innovation Account.

The implementation of this ERP solution
has been approved by the SBCTC board
and WACTC (CTC Presidents) The funding
mechanism for ctcLink was approved with
the adoption of HB1909 during the 2011
legislative session and is included in the
Governor’s proposed 2012 supplemental
capital budget.
total of $100 million over a six-year
implementation timeline.

The $100 million equates to about $3
million per college.
 A significant portion of the total cost will be
financed and paid back across 15 years.
 Ongoing maintenance of the ERP solution
is estimated to cost approximately $6
million per year.
Cost and Funding (continued)
Key Message
 The ctcLink project is estimated to cost a
Talking Points

Initial cost estimates were prepared by
Gartner, Inc. and are documented within
the “ERP Program – Preliminary Cost
Estimation”.

The actual cost of the ERP
implementation will be impacted by
many factors including availability of
internal resources, proposed
implementation approach, distribution of
responsibilities among project resources,
degree of process change that will be
required, data quality, training
requirements, etc. As a result, a highly
reliable estimate will be dependent on
the proposals received from the ERP
vendors / system integrators in response
to the CTCs RFP.
total of $100 million over a six-year
implementation timeline.

The $100 million equates to about $3
million per college.
 A significant portion of the total cost will be
financed and paid back across 15 years.
 Ongoing maintenance of the ERP solution
is estimated to cost approximately $6
million per year.
Pace of Implementation / Project Timeline
Key Message

ctcLink is a complex initiative that will be
completed over a six year timeframe in the
following phases:
̶
Business Case Development: Assess
alternatives, potential costs, and
implementation approach (about one year completed)
̶
Funding Approval and Procurement:
(about one year – in process)
̶
Configuration: Plan, design, build and test
modules selected for implementation (about
one year)
̶
FirstLink: One or two colleges will
implement and go live (about one year)
̶
Deployment: There will be deployment
waves subsequent to the pilot. Gartner
recommends 4 deployment waves of about 8
colleges each (about 6+ months for each
wave, ~ 2 years total)
Talking Points

SBCTC has designed an implementation
roadmap and phased ERP system
implementation plan that breaks work down
into manageable pieces over several years.

The actual implementation approach (and
corresponding schedule) will be recommended
by the selected ERP vendor/implementation
partner in their proposal, and refined as the
vendor and ctcLink project team perform their
initial analysis and planning.

Once a solution is selected, ctcLink project
implementation will take time. CTCs will
pursue implementation activities in a fashion
that utilizes existing resources and limits the
level of disruption to daily operations.

During implementation, we will measure our
progress and demonstrate success, building
upon wins over time.
Project Roadmap
2008
Strategic
Technology
Plan
2009
Go Forward
Study
2010
Project Principles
Developed
2011
2012
Readiness
Assessment
& Detailed
Planning
Requirements
RFP & Vendor
Selection
Implementation
Planning Phase
2008: Strategic Technology Plan | 2009: Go Forward Study |
2010: Project Principles | 2011-12: Requirements, RFP & Vendor Selection
Implementation Phase Schedule:
• 2012-2013 Configuration: Plan, design, build and test for implementation.
• 2013-2014 FirstLink Colleges: Implement and go live for about one year.
• 2014-2016 Subsequent Deployment Waves : Gartner recommends 4 deployment waves, approximately 8
colleges per wave.
Rationale for Purchasing an Enterprise Resource Planning
(ERP) System
Key Message
 CTCs’ existing systems do not adequately
Talking Points

Washington CTCs' current computer
software and associated business
processes are more than 30 years old,
limiting the 34 colleges’ collective ability to
implement additional system-wide
efficiencies and support the current and
future information needs of students,
faculty and staff.

ctcLink will enable the CTC community to:
̶
Improve efficiencies by implementing
best practices and common, consistent
processes
address student, faculty and staff business
requirements including:
̶
Ability to provide one single source for
accurate and timely data.
̶
Provide access to information from
anywhere at anytime.
̶
Support efficiency and effectiveness of
staff due to standardization of select
administrative processes.
̶
Provide flexibility to respond to changing
business requirements.
̶
Fulfill new data requests from other
agencies
̶
Keep pace with current and future
innovations in teaching and learning
Standardization
Key Message

CTCs will use ctcLink to achieve standardization
of administrative processes in alignment with
industry best practices, thereby generating
greater efficiencies that benefit the whole
community.
Talking Points

CTCs will procure an ERP solution that can be
configured to meet the majority of CTCs’
specific needs.

Colleges will be required to work together to
develop common administrative processes that
will benefit student, faculty and staff
collaboration and effectiveness.

College unique needs will be met through
configuration of the solution, not customization.
As a result, CTCs will be able to take advantage
of industry best practices and effectively
manage system maintenance and upgrades
made available through the software vendor.

Customization (i.e., change system code) will be
conducted to address no more than 5% of
required functionality, using clear business
cases to justify the need for customization,
ensuring the investment generates greater
benefits.
Impact on the CTC Community
Key Message



ctcLink will allow the CTC community to
streamline business processes, improve the
quality of data, and provide students, faculty and
staff with up to date technology tools improving
the efficiency and effectiveness of administrative
processes.
Talking Points
Students, faculty and staff will have 24/7 access to
a full range of online, self-service tools, including:
Students will have single electronic record with
one ID number, available to all 34 colleges
̶
Future students will have one admission
application process regardless of where or
when they decide to attend
̶
New and returning students will have a single
financial aid application process
̶
Students will be able to monitor their ‘time to
degree’ and advisors can audit the process
̶
Students will have access to a centralized
catalog of courses
̶
Faculty and staff will have a single electronic
record with one ID number
̶
Colleges will be able to consolidate purchasing
and payroll processing
CTCs will fundamentally change their business
practices as related to management and use of
data and information
̶
Why Now
Key Message
 CTCs must start now to effectively address
Talking Points

Current computer software and associated
business processes are more than 30
years old, limiting the 34 colleges’
collective ability to implement additional
system-wide efficiencies and support the
current and future information needs of
students, faculty and staff.

The current system is a patchwork of
some state-provided and some locallydeveloped processes that are uneven,
sometimes incompatible with one another,
and increasingly labor-intensive to
maintain.

ctcLink will provided tools for business
process transformation, resulting in a
dramatic increase in effectiveness and
efficiency.
the current system and business
improvement requirements identified by
leadership since:
̶
The most recent upgrade of system
infrastructure only provides a temporary
solution
̶
Students, faculty and staff require
additional administrative functionality
not available through existing systems
̶
CTCs must address efficiency and
effectiveness issues requiring staff to do
more with less as the economic
conditions have changed
Critical Success Factors
Key Message

ctcLink project success relies on the following:
Talking Points

Leaders will remain actively involved in all
ctcLink project critical decisions and activities

Stakeholder participation is critical in finding
the best solution
̶
Give feedback when opportunities arise
̶
Attend info sessions and ask questions
̶
Offer ideas to your college project team

Dedicated project support will be provided to
support each college effectively.
̶
Leadership support and engagement.
̶
Active stakeholder participation.
̶
Dedicated staff resources responsible for
project management, organizational change
and communications.
̶
Phased approach that reduces risk.
̶
Use of proven project management and
oversight methodologies.

Implementation will be conducted in planned
phases based on available resources.
̶
Open and frequent communication.

Project management tools will be used to
reduce risks including: risk management plan,
issues log, weekly status reports.

Communications and organizational change
management activities will be applied
throughout the project life cycle.
How to Get Involved
Key Message

Stakeholders are encouraged to get involved with
the ctcLink project through a variety of activities,
including participation in:
Talking Points

Express your interest in participating in one or
more activities by contacting one of the
following:
̶
Validation of end user needs and requirements
̶
̶
Your college’s ctcLink College Team
executive sponsor
Business process improvement identification
and change
̶
ctcLink Project Director (see next slide)
̶
Organizational change activities
̶
System testing prior to implementation
̶
Training (as a trainer and/or participant)
̶
Communication regarding project effectiveness

Provide feedback regarding project
effectiveness: ctclink@sbctc.edu

Help identify opportunities for business process
improvement and select standardization

Actively participate in ctcLink meetings and
organizational change management activities as
appropriate

Participate in end user training
Key Contacts
Janelle Runyon
ctcLink Communications Lead
360.704.1014
jrunyon@sbctc.edu
Barbara Martin
ctcLink Project Director
425.803.9729
bmartin@sbctc.edu