We had our second committee meeting yesterday regarding moving CSP’s e-mail to Google Apps. I feel that it was a productive meeting and that we are moving forward, but it would have been better to have more committee members there.  Here is a short recap of what was discussed.

• Pilot Group
  • We are asking that all committee members join the full pilot of Google Apps.
  • We are going to release the pilot to the campus community for volunteers to join in.
  • We hope to get a good sampling of different types of users to give this potential transition a thorough test.
• FAQ Page
  • We would like to compile a FAQ page to answer some of the most common concerns that have been expressed through the Google Apps blog
    
  • This FAQ page will also include some of the rationale behind considering this move (i.e. financial, server administration, reliability, legality issues with storing user data, etc.)
• Client Support
  • We discussed whether or not we would support a client. At this point we thought it would be ideal not to support a specific client, but this may be difficult to accomplish after leaving Outlook.
  • What sync tools are we going to support/purchase to handle syncing calendar and e-mail with mobile devices and or a client like Outlook.
• Insights from Macalester
  • Macalester College is also considering moving off of their Oracle e-mail solution to Google Apps. So, we are hoping to gain some insight from them on what they have discovered so far.
• Decision Time
  • We are looking at making the final decision to move on this or not in approximately 1 month.
  • If we decide not to move on it at this point, this will not rule out the possibility of doing it down the road, and we will continue to look at this option.

If there is anything that I missed, feel free to comment.

My 30 minute meeting today evolved into 2 additional urgent meetings for today and at least 1 for tomorrow.  It never fails to amaze me how much there is to do and that the more you think you have resolved, the more you uncover that needs to be done.  Each piece of the puzzle has enormous implications for the system.  It speaks to the inability to rely upon a planned to-do list for your day; but it is also great progress in developing a cure for linear thinking.

I used to feel as if I spend all day in meetings. Whether they are formally scheduled in Outlook or “drive by” meetings (“Oh, Heather, since you are here…”), they are a constant. Recent studies indicate that meetings make you less intelligent, so this concerned me initially. Now, I have come to realize that these are vital conversations and opportunities to build relationships. As my relationships have grown, so have the number of relationship building opportunities.

Are there down sides? Certainly. My desk chair may be gathering dust, I rarely take a lunch unless it is a meeting, and I need to catch up on my e-mails on my personal time. However, I would not be able to answer those e-mails without the knowledge garnered from my relationship building. In fact, I wouldn’t even have those e-mails without having first gained the trust of those on campus. Relationships are the most vital aspect to being able to perform my role at Concordia. I suppose that this may make my chair obsolete and meetings a great thing.

I have not ever blogged before, so I appreciate the opportunity it may provide to build relationships in a new way!