Jisc has developed a new approach to innovation called co-design. This approach involves Jisc customers and stakeholders much more closely in every stage of the innovation process from deciding which issues and opportunities to address to managing projects and ensuring institutions benefit from outputs. Jisc piloted this approach during 2013 and this session will reflect on the pilot and the projects that were included. From 2014 onwards, all Jisc innovation work will be managed using co-design. This session will allow delegates to explore the co-design approach and help shape the themes that we will focus on this year.

1. Exploring co-design – Jisc’s new approach
to innovation

2. Wilson improvement areas
»‘The portfolio is too large’
»‘The application process is opaque’
»‘Few projects are translated into live services or take too
long to develop’
»‘It is important for Jisc not to see itself primarily as a
research organisation or to engage in a large number of
speculative projects’

3. Wilson advice to Digital Futures
»Jisc activity focused on achieving large impact
»Activities clearly linked to the sectors’ priorities
»Services and projects… significantly reduced in number
»Research and development activity focused on horizon-
scanning and thought leadership

4. Co-design principles
» Focused - do less better, be realistic
» User-centred – evolving process, involve users in projects
» Partnership – all projects co-designed, co-owned and co-
implemented via an open and transparent process
» Agile - a light touch approach
» Experimental – taking proportionate risks, try new things

5. Decide Develop
Deliver &
Disperse
Design
Decide on
themes
Start
projects
Decide
next steps
Prioritise
ideas
Explore
problems and
opportunities
Scope and
plan projects
Produce
minimum viable
products
Customer
ready
products
Debrief

6. Co-design steering group
Theme 1
£w
Theme 2
£x
Theme 3
£y
Theme 4
£z
JLT then
Jisc
Board
Jisc and co-design
partners prepare
intelligence on
priorities
Co-design
steering group
recommend
themes and
budgets
JLT and Jisc Board
approve themes
and budgets
Theme co-
designers identify
ideas &
opportunities
Projects are
commissioned

7. What do we mean by a theme?
» Make sense toVice Chancellors and Principals without
additional explanation;
» Is expressed as a problem, challenge or opportunity not
as a project or solution;
» Produce something concrete within 3 years and will
continue being productive beyond that timescale;
» Have solid evidence for demand or address a recognised
problem.

8. Possible themes (suggested by Phil Richards)
» Lifting the student number cap
• This may present opportunities to rethink student record
systems as models for recruiting students may change.This
could directly impact the universities bottom line.
» MOOCs for the masses
• Many colleges and universities are interested in the
possibilities offered by MOOCs.There may be benefits in
offering a national MOOC platform.
» Scalable approaches to Research Data and
Equipment
• Universities need to develop processes and services to
manage research data and equipment.There may be
benefits in providing some services as shared national
services.

9. Over to you
»On the index cards on your table please write
one theme per card
»On each card please write
• A description of the theme in a sentence
• Why you think it is important to address this theme
»You have 10 minutes to do this and then we will
go around the room and ask people to tell us
about their themes

10. Find out more…
Andy McGregor
Deputy Chief InnovationOfficer
a.mcgregor@jisc.ac.uk
info@jisc.ac.uk jisc.ac.uk
Except where otherwise noted, this work is licensed under CC-BY-NC-ND

11. Extra slides

12. Co-design pilot 2013-14
1. Access and identity management
2. National monograph strategy
3. Summer of student innovation
4. Digital student
5. Open mirror
6. Spotlight on the digital
7. Extending Knowledge Base +
Five original Co-design partners: RLUK, RUGIT, SCONUL, UCISA and Jisc

13. Co-design example: Summer of student innovation 2013
“... And through the whole summer of student innovation
I think you’ve really pushed the limits.You’ve brought
innovation.You’ve spurred that flame of entrepreneurship
within students, and that’s really important.”
Robert Chokr (University of Bath) NovumSci
Themes
Pedagogy and teaching
Research
Student life
#studentideas

14. Jisc Summer of Student Innovation 2014
How it works:
» Create – Make a video to explain
your idea
» Share – Upload your video and
encourage people to vote
» Vote - If you hit the voting target
we will consider it for funding
So if you have a brainwave, come and
join us for a Summer of Student
Innovation:
jisc.ac.uk/student-innovation

15. Co-design steering group suggested membership
› Original Co-design partners
– RCUK, RUGIT, SCONUL, UCISA
› PVC teaching
› PVC research
› AoC
› ETF
› BUFDG
› ALT
› NUS

16. Retaining ‘in-year agility’

17. Annual ideas
gathering
Ad hoc ideas prioritisation
Ideas
bank 60% of projects
Majority low risk
40% of projects
Some medium
and high risk
Early
explore
Mid
explore
Late
explore

18. Scaling up Co-design
› Lessons learnt from Co-design pilot
› Risks of scaling up
– Overloading individual Co-design partners
– Failing to span all Jisc impact areas
› Organise under big strategic themes e.g.
– Lifting the student number cap
– Scalable approaches to research data, old and new
› Retro-fitting existing project portfolio

19. Strategic framework impact areas
Our
customers
Research
enablement
Sector and
enterprise
efficiency
Teaching,
learning
& student
experience
Open agenda
Collaboration
& inter-
national-
isation
Digital
standards &
policies
Digital translation
from other
sectors/industries
Institutional
& academic
leadership in
the digital
age
Cyber
security &
access &
identity
manage-
ment
Data & analytics

20. Example – Futures pipeline layer cake
New people & policy development
New big data and content access
Open software on demand
Cloud computing capacity
Identity, access and security
Janet 6 network

21. Futures pipeline risk distribution
High
Futures
projects
commissioned
Risk of Futures project not leading to production service
Low
Few
Many

22. Conversion to new production Jisc services
Futures
pipeline
Jisc product catalogue
Jisc.ac.uk/membership
Co-design
development
cycle
and handover
Jisc impact areas
Stakeholder prioritisation
Risk distribution
or guidance, lessons
learnt, etc.