Network Audit?

[mrblueish]

Hi

 

This is my first post, so please forgive me if this is in the wrong forum.

 

I'm a teacher at a high school and I have the responsibility of managing the IT Support team at the school, this includes the network manager and his support staff. We seem to have many issues in school that aren't resolved quickly and it seems it takes a lot of time to get to a solution for a problem. Whenever a problem occurs, the first instance is the network team blaming an outside agency (cashless service provider, ISP etc. Compared to my last school the IT infrastructure seems creaky and unreliable.

 

I'm looking to resolve this and to this end would like a recommendation of an organisation who could do a network audit for the school, identifying what (if any) weaknesses the network has and how they can be resolved. Any support you can give would be appreciated. We are a school in Lancashire

[Bionic]

How much influence does your NM actually have over the network infrastructure? Does the Local Authority or MAT have any control over it? Edited April 25, 2018 by Bionic

[leegcvcc]

Maybe get your guys to do an IT audit first? That way, they may identify weak points that require updating, some investment etc. and a snapshot can be gained and referred to. If the audit isn't suitable or acceptable, then look externally? Just a thought.

[ITGURU]

I like it when staff come to us from other schools and say, wow i'm not used to this quick service

[PotNoodleTech]

Every school is different, there are items in all schools that are not under the direct control of the IT Team. I brought as much as I can, funding permitting, in house but there are still things that occasionally go down and I have to wait for someone else to fix it. SIMS, Filtering, Internet (LEA) Catering, Phones, Copiers (third parties).

 

Sometimes, having just one thing by a third party being unreliable (say for example LEA internet) can make it seem like the whole network is unreliable, even though the internal school network may actually be fine and dandy.

 

Have you discussed this with your IT manager in an non confrontational way? Getting a third party network audit in may end up driving a large wedge in between you as it is an immediate admission you do not trust and have no confidence in your team.

[Bionic]

Exactly this...

 

 

Every school is different, there are items in all schools that are not under the direct control of the IT Team. I brought as much as I can, funding permitting, in house but there are still things that occasionally go down and I have to wait for someone else to fix it. SIMS, Filtering, Internet (LEA) Catering, Phones, Copiers (third parties).

 

Sometimes, having just one thing by a third party being unreliable (say for example LEA internet) can make it seem like the whole network is unreliable, even though the internal school network may actually be fine and dandy.

 

Have you discussed this with your IT manager in an non confrontational way? Getting a third party network audit in may end up driving a large wedge in between you as it is an immediate admission you do not trust and have no confidence in your team.

[jslate1980]

Are you using a support ticketing system for logging faults at the school? This may help get understanding on what types of fault are happening and how long it is taking to fix these faults.

[Rob_D]

Are you using a support ticketing system for logging faults at the school? This may help get understanding on what types of fault are happening and how long it is taking to fix these faults.

+1 this. Even if you end up need an audit and outside contractors, its always helpful to have problem logs that let you see trends in issues.

[synaesthesia]

It's also very unusual for any teaching staff to be in control of the NM; generally the NM is managed by the head or business manager so you do need to be careful who's toes you are stepping on. As said above there can be many many reasons why outside agencies can be fairly blamed for issues. Sit down with the IT staff, go through the difficulties they face as IT staff, go through the difficulties you face from a T&L point of view and find out where the weaknesses are. You may both be unaware of issues going on behind the scenes; for instance no teachers are likely to be aware of what the IT budget is; how can they resolve some issues if there's no budget to do so?

[DJ-1701]

I would certainly start by being on the level with your IT Support team, say what problems staff have found, see what their recommendations are to improve service. I have never not known a person looking after IT throw away a chance of improving their systems, I mean we are the ones that get it in the neck if things don't work, rightly or wrongly.

 

The recommendations may cost you a bit, but take this advice from someone that has been in the Business side of IT... it would be better than contacting a 3rd party to come in, for one that would be a lot of money from the get go, the 3rd party won't know your systems like your team do, their primary purpose (no matter what they say or their mission statement says) is to make money, also if you go down this path without giving your Team a chance it will feel like you are treading on their toes or trying to replace them, which could cause more problems than you think it will solve.

[Bedders]

One thing that concerns me is this line:

Compared to my last school the IT infrastructure seems creaky and unreliable

May I ask how long you've been there? One thing to bear in mind with any network: everything was set up the way it currently is, for a reason. To reiterate what others have advised - ask your team what they feel has caused issues, and what you could provide as their manager to assist them in solving it.

[synaesthesia]

Indeed, it very quickly falls into "At my old school we used to do this..."

Old school may have had twice the budget, half the intake, half the kit, double the staff etc etc etc.

[Katy]

I'm managed by a teacher (he's Assistant Head i/c data stuff and head of computing) but I'd reiterate what a lot of the other posts have said, if you've not been there that long find out what you can in a non confrontational way - it may be that all the things causing problems are stuck with third parties, or there might have been no IT budget for several years resulting in everything being creaky and held together with duct tape. I know at my school outside technical support, my line manager and finance everybody thinks we have a magic money tree to instantly buy replacements for anything that's going wrong.

 

We're part of a trust and they do an "assurance visit" once a year which is sort of an audit, I think last time they used XMA but we've also had EE in doing it before. Get a report at the end of it with recommendations etc. No idea how much it cost as it's enforced by the trust rather than something I've gone out and organised.

[saggu]

I totally agree with you @AButters. You are correct in saying that if third party is brought in that will show no confidence in their own staff.

 

On the other hand if the NM does audit and asks for third party help it will work much better.

[Mistert89]

I’d echo all of the above. Teachers (not being personal) are not engineers, and whilst they may be handed the baton of leadership, they must respect and acknowledge the professional skills of the NM, assuming they have been suitably appointed. We went through a phase where “somebody else knew better”, and they soon found they didn’t. They are professionals in their own right, but the wrong field.

Also, to have a bit of a rant, we are still seen as what we are not (non-teachers), and often in a deprecating manner.

[saggu]

Very true @DJ-1701. Outsiders will not know the system and get the opportunity to make money as they will see thet school doesn't have any control on their IT team.

[saggu]

Exactly!! I am IT Manager. But have never seen the budget!!

[mavhc]

As a manager you should be asking them why things aren't working well, and what they need to fix it. Then advocating for them to get those things from your boss.

 

"Why is everything so slow?" -- bad

"Can you explain to me why things are sometimes slow, so I can help you get what you need to fix it" -- good

 

Of course if you can't understand the system, you can't be a good manager, so you'll need to learn how things work. So ask your NM to teach you as a starting point.

[Bionic]

I am a school Network Manager, but have no sight of, nor any control of the IT budget. I don't think any of the senior leadership team has a clue what I do on a day-to-day basis, or an understanding of what is required to ensure the network 'works'.

[mavhc]

I am a school Network Manager, but have no sight of, nor any control of the IT budget. I don't think any of the senior leadership team has a clue what I do on a day-to-day basis, or an understanding of what is required to ensure the network 'works'.

 

Whose fault is that? Did you schedule a meeting to explain things?

[Mistert89]

I derive the budget of “what the school needs” to keep the estate up to date, and present this to the Chief Bean Counter each November so that they can work on their budget.

 

They then discuss with the Head (who is also my line manager), and subsequently, about now, I get told what to do, and what not to.

 

With current funding, I separately identify dangers of lack of investment so that they can decide how far they want to risk dropping dead.

 

I make it abundantly clear, and they make the choice. I worry about not refreshing the key core hardware - network and servers. They decide, because if you don’t have the cash, you can’t spend it.... but they must realise that every year of lack of funds, and living with your fingers crossed, is a year closer to disaster!

 

And some fell on stoney ground....... but they fund their new iPads etc...

[mavhc]

iPads don't work if there's no network, there's always money available, £4500 per pupil approx, so 220 pupils = £1 million. Question is do you hire a TA or pay £15k for something else.

[Bionic]

Whose fault is that? Did you schedule a meeting to explain things?

 

It is SLT's fault.

I have honestly lost count of the number of times over the past 6 years that I have urged that we should be meeting regularly to discuss IT strategy and IT modernisation projects; it falls on deaf ears every time.

[mavhc]

Try throwing the words GDPR at them, or anything random that the head can be jailed/fined for. Or just turn up at the SLT meeting as if someone invited you, and count on sheer britishness for them not to query it

[Bionic]

Try throwing the words GDPR at them, or anything random that the head can be jailed/fined for. Or just turn up at the SLT meeting as if someone invited you, and count on sheer britishness for them not to query it

 

 

Tried that too. I have kept a copy of an email that I sent to them in July last year expressing the importance of the need to plan for GDPR and set money aside to train staff. I have emailed them regularly since to 'remind them' of the importance. May 25th is 4 weeks away; we have no DPO, no DPIA's, no road-map and no training. I am sure that they are all excellent teachers. However, when it comes to personnel management, budgetary management, buildings management and project planning....well it's a shambles, there's no other word for it.