About the C3 Forum

A space for CU IT leaders to build relationships, share ideas, collaborate, address challenges, execute on visions, create efficiencies and explore possibilities.

All in higher education are being asked to do more and more. With limited resources, it is imperative for all central IT organizations across the CU system to work together as we are stronger together than individually. This forum is a place for leaders from the central IT organizations on each of CU’s campuses to build relationships, share experiences and challenges, collaborate on solving problems, create efficiencies, pressure-test feasibility of ideas and execute on identified projects.

What is the scope of the C3 forum?

The C3 includes seven broad service areas in its scope including: 

  • Access & Authorization Controls 
  • Administrative and Business Services 
  • Communication and Collaboration 
  • Desktop and Mobile Computing  
  • IT Infrastructure 
  • IT Professional Services 
  • Teaching and Learning 

The full details of the specific services within each of these areas can be found in the C3 Forum Scope document.

Who would we like to attend?

IT Directors from all CU campuses including CU Advancement, CU Boulder, CU Denver, UCCS and UIS as well as representatives from PSC are requested. Open to other invitees when specific topics of discussion warrant.

C3 Forum Format

Monthly meetings of 50 minutes in duration will be held via video conference with a focus on either IT Enterprise Applications or IT Infrastructure. Why 50 minutes? To allow transit time for attendees to their next meeting. The exception will be the two meetings held in April and October where 120 minutes will be allocated.

C3 Organization Structure

C3 Forum Planning Committee

A planning committee is composed of, at minimum, two people from two separate campuses who each serve a one-year term. The planning committee will be selected each year at the October onsite meeting or earlier if an opening exists. Members of the planning committee are responsible for ensuring the forum is run each month, with agendas and action items sent and tracked. The planning committee will keep planning notes on the Teams site.
Planning Committee Members (October 2021 - October 2022):

  • Greg Williams (UCCS)
  • Orrie Gartner (CU Boulder)
  • Sheard Goodwin (CU Denver)
  • Tony Brooks (UIS)

Subgroups

When needed, the C3 identifies specialized topics of interest and establishes channels of communication for those wanting to contribute to the topic.  The topic discussions may surround potential projects, areas of common interest, CIO directives, and both directed and undirected work.  The C3 recognizes three distinctly different types of subgroups.

Subcommittees

Subcommittees are formed to address a specific need, administrative, or project deliverable required by the C3 and have specific defined deliverables. Upon completion of the deliverable, the subcommittee is disbanded. The formal process for creation of a subcommittee is defined in the subcommittee charter proposal process. Subcommittees may continue from year to year if the work on the deliverable persists but should be organized around a specific need and deliverable.

Subcommittee Charter Proposal Process

The C3 Forum formerly commissions a subcommittee via the Subcommittee Charter Proposal Process. The steps involved include:

  • Completion of Subcommittee Charter Template
  • Submittal of Subcommittee Charter to C3 Planning Committee
  • Review and Approval of Subcommittee Charter

A lead for each subcommittee is identified in the charter and leads do not need to be a member of the C3 Forum but do need to report up through a member of the C3 Forum.

Subcommittee Responsibilities

Leads on subcommittees are responsible for spearheading the effort in their identified focus area. This may require scheduling meetings, meeting with vendors, coordinating amongst various campus members, etc. Leads are expected to participate in a monthly 30-minute check-in to ensure continued progress is made and identify any barriers needed to be brought to the C3 Forum’s attention.

A member of the C3 planning committee is responsible for coordinating the monthly subcommittee check-in meetings with each of the subcommittee leads. Any updates or barriers requiring C3 attention are brought forth to the monthly C3 Forum meetings.

Upon completion of the defined success criteria, the C3 Forum acknowledges the accomplishment(s) of the members of the subcommittee and the subcommittee is officially released. 

Subcommittee Active Projects

  • Teams VoIP Proof-of-Concept (POC): Explore and develop a POC for using a soft phone technology as a replacement for other more traditional telephony options such as older analog or digital VoIP system. Following a technological POC, the subcommittee will explore potential fiscal savings and how a soft phone technology could be provided as a service including identifying any gaps.

Working Groups

Working groups are formed to ensure collaboration, alignment and identify potential efficiencies regarding an operational IT service across multiple campuses. The formal process for creation of a working group is defined in the working group charter proposal process. Working groups are generally persistent until the service is no longer used and so have no defined end date.

Active Working Groups

Networking

Chair/Facilitator: Kyle Ragan

Co-Chair/-Co-Facilitator: Piotr Artwich

CU Denver and CU Anschutz

  • Mattias Lindgren
  • Piotr Artwich

CU Boulder

  • Chuck Ferrin
  • Kyle Ragan

UCCS

  • Rob Garvie

UIS

  • Lonnie Maynard

Messaging and Collaboration

Lead: Open

Members:

CU Boulder

  • Kerry Havens
  • Tim Crean
  • Tim Haskell

UCCS

  • Sarah Mensch
  • Stephen Werling
  • Mark Hilberg

CU Denver and CU Anschutz

  • Dan Haggar

System/UIS

  • William Shelby
  • Chris Rose

Zoom Governance

Lead: Kristen Quintana

Members:

Advancement

  • Ryan Mannix

CU Anschutz

  • Graham Gedeon

CU Boulder

  • Nick Steinkamp
  • Dave Benson
  • Mark Alexander

UCCS

  • Sarah Mensch

CU Denver

  • Dan Haggar
  • Crystal Gasell

System/UIS

  • William Shelby
  • Greg Maynard

Community of Practice

Individual members may create a community of practice as an informal method to establish communications across campus communities. Other than requiring sponsorship from a C3 Forum member, there are no specific defined deliverables from a community of practice. Rather, it is the creation of a space and maintenance of a communication channel to provide opportunities for members of each central IT organization to:

  • Connect, network and dialogue with peers across campuses
  • Collaborate on and brainstorm solutions
  • Share knowledge and best practices
  • Learn about IT initiatives

Active Communities of Practices

Software Engineering

Lead: Kunta Hutabarat

Community Invitees:

CU Denver and CU Anschutz

  • Craig Campbell
  • Christopher Horen
  • Christopher Wilhelmsen
  • Michael Miller
  • Casey Greene
  • Nik Levinsky
  • Vince Rubinetti
  • Donbo Hu
  • Ambreen Zaver

CU Boulder

  • Craig Talbert
  • Todd Schaefer
  • Jon Budoff
  • James Fuller
  • Alex Viggio
  • Mark Diekhoff
  • Jonathan Tarr
  • Youcef Baouchi
  • Jason Black
  • John Calloway
  • Davin Simmons
  • Brad Weiner
  • Donald Elsborg
  • Matt Ramey

UCCS

  • Brandon Poulliot
  • Christin Deville

System/UIS

  • Al Wirtes
  • Caleb Schumaker
  • Gary Rittenhouse

Projects and Work Visibility

The C3 Forum advocates and acts as a conduit for the alignment and implementation of CIO strategy across the campuses. If and when project work identified by the C3 Forum requires higher level (CIO) approval to ensure continued alignment with CIO strategy, it is the responsibility of the C3 Forum members to discuss at their specific campus IT leadership meetings. See the process for C3 project initiation.

How identified project work from the C3 Forum is made visible within each campus’ IT project portfolio is through a decentralization process meaning it is up to each representing C3 Forum member to determine based on their individual IT organization’s published process and procedures.

 See the current C3 project portfolio.

Participants

  • Tony Brooks (UIS)
  • Orrie Gartner (CU Boulder)
  • Sheard Goodwin (CU Anschutz)
  • William Shelby (UIS)
  • David Lowry (CU Anschutz)
  • Dan Haggar (CU Anschutz)
  • Jeff Greene (CU Boulder)
  • Chris Rose (Advancement)
  • Greg Williams (UCCS)
  • Crystal DiCino (PSC)
  • Brian Hutchison (PSC)