Transforming Oxford's Digital Communications Programme

Effective and impactful communications with staff, students and the public are critical to digital transformation at Oxford. To achieve this, we need to transform our communications platforms and tools.

Transforming our platforms will improve the quality and effectiveness of our communications. It will also improve the experience for content creators, with easier to use tools and clearer processes.

The Transforming Oxford’s Digital Communications programme will deliver flexible, scalable and secure digital communications platforms and tools for internal and external audiences. This will ensure all our audiences – staff, students and external audiences – can find information, access online services and keep up to date on what’s happening across the University, and ultimately support our academic mission.

Oxford Fresco, the new web CMS platform, will be a stable, secure and flexible platform for the University, and the preferred platform for all the University’s public-facing web content. It will allow every area of the University to publish easily and securely, with a flexible set of tools. Replacing existing solutions, such as Mosaic, and becoming the new platform for Oxweb, the University's main website, Oxford Fresco will create rich digital experiences for hundreds of creators across Oxford. More information can be found on the New CMS page here.

Our intranets and internal communications work will make it easier for everyone at Oxford to find the information they need to study and work. Ox-intranet will provide a singular digital experience for all staff and students - bring together content published across the University into a consolidated view. This will be underpinned by enhanced people data – allowing information to be targeted to the needs and interests of the individual based on where they are in the University. In the future we’ll also invest in our email and additional communications tools. More information can be found on the intranets and internal communications page.

We will create frameworks for all creators so that our internal and external platforms have a consistently high standard for design, usability and accessibility, and environmental sustainability, to support the sharing of share high-quality, trustworthy content.

How the Programme will deliver the change

Coordinating the New Web CMS and Intranet projects under one programme enables us to be joined up so the delivery of these communications platforms is effectively managed and supported, with the right resources and content.

To support the success of the two new platforms, this programme is also overseeing the following essential workstreams:

• Skills and capability – To enable the flexibility and scalability of the University’s communications platforms, we are working to build skills and capability across our teams, including the recruitment of a Web Experience Manager and an Intranet Manager, and to share best practices through the introduction of a community of practice.
• Content strategy – The new web CMS and intranet will more clearly split content for external and internal audiences and use data to target for relevance. We have developed a content strategy to clarify where content should be published and how we’ll ensure it is kept up to date.
• Platform and content governance – Ongoing, joined-up oversight and decision-making regarding the new platforms will ensure we continue to provide effective and supported communications platforms for the University.

To help ensure the new Fresco and Ox-Intranet platforms meet the diverse needs of the University, we are piloting the initial platforms in the following areas:

Project and Programme Governance

The projects and programme are overseen by Oversight Groups, and an overall Steering Group, comprising representatives from across the University and, ultimately, the work falls under the remit of the Engagement & Dissemination Portfolio Group. The work has been made possible by the Digital Transformation Programme and works closely with related digital transformation projects such as the Student Hub project.  Representatives on each of the governance bodies are provided below.