Rumors of infidelity, delays hiring staff and trouble purchasing software threaten to delay Ohio University's switch to semesters, according to several mid- and upper-level administrators who blame the university's top technology official for the problems.
Brice Bible, OU's chief information officer, committed the university's technology staff to two huge, overlapping infrastructure projects in addition to their regular work. At the same time, he's trying to restructure the Office of Information Technology. Any problems could threaten OU's switch to semesters, scheduled for fall 2012.
Bible acknowledged delays, but said he had to wait for other offices, such as Legal Affairs and Finance and Administration, before making some decisions.
Have I seen a lack of dedication or a slow-down? Not at all
Bible said. I will challenge that. Absolutely.
Four mid- and upper-level administrators familiar with the projects disputed Bible's characterization of the problems. Each insisted Bible, perhaps overstretched by the high workload or distracted by his personal life, was responsible for the delays. They spoke to The Post on the condition of anonymity for fear of retribution.
At the same time, rumors about Bible's personal life have hurt morale and productivity, those administrators said.
One employee complained Bible had an affair with the employee's wife. Another complained Bible made sexist comments during a staff meeting. And filings in Bible's ongoing divorce allege he cheated on his wife.
Bible said the rumors that he had an affair with the employee's wife are baseless. He acknowledged choosing his words poorly during the staff meeting, but said his comments were taken out of context.
Three Major Projects
Bible inherited an aging computer network, an obsolete student information system and technology employees shaken by computer security breaches when he arrived on campus in April 2007.
OU's student information system, purchased in the 1980s, predates the Internet. It requires regular downtime to process new information and relies on a patchwork of homegrown applications to offer online services such as course scheduling. Informs, the Montgomery, Ala., company that licenses the student-system software, has announced it will stop offering support in June.
Its approximately $22 million replacement will link recruitment, admissions, financial aid and the registrar's office - among other services - to provide one destination for students. Parts of the system are to launch this summer and the entire project must be completed before OU adopts semesters in fall 2012.
The $17 million network upgrade will improve the links between computers on campus, and provide bigger and faster pipes for Internet traffic. A university timeline estimates the upgrades will continue into 2014.
Students pay a $22 quarterly fee to cover half the cost of both projects.
At the same time, Bible must re-organize technology employees from both inside and outside the Office of Information Technology into an efficient, cohesive unit. Central control of technology employees and computer servers should also improve security.
The change comes after several high-profile security breaches in recent years. In 2006, OU discovered hackers had breached servers containing 60,000 medical records and 300,000 records tracking alumni donations. Those breaches are among the worst to date in higher education.
All three moves are critical for OU, especially in the transition from quarters to semesters. The administrators said it would be catastrophic if the projects cannot move forward as planned. They said Bible delayed purchasing, training and support decisions, and put the projects at risk, even though all three are still largely on schedule.
Delays
An independent review of the student-system upgrade conducted in February detailed two major areas of concern: delays purchasing necessary software and delays hiring people to train OU employees how to use it.
OU President Roderick McDavis, though not commenting on Bible's effectiveness, said those decisions would be Bible's responsibility.
Bible said although he's ultimately responsible, he cannot make unilateral decisions. He must work with Procurement Services on deals, Legal Affairs on contract negotiations and Finance and Administration on hiring.
I think at the end of the day in some cases that would be me
Bible said. But there are so many steps.
The concerns about setbacks came both from the reviewers and project staff they interviewed.
Delays in the procurement process of these components have created risks where any further delays could affect the project team's ability to deliver timely on its responsibilities
the review states. Unfortunately
the collective OU technical productivity to date has been less than expected.
The administrators said much of the delay is because of the ineffective decision-making at the top, with Bible taking too long to approve moves or make recommendations.
According to monthly status reports on the student-system project, team leaders have been asking for purchasing and hiring approval since July.
The team began to report delays in September, citing problems buying the necessary software for two elements of the project: customer relationship management - focusing on recruitment and admissions - and identity management, which is how the system organizes and identifies users. The report also indicates a delay in assigning necessary personnel to work on identity management. Those requests for software and personnel went directly to Bible, the administrators said.
In October, the team again reported those delays, but added that the assignment of security administrators and application administrators was also delayed. Both should have been completed in September.
By November, the team announced it had procured the necessary software for the identity management portion of the project, but that all other previously delayed pieces were still waiting for guidance.
The hiring delay of these critical positions has begun to jeopardize various components of the project
especially with the security planning efforts
the report states.
December brought another setback, with the team acknowledging the purchasing of necessary software was already four months behind schedule. The previously reported staffing assignments were still delayed.
By January, the team reported hiring was in progress, and hiring was completed by February. A key software purchase was also completed in February - six months behind schedule.
The administrators said Bible was the one to give the final go-ahead for those moves.
McDavis said he had not heard any concerns about Bible's progress on the projects, but hoped those with concerns would come forward.
We try to keep our eyes and ears open
McDavis said. We obviously want to listen to what our (chief information officer) is saying
but we want to be very open ... We stand today ready to investigate any charges brought to our attention - but they have to be brought to our attention.
Administrators have also added that more members of Executive Vice President and Provost Pam Benoit's staff to the project teams, a move Bible said he welcomed because, This is the provost's project. The provost and I are joined at the hip on this.
The Rumor Mill
Rumors about Bible's behavior have also damaged the projects by hurting morale and productivity, the administrators said.
There have been two complaints filed with the Office for Institutional Equity against Bible alleging inappropriate behavior.
The first, filed in September 2009, says Bible makes gender-biased comments. Craig Cornell, vice provost for enrollment management, filed the form on behalf of an anonymous complainant.
During a recent all-staff meeting
(Bible) responded to a question about how to pursue jobs in the structure by saying something to the effect of
