HERO Portal: Empowering UK Higher Education and Research Opportunities

1. HERO Higher Education and Research Opportunities Christopher Harris Executive Director HERO

2. Portal Definitions • Portal definition; “ single point of useful,comprehensive, ubiquitous and integrated access.” • Community portal definition; “ a portal catering to specific communities of interest by providing tailored content.”

3. The vision • to be the primary Internet portal for higher education and academic research in the United Kingdom • the natural entry point for enquiries about UK higher education for the widest possible range of customers

4. Hero’s stakeholders Organisations which will benefit from such a portal include: • universities, colleges and their representative bodies • Research Councils and charities • key HE agencies (UCAS, CSU, etc) • HE funding bodies

5. Origins • a project for the millennium • too many lights hidden under too many bushels

6. Project history (1) Scoping study conducted by SQW. Main conclusions: • rationale is sound • site will add value • site will have support • proposal is technically feasible

7. Project history (2) Development of a business plan (ArthurAndersen). main outcomes: • business structure • financial model • marketing strategy • draft ITT and contract with the operator

8. Project history (3) Development Consultants main outcomes: • Procurement of operating company - Epic • Setting up of limited company

9. Current Status • Epic appointed as operator • Executive Director appointed • Hero Ltd being set up • branding and naming exercise completed • design phase has begun • October 2000: Site launched

10. CVCP UCAS SCOP HEFCE SHEFC NIHEC WFC CSU TTA AHRB NERC MRC BBSRC ESRC PPARC EPSRC Hero’s shareholders

11. Aims and objectives • showcase site with state-of-the-art design, search and navigation • high quality content promoting UK higher education and research • content model - zones of interest • disability and multi-lingual access

12. Some target audiences • prospective and current students • teaching and research staff • contacts in industry and commerce • overseas users of all kinds • those interested in life-long learning • policy-makers, funders and managers • the media and the public

13. Possible zones • national/regional • Studying - courses, learning and teaching, subjects, student interests • Research • Business - industry and knowledge transfer • HE community - policy and funding • Culture & Sport

14. Benefits to stakeholders • higher levels of interested visitors • showcase content promoted by leading-edge site design • extended marketing opportunities • intelligent feedback about Hero’s users

15. Benefit to users • higher quality online experience • better navigation and intelligent searching • access to authoritative and quality-controlled information

16. Benefits to HE • creation of a powerful marketing channel • new platform for increased collaboration • better understanding of customer needs and how to meet them

17. Funding and management • pump-priming funds initially • review in the second year • company limited by guarantee being set up • commercial activities would be carried out by a wholly-owned trading company.

18. General portal characteristics • Site structure plus navigation and search capabilities • showcase content (news and current achievements) • structure database of pointers to participating sites • majority of content held on institutions’ web-sites

19. Conclusions • to be a success Hero must be based on collaboration and consensus • aim not to compete with existing web-sites but to add value to them • input from HE and the research community vital to the next stage