Organisational Design
Operational structure brainstorm
A brainstorm of the people, activities and tools required to make the model of work focused learning work. This was used to inform the enterprise architecture process modelling based on the Archimate modelling standard using the free Archi software implementation.
Business Model Outline
Business Model for an operational Work-Focused Learning Unit
Operational Model
This shows the main process flows, actors and functions, currently covering: marketing and promotion; recruitment; learning and teaching, with and without ICT; and the action inquiry cycle.
Downloadable Model Files
This folder contains .png and .pdf images of the diagrams, together with the original Archi model that contains both the Business Model and all the Operational Models. It also has a link to the open source Archi Web site where the modelling tool can be downloaded.
Operational autonomy
The experience from Ultraversity, IDIBL and Co-educate is that this work focussed learning model needs to be delivered through an operationally independent unit, as it involves a non-traditional curriculum and unique ways of working which challenge normal university structures, processes and culture. As its typical student differs from the norm, it also requires different marketing and lower pricing, both because its students have been shown to be price sensitive and because as an online course it has lower estates overheads than a traditional university course.
A 'Lean Startup' Approach
When setting up a new venture, whether on its own or within an existing organisation, if it is innovative and differs significantly from what has gone before, there is no pre-existing data to inform a business plan. Rather than developing a complex business model based on guesswork, a learning process is undertaken which systematically tests initial assumptions, before major investment is made.