Yearly Progress Update from Captain Joe Way at UCLA
UCLA's Digital Transformation: Joe Way's Mission-Driven Approach
Joe Way, the executive director of Digital Spaces at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), has been leading the charge to transform UCLA's digital spaces for the past year. As a public institution, UCLA's digital spaces serve not only the university community but also the broader public interest, reflecting the institution's role as a steward of public resources and education access.
In his first year at UCLA, Way's focus has been on vision casting and team building. He has been working to create a unique audiovisual governance model and project charter before embarking on an upgrade project. The goal for year two is to complete recruitment, onboard the program manager/consulting firm, and be in the proof-of-concept phase of the Remote Production Facility (RPF) for the technology solutions that will be installed. The ultimate vision is to place UCLA five to seven years ahead of everyone in higher education and AV.
One of Way's major initiatives is to create virtual classrooms, digital twinning, cloud services, API integration, and a single enterprise platform that has never been done before. He aims to establish UCLA as a major influence and trailblazer in the AV and higher ed industries.
Working at a public institution like UCLA involves unique aspects compared to a private institution. There is a strong emphasis on making digital spaces accessible for all, including vulnerable groups such as long-distance and housing-insecure students. Public accountability requires addressing such equity concerns thoroughly. Public institutions are also subject to state laws, regulations, and public records acts that shape management of digital assets, data privacy, accessibility, and transparency, imposing often more stringent operational frameworks than private schools.
Despite these challenges, Way has been successful in navigating bureaucracy and public accountability while fostering innovation. He has organized the team by creating five distinct verticals: two support verticals, one for academics and administration and one for live events and production needs, two functional verticals, one for design, architecture, and project management, and one for operations, finance, and signage/comms, and a product manager who reports directly to him.
Way has also added unique roles to the organization, including an AV Sales Manager as a customer liaison for the services that we sell in our events spaces and an AV/IT Training Coordinator to work with user adoption and staff training. UCLA places a high importance on the service provided by the AV department, as evidenced by having the "AV guy" with a seat at the executive level.
In addition to his work at UCLA, Way has hosted several notable events, including the HETMA roadshow, the inaugural Sustainability in AV global conference, and a Times Higher Education global summit at UCLA. Way's team's dedication and hard work have not gone unnoticed, as he recently established a team that he considers to be the single best leadership team in all of higher education.
As UCLA continues to push the boundaries of what is possible in digital spaces, Way's mission-driven approach and commitment to innovation will undoubtedly continue to drive the university's success in the AV and higher ed industries.
- Joe Way aims to establish UCLA as a major influence and trailblazer in the AV and higher ed industries, featuring ambitious projects like virtual classrooms, digital twinning, cloud services, API integration, and a single enterprise platform.
- The unique audiovisual governance model and project charter Way is creating for UCLA includes specific verticals, such as live events and production needs, academics and administration, design, architecture, and project management, operations, finance, and signage/comms, and a product manager, aiming to place UCLA five to seven years ahead of everyone in higher education and AV.
- In the education-and-self-development sector, Way has hosted notable events that address current topics, including sustainability in AV, and his team's dedication and hard work have been recognized by the industry, with Way recently establishing a team considered to be the single best leadership team in all of higher education.
