Digital Strategy of Ruhr University Bochum

Ruhr University Bochum strives to create an excellent working and learning environment for all its members that is characterized by openness, participation, cooperation and a sense of responsibility.

Consequently, this digital strategy is linked to the strategies on diversity, internationalization and sustainability. They are given appropriate consideration in all aspects of this digital strategy.

In this way, Ruhr University Bochum supports its role as a driver of change and equal opportunities in the Ruhr region ("Built to change") and actively shapes the necessary digital transformation - both internally in research, teaching and administration, as well as through outreach activities and external cooperation.

Digital Strategy of Ruhr University Bochum

Ruhr University Bochum is in the midst of a profound transformation with its digitalization. It is determined to discover the potential of digital technologies, to use them in a targeted manner and thus to further develop itself as a sustainable, innovative and high-performance university.

This digital strategy is designed as an overarching and generic orientation framework. The background to this orientation is the extraordinarily short innovation cycles of digital technologies - particularly in the field of artificial intelligence, innovative system solutions and cloud architectures. Likewise, the constant change in economic, (geo)political and legislative conditions leads to ever new and growing challenges for the design and positioning of a digitalized university. Digital sovereignty and resilience are thus becoming key concepts for the strategic orientation and management of Ruhr University Bochum's organism, which is based on digital processes.

One focus of the strategy is therefore on establishing and consolidating organizational structures and processes that enable forward-looking, flexible and progressive reactions to technological developments. A clearly defined strategic framework creates the conditions for continuous learning, agile decision-making and governance that promotes innovation. In this way, Ruhr University Bochum can ensure that digital transformation processes are not just reactive, but forward-looking, responsible and future-proof.

At the heart of the digital strategy is the continuous development of a scalable digital infrastructure that meets the special requirements of research and transfer, teaching and learning as well as administrative support processes and opens up new scope for action.

We do not see digitalization as purely technical modernization, but as a comprehensive transformation process. It is fundamentally changing how we teach, learn, research and collaborate. Ruhr University Bochum sees this change as a cultural and structural challenge that requires an open, open-minded and responsible organizational culture. An integral part of this culture is digital accessibility, which contributes to participation and equal opportunities.

In a climate of trust that promotes a constructive approach to mistakes, we strengthen the willingness to change and create space for new solutions. Systematic skills development is a central element of our strategy. Students and employees are empowered to use digital technologies confidently and reflectively.

To this end, Ruhr University Bochum is creating sustainable structures for qualification and continuous professional development - through targeted training courses, the integration of digital skills into studies and teaching and the promotion of digitally supported working methods.

For us, digital education is a cross-sectional task that supports individual development and strengthens institutional performance.

Ruhr University Bochum is aware that digital excellence is increasingly based on cooperation and coordinated action. Advancing digitalization requires close networking of competencies, resources and infrastructures across institutional boundaries. Ruhr University Bochum therefore pursues the strategic goal of shaping its digital activities in terms of shared responsibility and coordinated development processes with partner institutions at state, national and international level.

With its digital strategy, the Ministry of Culture and Science of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia (MKW) promotes the centralization and bundling of IT services in order to strengthen efficiency, quality and sustainability across universities.

In line with this strategy, Ruhr University Bochum is actively involved in the development and use of shared digital infrastructures, services and standards. The funding conditions adapted by the MKW - in particular within the framework of the programs "Large-scale equipment of the federal states" and "Large-scale research equipment according to Art. 91b GG" - underline the priority of state-wide, cooperative solutions, for example via the Digital University NRW (DH.NRW).

The implementation of this state-wide strategy requires a targeted transformation of the IT landscape and organizational structures at the state's universities. Ruhr University Bochum is proactively shaping this process by consistently gearing its own IT services and structures towards interoperability, scalability and strategic connectivity.

In dynamic fields of technology - such as artificial intelligence, data-intensive research with big data or high-performance computing - Ruhr University Bochum relies on sustainable, strategic partnerships. These include, in particular, cooperation within the University Alliance Ruhr (UA Ruhr) with the Technical University of Dortmund and the University of Duisburg-Essen, cooperation within DH.NRW and other national and international alliances.

Through this networking, Ruhr University Bochum strengthens its digital capacity to act, promotes the efficient use of resources and contributes to the sustainable positioning of the Ruhr region as a high-performance, future-oriented science and innovation area.

In an increasingly geopolitically sensitive digital world, we consider digital sovereignty and resilience to be essential building blocks of a sustainable, responsible digital and IT strategy.

Ruhr University Bochum strives to achieve the greatest possible digital independence - especially in the selection, development and use of IT infrastructures and software solutions.

Ruhr University Bochum's digital strategy covers the central topics of a modern university:

• Teaching and learning,
• Research and transfer, and
• administrative support processes

Effective IT governance forms the connecting framework for this. It creates the structural conditions for strategic resource and risk management, defines clear priorities and ensures transparent, effective decision-making processes.

Only in this way can the implementation of the digital strategy be systematically controlled, continuously reviewed and further developed in line with requirements.

Teaching and Learning

Even though Ruhr University Bochum is primarily a face-to-face university, a balanced and didactically justified portfolio of digital and hybrid formats is offered in all degree programs in addition to purely face-to-face courses.

Advancing digitalization thus makes it possible to make studying at Ruhr University Bochum more international, sustainable, cooperative, flexible, family-friendly and inclusive.

The basis for this is the provision and use of digital media and tools that support students' acquisition of knowledge and skills.

Teachers and students jointly reflect on and test the productive, transparent and compliant use of digital - including AI-based - tools.

Students can use digital learning opportunities, feedback formats and networking opportunities according to their heterogeneous requirements and interests.

In order to achieve these goals, measures are formulated in six central fields of action:

• Digital skills development and teaching-learning scenarios
• Feedback and examination culture
• Digital teaching and digital examinations
• Internationalization
• Digital accessibility
• Infrastructure and support

Research and Transfer

Digitalization lays the foundations for Ruhr University Bochum's (inter)national competitiveness.

This includes the resources and support processes necessary for excellent research - particularly in the areas of research data management (RDM), artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC).

These resources support a wide range of research initiatives, with particular emphasis on the efficient procurement and use of both new and existing hardware.

This always takes into account current and evolving software and methods to ensure seamless integration into existing and future IT infrastructure.

Longer-term operation of the technological infrastructure, particularly in the area of high-performance computing, is also being sought in conjunction with other universities in order to increase resource efficiency and create broader availability of specialized computing capacities, particularly with regard to the strategy for centralization of IT services promoted by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia.

This not only promotes the university's research capacities, but also strengthens cooperation and exchange within the scientific community.

In order to ensure resource-optimized provision and use of the resources necessary for excellent research, Ruhr-Universität Bochum strives to design its digital and IT research infrastructure in such a way that it can be used jointly by the broadest possible user base.

Offering low-threshold access to the necessary software, IT infrastructures and subject-specific literature is crucial in order to enable continuous and undisturbed research activity and to ensure state-of-the-art scientific work.

In order to implement digitalization in research, Ruhr-Universität is therefore focusing on the following four fields of action:

• High Performance Computing (HPC)
• Research data management (RDM)
• Artificial intelligence (AI)
• joint use of digital and IT research infrastructure

Support Processes

Ruhr University Bochum's modern university administration uses digital services in its central and decentralized facilities. Its digital processes are seamless and bilingual. They can be used by all members of Ruhr University Bochum regardless of time and place, are set up in line with requirements and comply with the current legal requirements.

As a prerequisite for efficient support processes, Ruhr University Bochum maintains an integrated and high-performance IT system landscape.

Particular importance is attached to the coherence and quality of the application data and the interfaces between different applications in order to avoid redundancy. Ruhr University Bochum provides its members with up-to-date data and statistical evaluations via a multi-client capable information management system. This creates the basis for data-based, transparent control and decision-making processes and their acceptance.

At the same time, reliable and transparent processes and structures and their needs-based further development form the basis for digital collaboration at Ruhr University Bochum. In order for this to succeed, great importance is attached to the responsible use of new technologies, data protection and IT security. Further training and mutual exchange promote change management and the ability to think and work in a networked way.

In order to implement the digitalization of support processes, Ruhr University Bochum focuses on four central fields of action:

• Digitalization and automation
• Information management
• Strengthening innovative collaboration
• Legal certainty

IT Governance for the Implementation of the Digital Strategy

In view of the fundamental importance of IT and digital transformation, the establishment of effective IT governance structures at Ruhr University Bochum is essential. The great diversity of needs and expectations of digital processes and IT infrastructure due to the plurality of Ruhr University Bochum, as well as increasing requirements due to cooperation and networking outside the university, require an overarching integrative and strategic control of IT activities at Ruhr University Bochum.

This requires clearly defined decision-making powers and transparent responsibility structures - in line with legal requirements, internal guidelines and the principles of digital self-determination and compliance.

In addition, a reliable governance structure is essential for the effective implementation of the digital strategy, its needs-oriented further development and the continuous monitoring of the goals set.

The following areas of action were identified for this purpose:

• IT governance structures and responsibilities
• Compliance, awareness & communication
• Resource and risk management (in particular project portfolio management)
• Digital sovereignty and resilience
• Evaluation and monitoring