BI+IR: Shotgun Wedding, or Marriage Made in Heaven?

Presentation Summary

Hank Childers, University of Arizona

The University of Arizona recently decided to combine its BI and IR teams into a single group. This seems both an attractive and improbable proposition. What were they thinking? What are others thinking? How is it working out? Part 1 of this presentation will discuss the UA's situation, starting with the motives for combining the two groups. It will cover what the organization looked like before, what it looks like now, what issues have been encountered, and what the future looks like. Part 2 will explore the underlying issues based on conversations with a number of other institutions. In most institutions BI and IR do not see eye to eye, with atmospheres ranging from fairly peaceful coexistence to outright conflict. But why is that? The hypothesis is that there are two basic causes: 1. Structural issues, i.e., organization, reporting lines, responsibilities 2. Cultural issues, i.e., different backgrounds, different values, different career paths This part of the presentation will cover what's been learned in these different conversations with other institutions, to see what patterns there might be. Part 3 will discuss what we might do about it, presuming that we continue to see value in bringing the BI and IR functions much closer to each other. How do we turn what might be a shotgun wedding into a state of wedded bliss? Or at least a pleasant discussion around the breakfast table. With a nice cup of coffee.