CORE INFORMATION SYSTEM REPLACEMENT
CISR Project – Southern Oregon University
What is the CISR Project?
The CISR Project — Core Information System Replacement — has been initiated to replace Banner as SOU’s core information system which supports HR, Financial, Payroll, and Student Information. Besides Banner, the project will also replace many other systems that augment Banner in some way or address areas that Banner does not, and should result in more user-friendly processes.
The Banner “ecosystem” of related tools includes:
- Millenium FAST (budgeting and planning software)
- PeopleAdmin Recruiting (recruitment management)
- PeopleAdmin Performance Management (employee reviews)
- COGNOS (Banner data reporting)
- Oracle (Banner’s database architecture)
- Perceptive Content (document imaging and storage)
Additional systems are also being evaluated and may be added to this list as the project unfolds.
Workday has been selected to replace Banner and these related systems. Workday was chosen against several other competitors for its considerably more advanced approach to data management, its widespread adoption not only by higher ed institutions but across all industries, and its affordability.
The CISR project to implement Workday and retire Banner and its ecosystem began on August 1, 2022. Given the complexity of a project of this magnitude, SOU has engaged Alchemy as an implementation partner to assist us in developing and implementing our Workday adoption. Alchemy’s consultation services are focused 100% on Workday deployments and services for higher ed institutions.
The CISR Project will take three to four years to complete. The first phase addressed human resources, financials, and payroll. It was implemented at the end of Fall term 2023. The second phase encompasses the rollout of Workday Student to replace the student modules in Banner and other systems.
The success of a project of this magnitude depends in great measure on the hard work of many, many people doing their absolute best to figure out new and better ways of doing their work and moving the institution forward—all while keeping their current processes running as smoothly as possible. It’s impossible to thank them adequately, but we are all grateful for their efforts.
Why the Change?
SOU has relied on Banner since approximately 1990 with Banner Student, Finance and HR modules implemented in phases. Over those 30-plus years, many things have changed. Not only has technology evolved dramatically, the ability to create more efficient and effective processes with technology has also increased exponentially. In the summer of 2020, with our Banner contract coming up for renewal in 2024, it made sense to evaluate the marketplace to determine if better solutions were available. A lengthy and comprehensive analysis revealed that better solutions were indeed available and that these next-generation solutions could provide significantly more functionality using more efficient processes. Further, more modern systems also cost significantly less to operate than outdated legacy systems such as Banner.
SOU evaluated several competitors and ultimately chose Workday over other competitors. Workday offers a comprehensive solution to our wide-ranging needs and will cost less than we currently invest in the Banner ecosystem. Besides the savings realized from eliminating contracts with Banner and its related systems, it is anticipated that even more savings will be generated in the future due to increased efficiency.
For questions about Workday processes, see this list of key contacts.
For questions regarding the CISR project, email: cisr@sou.edu.
Navigate to the Workday Community for general information and training. First time users must request a community login below the login prompt.
CISR Project Timeline: Phase 2
Southern Oregon University
Workday – Phase 2: Student
PLAN
Fall 2023 – Spring 2024
Academic Foundations
Admissions
Records, Curriculum, & Advising
Financial Aid
Student Financials
DESIGN-BUILD-TEST
Summer 2024 – Winter 2025
Tenant #1 — June-August 2024
Tenant #2 — September-November 2024
Tenant #3 — December 2024-February 2025
Tenant #4 — March-April 2025
DEPLOY
Fall 2025 – Winter 2026
Academic Foundations & Admissions — September 2025
Records, Curriculum, Advising, Financial Aid & Student Financials — March 2026
TEST END-TO-END
Spring 2026 – Fall 2026
Records, Curriculum, Advising, Financial Aid & Student Financials — September 2026
CISR Project Timeline: Phase 1
Southern Oregon University
Workday – Phase 1: Finance and HR
PLAN – Summer Term 2022
Initiate project
Start planning and examine current & future states
Build system foundation
Introduce change management
Begin leadership engagement
ARCHITECT – Winter Term 2023
Host Foundation Alignment sessions
Plan for and navigate large-impact changes
CONFIGURE & PROTOTYPE – Spring/Summer Terms 23
Confirm SOU comfort level with the system
Build and test the system
Convert data to Workday
Plan employee training
Start CISR Network
TEST – Fall Term 23
Complete end-to-end testing of the system
Develop a transition plan from Banner to Workday
Develop training materials
User readiness review
DEPLOY – Fall 23/Spring 24 Terms
Train employees
Go-Live!
Convert data
Implement sustainability plan
SOU Information Technology
Southern Oregon University IT Department
1250 Siskiyou Blvd.
Ashland, OR 97520
Phone: 541.552.6971
Email: cisr@sou.edu
