UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — As part of ongoing information technology (IT) transformation efforts, Penn State IT will undergo an organizational change beginning this summer to develop a new IT operating model built around a shared platform portfolio, shared mission portfolio and unit portfolios by January 2027.
An important early step in the transformation occurred last spring, when the IT Optimized Service Team, in collaboration with leadership in colleges and units, conducted a position validation process to determine in-scope employees. IT employees who were identified as in scope at that time will become part of Penn State IT by July 1.
Following this transition, Penn State IT — working with IT employees — will spend 18 months stabilizing the new organization and developing the new shared services model for IT across the University.
This new structure is intended to provide innovative, efficient and responsive IT services and support, infrastructure and systems that support the University’s mission.
This organizational change, part of the University’s Optimized Service Team efforts, comes after more than two years of extensive evaluation, community collaborations and engagements with third-party consultant PwC, in addition to ongoing discussions with deans, chancellors, unit leads and IT employees across the University.
Leading up to July 1, Penn State IT will work with three early-adopter IT units — including Operational Excellence and Human Resources IT, World Campus and Outreach IT, and the Division of Development and Alumni Relations IT — to help inform the process and strategy for July unit moves. The Commonwealth Campuses underwent this transition last summer, as have Student Affairs IT staff members at University Park more recently.
“The extensive work of the IT OST has laid the essential groundwork for this transition, and we are excited to reach this milestone,” said David Horton, vice president of Information Technology and chief information officer. “Customer service and continuing our current work will remain important. At the same time, we are undergoing tremendous change within IT and as a University, and we know that can be challenging. While we still have much to work through together as an IT community, I am confident we will navigate through this time of change as we all work toward the future of IT at Penn State.”
Horton added that advancement for IT employees and consistent, quality support and service delivery to faculty, staff and students across Penn State’s campuses in support of their academic, research and professional endeavors will remain the priorities.
In support of the University’s mission, this new Penn State IT unit aims to:
- Provide strategic alignment by maximizing the impact of the University's investment in IT by optimizing the mix of activities to ensure continued operations and pursuit of areas of strategic importance
- Unlock innovation by building efficiencies across IT to create capacity for high value, innovative initiatives that anticipate or solve critical University challenges
- Increase cost efficiency to enable a sustainable approach to funding IT that contributes to University goals and enables the needed flexibility to accommodate changing and evolving needs of the University
- Recruit and retain high-performing talent and teams by improving opportunities for IT staff to professionally advance within Penn State and increase Penn State IT’s appeal to job seekers
Following their transition into Penn State IT by July, IT staff members will continue to report to their current unit IT directors. Reporting lines for those directors will change as they will begin to report to members of Penn State IT’s senior leadership team. The entire organization will go through an 18-month optimization period — July 1, 2025, to January 2027 — to develop the shared services model. A transition services team will conduct discovery activities; recommend optimization of positions, process and technologies; and iteratively deploy resources into the new IT operating model.
After the transition, Penn State IT will continue to work with units to understand needs and priorities. This process will be informed by the OST’s previous work, including a current state assessment, the development of 17 recommendations for the IT OST, a University-wide application inventory and associated application rationalization workshops, listening session with hundreds of IT employees and others across the University, and the previous transition of Commonwealth Campus and Student Affairs IT units into Penn State IT.
While there are no layoffs planned as part of this transition, the new operating model will create new roles and opportunities, and some individual positions and responsibilities could change over time.
“This transition presents opportunities for professional growth and new challenges,” said Chris Lucas, deputy chief information officer and associate vice president for academic technologies and customer experience. “Flexibility will be key, and we’re committed to supporting staff through this process as they adapt.”
IT staff members have been engaged throughout this OST process and were notified of this transformation during a town hall held on Feb. 27 with an opportunity for questions and answers with Horton and Lucas.
As the OST moves into the implementation phase, employees will continue to receive frequent updates from leadership, a newsletter outlining milestones and next steps, and opportunities to share their perspectives.
As one of these opportunities, the IT OST will create faculty and staff advisory groups, which will be curated groups to give input as the new Penn State IT unit takes shape. The Office of Enterprise Change and Transformation will also host a series of workshops for IT employees and managers on “Living and Leading Through Change.” Some topics will be designed for all personnel and others directed at leadership roles.
“We ask that our employees stay engaged, seek clarity, attend listening sessions and actively participate to help shape our collective future,” Horton said. “I encourage you to reach out to me, your IT director or to our IT OST with any questions as we move through this process together.”
Community members with questions are encouraged to reach out to ITOST@PSU.edu, review FAQs and stay apprised of updates on the Office of Enterprise Change and Transformation web presence.