Chancellor Applauds Ohio Higher Education Officials for Opening Shared Services Agreement to New Partners

Work by The University of Akron and Lorain County Community College Has Potential to Reduce Administrative Costs, Increase Efficiencies across University System of Ohio

COLUMBUS — Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Eric D. Fingerhut today lauded The University of Akron and Lorain County Community College for inviting new partners to join in a shared services plan, which has the potential to promote efficiencies and reduce operating costs for participating colleges and universities across Ohio.

"The University of Akron and Lorain County Community College partnership is an exemplary model of University System of Ohio colleges and universities working together to increase productivity, lower costs, and impact State of Ohio efficiency targets," said Chancellor Fingerhut. "I encourage officials from other institutions in the System to consider the partnership’s invitation, and to emulate this type of collaboration among campuses when examining individual spending practices and productivity strategies."

The agreement to improve business services and collaborate on back office technologies was crafted by The University of Akron and Lorain County Community College in May 2008, as part of their Innovation Alliance. The Innovation Alliance was established in 2007, and is designed to align strengths and resources, and accelerate educational efficiency, knowledge creation and economic development within an area between the two campuses, dubbed the Innovation Corridor. The agreement created a relationship that allowed both institutions to co-develop a collaborative "back office" operation, which is intended to grow into a shared service model.

Shared service is the convergence and streamlining of non-competing business processes from an array of partners for the purpose of reducing costs while improving the breadth and quality of services. It is seen as an ideal way for colleges and universities regionally and statewide to improve business processes while reducing costs. The greater the number of partners to share resource management systems and other back office functions, the greater the efficiencies will be for all who are involved.

Representatives of colleges, universities, other not for profit institutions, and county or municipal governments who want to learn more about opportunities available in this collaboration should contact James L. Sage, vice president for information technology at The University of Akron, This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 330.972.6542. This effort, along with other collaborative models, will be discussed with members of the Advisory Committee on Efficiency in the University System of Ohio at their June 4, 2009, meeting in Columbus.