Curtin University cuts new three-year cloud deal with TechOne

Western Australia's Curtin University has signed a three-year agreement with Technology One to deploy a cloud-based administration and student management system for about 56,000 students and 4,000 staff. The newly-minted deal builds on an almost 30-year partnership between the organisations.

A spokesperson for TechOne said the SaaS agreement would help Curtin achieve “its business goals of enhanced student experience, accelerated connectedness, a streamlined administration process, deduplication and a sector wide leadership role in process efficiency”.

“TechOne will lead the SaaS work with Curtin to ensure the timeline meets their business objectives,” the spokesperson said. “There are a few optimal times throughout the academic year for this to occur. Unfortunately. we're not able to provide any further detail at this time.”

Curtin University Deputy Vice-Chancellor Academic Professor Jill Downie said the cloud-based platform provided the opportunity to respond quickly to innovative delivery options in a system supported by good governance, streamlined processes and the effective use of technology.

As a global university with campuses located in Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Dubai and Mauritius, the SaaS platform can be accessed by students and staff from any location.

“The new platform will provide a compelling experience, with a particular focus on offering 24/7 access with the appropriate security, speed and reliability as well as streamlining entry pathways into the Curtin curriculum,” said Professor Downie.

TechOne has also signed a spate of new SaaS deals recently, with higher education institutions including Macquarie University in NSW and Flinders University in South Australia. It has also implemented a student management SaaS solution at Victoria University.

“SaaS is a preferred platform for a number of key reasons, among them freeing up resources to focus on strategic priorities, ensuring that maintenance/upgrades have little or no disruption for the user,” said a TechOne spokesperson. “[Saas] provides a consistent experience, and leverage the innovations delivered for all customers using the platform."