Collaboration That Counts: IT HOG Teams Shape Campuswide Solutions in Year One

Accessible content for students. Smooth onboarding for new hires. Strong, effective communication across campus. These are standards every university strives for. Achieving them, however, requires intentional collaboration and innovative solutions. 

The U of A and IT Services, as part of its mission to advance student success and research excellence, took steps to pursue these priorities with the introduction last year of its IT HOG Teams — collaborative groups designed to address specific challenges, enhance business processes and standardize tools for better service delivery. 

In January 2025, IT Services launched its first of four active HOG (Hindrances, Opportunities, Guidance) Teams, addressing digital display, mass email/communication, accessibility and technology onboarding. 

These four separate teams bring together campus partners from various departments to provide guidance and streamline support across the university. 

"Not only is a proactive approach necessary to address these challenges, we also need a diverse set of viewpoints and expertise for a project like this to be successful," said Kathryn Zawisza, associate chief information officer for campus partnerships, IT Services. 

"This is why our IT HOG Teams emphasize collaboration," said Zawisza, who, in her role, oversees the teams. "We knew we wanted to hear from the campus community inside and outside of IT, since these challenges are tech-related, but they're not exclusive to IT." 

In their first year, the IT HOG Teams have helped shape campuswide standards that strengthen student and research support while improving everyday processes for students, faculty and staff. 

As the U of A enters 2026, the four teams are excited to share their progress, insights and next steps. 

DIGITAL DISPLAY 

The Digital Display IT Hog Team, chaired by Christopher Spencer, associate director of marketing and communications for the College of Engineering, used an online survey to collect feedback from campus about digital signage usage and preferences. Results from this survey were used to develop recommendations for next steps. 

One primary takeaway from the survey results, collected from April to June 2025, was the need for the university to streamline digital signage tools and support, as well as provide structure and governance for enterprise digital signage. 

"I was struck by how much alignment already existed across campus once we created space to compare practices and needs," Spencer said. "The team's work helped translate that alignment into concrete recommendations around governance, accessibility and emergency readiness." 

The Digital Display HOG Team, in its recommendation, urged the creation of a Digital Signage governance body, which would include representatives from IT Services, University Relations and Facilities Management, as well as a content lead. 

It is the position of the Digital Display HOG Team that it is important to coordinate with Facilities and Emergency Management to ensure that screen installations are strategic, effective and ADA compliant. 

Complying with ADA requirements will consider font size, color contrast, reading order and more. It is also important that the screens are integrated to display RazALERTs when necessary. 

Spencer said he believes the HOG Team model can turn shared challenges into campuswide progress. 

MASS EMAIL/COMMUNICATION 

Chaired by Camilla Shumaker, director of business application services for IT Services, and Chris Nixon, director of digital strategy for University Relations, the Mass Email/Communication IT HOG Team also used a survey to gather information from the campus community. 

The purpose of collecting the survey results was to identify key features and functionality needs across units, evaluate accessibility and compliance concerns and recommend centralized and distributed service models and improve user experience and operational efficiency. 

"Working with colleagues across campus on these projects has been a great experience," Shumaker said. "The participants have been generous with their time, and the IT HOG Teams have benefited from a wide range of skills and expertise." 

The Mass Email/Communication IT HOG Team concluded that the formation of a governance body would be the next logical step in implementing its recommendations and suggested that it include representatives from University Relations, IT Services, Advancement, the Provost's Office and unit-level communication directors. 

The team also outlined appropriate uses for campuswide mass communication, emphasizing messages that support institutional goals, target specific university audiences with relevant information, deliver official announcements such as policy updates or emergency alerts, and share compliance-related or operational updates, including IT, HR or financial deadlines. 

"I look forward to repeating this successful model in other areas," Shumaker said of the work completed by the Mass Email/Communication IT HOG Team. 

ACCESSIBILITY 

Shumaker also chairs the Accessibility IT HOG Team. This team's primary goal is to educate campus stakeholders — specifically university faculty and staff — on digital accessibility and legal obligations under Title II. 

As a state-funded university and public entity, the U of A is impacted by the U.S. Department of Justice's April 24, 2024, rule, updating its regulations for Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The final rule has specific requirements to ensure that web content and mobile applications are accessible to people with disabilities. 

These updated regulations impact faculty and staff at the U of A who create or interact with digital content including online course material, documents, emails, websites and digital forms. 

Faculty and staff at the U of A are required to abide by the new rule and its requirements by the April 24, 2026, compliance date. 

Members of the Accessibility IT HOG Team were instrumental in planning, promoting and participating in "Fix Your Content Day," a hands-on opportunity for faculty to enhance the accessibility of their Blackboard course materials. 

The U of A finished "Fix Your Content Day" by scoring 65 out of 120 participating institutions and remediating 1,117 digital accessibility issues. 

The Accessibility IT HOG Team meets regularly and will continue to communicate details of the Title II requirements to faculty and staff through multiple channels ahead of the April 24 compliance date. 

TECHNOLOGY ONBOARDING 

The most recently formed IT HOG Team is Technology Onboarding, which is chaired by Jennika Smith, technical training coordinator for Human Resources, and Dan Klein, master scientific research tech for Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. 

A primary focus of the Technology Onboarding HOG Team is making sure new hires have what they need on day one. That includes the right accounts, tools and clear guidance, so new hires can focus on success in their roles rather than logistics. 

"This work really sets the stage for organizing and automating what comes next — expanding role-specific onboarding and continuing to make the experience smoother for everyone involved," Klein said. 

The success criteria for the Technology Onboarding IT HOG Team include a reduction in support tickets related to technology onboarding and increased usage of technology onboarding resources and training. 

"One thing we've learned is that there are already some really strong onboarding and technology resources on campus," Smith said. "Not everyone knows they exist, so part of our work is helping bring more visibility to them." 

For all four IT HOG Teams formed in 2025, progress continues into 2026. The work directly supports VCFA and IT strategic priorities, such as advancing digital literacy and accessibility, fostering operational efficiency, and aligning IT initiatives with the university's long-term vision. 

"Solving IT problems starts with working together and sharing responsibility," Zawisza said. "I am impressed with the way these cross-functional teams listen to all voices, build recommendations together and offer practical advice for real technology challenges." 

Many of the recommendations of the IT HOG Teams have already been implemented, and the teams, in coordination with IT Services, are working to formalize some groups into permanent advisory committees. 

"When we work together across campus, even tough IT challenges can lead to streamlined, sustainable improvements," Zawisza said. 

For more information or to participate in a future IT HOG Team, contact Kathryn Zawisza at kzawisza@uark.edu.