As the first deadlines for switching to fully digital inter-institutional agreements (IIAs) and learning agreements (LAs) are approaching, further progress is needed to put an end to the considerable difficulties experienced by many end-users. To respond to this need, a new Interoperability Reinforcement Plan (or Action Plan) sets out the full interoperability of IIAs and LAs as the highest priority for the EWP network for the coming 6 months.
Making it possible that IT systems exchange context-sensitive data is a formidable challenge, as it requires an entire community of diverse technical stakeholders and IROs to perform in close concert. It is important to acknowledge that huge progress has been made thanks to the outstanding efforts of many colleagues, commercial providers included.
Nonetheless, there’s an emerging consensus that vanquishing the challenges ahead will require a transversal change and transitioning into a more closely regulated environment. To accomplish that, the Action Plan, elaborated at the request of the European Commission, will take critical steps in key areas to move towards full interoperability.
Here’s an overview of the key steps the interoperability reinforcement plan comprises:
In order to benefit from the extra support outlined above, third-party providers and inhouse system operators will be asked for a concrete commitment to support the actions described in the other chapters of this action plan through an amendment of the EWP Memorandum of Understanding. We are confident that, taken together, all these actions will provide an effective and impactful enhanced cooperation framework that will serve the higher education community for years to come.
The full Interoperability Reinforcement Plan can be found here. |
The system-specific business user groups are already up and running. Are you interested in joining? More information can be found here.
The Interoperability Reinforcement Plan was presented during the latest webinars, the recordings can be found on the ESCI YouTube channel.