TBR Shared Services Initiative

UPDATE: August 2017

Earlier this week the Chancellor announced a major change in the Shared Services Initiative. 

The previous iteration of shared services envisioned a wide-reaching array of operational functions that would be shifted from the institutions to a centralized operation. As the project progressed, it became unclear whether meaningful efficiencies and cost savings would materialize, and it also created an untenable environment of uncertainty for employees and institutions.

TBR is no longer pursuing that path, and is immediately shifting all or our focus towards the three areas listed below.

  • Consolidated IT Services: Create and deploy a single MEP instance of Banner for all 41 institutions across TBR including the Technical Colleges, Community Colleges, and System Office.
     
  • TCAT Shared Services: Create a service center for the Technical Colleges and System Office operations meeting core administrative needs.
     
  • Dissemination and Standardization of Best Practices: Utilizing the workshops with institutional personnel that have been conducted previously, implement best practices and standardization at each community college to gain efficiencies in business and operational practices.  This standardization and common practice must be in place prior to joining the MEP instance.

These three areas form the backbone of the effort to pursue a systemic solution to many of the operational challenges our system faces.  TBR believes that we can accomplish these core goals in the originally envisioned timeline with adjustments to meet the above goals. 

The prime focus over the coming months will be ensuring that the MEP Banner environment is ready, secure, and validated for the Technical College go-live in Spring/Summer of 2018. 

TBR would like to thank all the staff across the system that have provided very direct and valuable feedback as well as a tremendous amount of work to support the project.  If we have learned anything over the past 6 months it is that there is a great deal of knowledge, expertise, and strength across our system. 

We look forward to working with all of you to create a TBR system that we can be proud of and that will benefit our staff, students, and the citizens of Tennessee.  Thank you.

The Project Team

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