Section 1300: Information Technology

Effective: November, 2016
Revised: January 2019
Last Review: March 2023
Next Review: March 2025
Responsible Party: Chief Information Officer

Per MSU-Northern policy 1322 Procurement of Information Technology Equipment and Software: Coordination with Information Technology Services (ITS) is required prior to ordering or accepting donation of any Information Technology (IT) related hardware, software (including cloud hosted software and services) or phone equipment. Examples include, but are not limited to: devices that connect to campus IT equipment or the wired or secure wireless network, any Wi-Fi device using standard frequencies, any software that will be installed on MSU-Northern owned equipment.

Introduction

A centralized IT procurement procedure benefits MSU-Northern by providing:

  • Brand and model standardization where appropriate
  • A campus-wide inventory of hardware and software to facilitate effective planning, maintenance, upgrades, and disposal
  • Pricing advantages obtained through volume purchasing and working with preferred vendors
  • The lowest possible Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) and maximum value to the University
  • License compliance for software purchases
  • Hardware and software compatibility with the University's IT infrastructure
  • Hardware and software with a known "support state" at the time of purchase

Procedure

When a department decides to purchase IT equipment or software:

  1. Contact the ITS Help Desk (helpdesk@msun.edu) describing the type of equipment or software needed.
  2. The ITS staff will work with the requestor to verify and determine the solution which will best meet their needs.
  3. ITS will send a Request-To-Purchase (R2P) with estimated prices to the requestor.
  4. The requesting department's head will sign the R2P and fill in any missing fields (usually Index Name, Number, and Signatures) and then send the R2P form to Business Services for approval.
  5. If approved, Business Services will forward R2P form to ITS and the order will be placed with the vendor. ITS will search for the most competitive price at the time of actual purchase.

 All expenditures will be recharged the index(es) listed on the approved R2P.