Measuring Impact

Measuring impact is driving many agendas within HEIs. That an institution's web presence is important is uncontroversial; knowing how and why is more difficult to articulate. Maintaining quality; establishing adequate (if not ideal) resourcing; ensuring compliance; effective management of resources; communicating change; and many more demands illustrate why this necessary. But how do we achieve this, and who should do it?

Measurement underpins the information required for effective decision making. Progressing beyond launch and through to a sustainable life-cycle requires monitoring and review so that action is planned and appropriate. Dealing with changes in legislation - such as the requirement to declare and allow consent to cookies - creates significant problems for managers faced with cold starts to the need for an immediate response. How do we keep an eye on our website without losing the plot?

This talk uses examples from practice at LSE and other HEIs to demonstrate a measured a web presence, providing attendees with a model to adapt to their own setting.

By the end of the talk particpants should be able to:

• Understand what needs to be measured and why this is important, with examples taken from LSE and other HEIs to illustrate.
• Demonstrate how measurements are made.
• Identify who has responsibility for the instruments used to measure, the measures taken, their recording and ultimately reporting.
• Explain how measurement plays the key role in a web presence when the long-term life cycle is considered.