Web Management and Publishing Procedure

Policy code: OG2023
Policy owner: Director, Digital Channels and Strategy
Approval authority: Chief Learner Experience Officer
Approval date: 08 November 2023
Next review date: 14 August 2026

Purpose
Scope
Legislative Context
Definitions
Procedure Statement
Website publishing and management framework
Web management
Management of main landing pages
Management of web content
Actions
1. Creation and changes for the marketing and recruitment areas
2. Changes to the current students area
3. Changes to landing pages of school and research areas
4. Changes to staff landing page
5. Changes to all other areas
Supporting Documents
Responsibility
Promulgation
Implementation
Records Management

Purpose

This procedure provides the principles that will govern: (i) web-based content and (ii) the processes surrounding the publishing and hosting of web-based content on the University website.

To establish the procedure to be applied when updates are required to content on the Federation University Australia website:

  • The process for approval for changes on the website homepage and main landing pages;
  • The process to follow when updating or creating new content for general business areas; and
  • The process for dealing with content that does not meet the standards set by the Web Publishing Standards

Scope

This procedure applies to Site Owners, Content Coordinators and all staff that have publisher rights to the Federation University Australia website or systems that store content that is published on the Federation University Australia website.This includes:

  • The overarching architecture and navigation of the Federation University Australia website
  • Federation University Australia homepage
  • School subsites
  • Portfolio subsites
  • Student and staff portals
  • Course Finder design and landing page content
  • Microsites and marketing subsites
  • Centres and commercial units with sites hosted on the corporate web application server or within the corporate Content Management System (CMS)
  • Databases and online applications hosted on the corporate application server or within the corporate CMS
  • Externally hosted Federation University Australia badged sites that are accessed via the Federation University Australia corporate website

It does not include:

  • Student administration systems (eg. Campus Solutions)
  • Email or communications applications (eg. Outlook, Lync)
  • Learning management systems (eg. Moodle, Mahara)
  • Externally hosted, non-Federation University Australia badged sites
  • Course Finder course and study area content
  • Online applications content outside the web domain
  • Social media

Legislative Context

  • W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 (All university websites are obligated to meet AA Success Criteria Levels)
  • The DisabilityDiscriminationAct (DDA) 1992.  (Requires that universities provide online educational services in an accessible manner)

Definitions

A complete list of definitions relevant to this procedure is contained within the Web Management and Publishing Policy.

A further list of definitions specifically relevant to this procedure is included below:

Term Definition
Federation University Australia website

University website means:

  • the registered domain federation.edu.au and all incorporated websites;
  • the websites of all University divisions, units and schools and University owned and/or controlled entities, all of which should be hosted on the registered domain: federation.edu.au;
  • websites hosted by the University including Research Centres and non-controlled entities; and
  • other websites that have approved University-branding or are considered to represent the University;

It does not include:

  • linked websites and resources that are not owned or controlled by the University.

 
Homepage

http://federation.edu.au

The main landing page of the Federation University Australia website
Course Finder

http://study.federation.edu.au

The Federation University Australia online course catalogue
Marketing and recruitment pages

Marketing and recruitment pages include:
Main landing pages

These include:

Home page http://federation.edu.au

Future students http://federation.edu.au/future-students

Current students http://federation.edu.au/current-students

Institutes and Schools http://federation.edu.au/institutes-and-schools

Staff http://federation.edu.au/staff
Site owners Site owners are the internal business owners of specific content and are responsible for  ensuring at least one staff member is allocated and suitably trained as a Content coordinator for their area.
Content coordinators

Content coordinators lead the development and management of content within their areas. There must be one Content coordinator per business area. Content coordinators are responsible for the preparation and publication of information across all pages within their area.

 
Content publishers

Content publishers create, edit and review web content for their allocated pages. The number of content publishers is dependent on needs of individual operational areas. There can be multiple content publishers for any given webpage or area.

 

Procedure Statement

The University considers web publishing to be a key strategic resource for communication, teaching, research, marketing, and administration. Appropriate use of this technology by the University community is required.

University resources may only be used to create and publish web pages where the purpose and effect of the published information is in support of the University's objectives and Strategic Plan. This means that the content of web pages hosted on University resources must relate to the activities and functions of the University or relate to the specific role of members of the University community.

Web-based publishing has an important impact on the reputation and standing of the University and must therefore occur in the context of an official policy framework. The following principles and requirements, along with the Web Publishing Standards, apply to all information published on the University's website.

Website publishing and management framework

Web management

Content on the mixed content main landing pages (home page and staff) will be managed and published by the Digital and eLearning Solutions team under the direction of the relevant Web Strategy groups. Content below this level will be published and managed by the Site Owner and Content Coordinator of the relevant business area under the guidance and governance of the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and must comply with the Web Publishing Standards, particularly the accessibility requirements.

Management of main landing pages

Marketing and recruitment areas
Current students area
Staff support area
Institutes and Schools

The management of the FedUni main landing pages and key web areas are broken into strategic areas for management.

  • Marketing and recruitment pages
    • Home page
    • Future students
    • Applications web area
    • Course Finder
  • Current students area
  • Staff support areas

Institutes and Schools

  • Research
  • International
  • News

Marketing and recruitment areas

Marketing will provide guidance around:

  • Marketing strategies
  • Analytics and market research
  • Digital and User Experience (UX) best practise
  • Focus and purpose of each of the marketing areas

Current students area

The current students area of the website is focused on the student lifecycle and be primarily for students to complete tasks necessary at various touchpoints of their student journey. This will include all activities post accepting their offer, such as enrolling in units, library, learning and study materials, access to applications, clubs and offers, support information, and graduation information.

Manager, Student Communications will provide overarching direction for the Current Students landing page to ensure the focus is on supporting student tasks. Analytics, market research, student feedback, and digital and UX best practise will be used to provide guidance around decision making.

Content on the main landing page and content that is linked to from the current students area will be published and managed by the relevant business area supported by the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and must comply with the Web Publishing Standards.

Staff support area

The staff web area of the website is to be focused on information for staff. Content on the main staff landing page will be managed by the Digital and eLearning Solutions team. Content that is linked to from the staff area will be published and managed by the relevant business area under the guidance and governance of the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and must comply with the Web Publishing Standards.

Institutes and Schools

The Institutes and Schools main landing pages will be managed by the business areas and supported by the Digital and eLearning Solutions team in accordance with the overall University website direction.  Pages within these areas will be managed and published by relevant business areas under the guidance and governance of the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and must comply with the Web Publishing Standards.

Management of web content

Federation University uses a distributed publishing model with a Site Owner and Content Coordinator assigned for each area and where needed, one or more Content Publishers.

Role Skills/level Responsibilities
Site Owner
  • Director or Associate Dean level
  • Internal business owner
  • Ensure staff in area are available and skilled in web publishing
  • Overarching responsibility for accuracy and suitability of content
  • Approver in principle of content
Content Coordinator
  • Completed web training
  • Committed to understanding and improving web publishing skills
  • Able to make decisions on behalf of the business area and authorise content once approved in principle by site owner
  • Ensure content meets Web Publishing Standards
  • Liaise with Digital and eLearning team regarding requests
  • Supervise content publishers (if applicable) in their area
  • Approve content changes in their area
Content Publisher
  • Completed web training

Note: Some areas will not have the need for publishers
  • Update content in their web area under the guidance of the Content Coordinator

Web Publishing has the same legal requirements as print publishing. The same standards of authorship, design, editing and approval are required.

All information published on University web servers must be authorised by the Site Owner and Content Coordinator and comply to the Web Publishing Standards, specifically:

  • Current and accurate information - Information must be accurate and timely; if it becomes out of date or misleading, the Content Coordinator will remove it from the University website.
  • Language - web pages must use language that is in accordance with the University's policies
  • Appearance - web pages must be constructed in accordance with style guidelines published by the University.
  • Unacceptable Content - web pages published on University resources must not:
    • contain or link to offensive, illegal, obscene, defamatory or threatening material;
    • either explicitly or implicitly contain material or link to material which contravenes State or Commonwealth anti-discrimination legislation;
    • either explicitly or implicitly contain material or link to material which endorses or promotes racism; or
    • breach confidentiality or the privacy of personal information and health records.
    • contain 'copyrighted' material, including images, text and software, without the written consent of the copyright owner; such consent must be included on the web page.

Pages deemed to contain inappropriate material which breaches one or more of the above protocols will be removed from University resources by the Team Leader, Digital and eLearning Solutions.  Disciplinary action may be taken by the University if appropriate.

Actions

1. Creation and changes for the marketing and recruitment areas

  ACTIVITY RESPONSIBILITY STEPS
A. Submit request for marketing campaign Marketing officer
  1. Log a ServiceNow job to the ITS Service Desk to be assigned to the Digital and eLearning Solutions team with the required details (see Appendix A).
  2. Include the following information for all marketing campaign requests:
    • Target audience
    • Purpose and KPIs
    • A primary call to action
    • Campaign start and end dates
    • New URL/Domains
  3. Submit your request no later than:
    • 10 working days for minor changes
    • 20 working days for new microsites or major changes
    • Where a directive for a new campaign results in less than 20 days lead time, the Team Leader, Digital and eLearning Solutions willwork with the Director, Marketing, Advancement and Community Engagement to prioritise other work requests and negotiate the deliverables to achieve the required delivery date.
    • The earlier the request is received the more likely your request will be completed for the campaign start.
  4. Ensure the content is accurate and finalised within the agreed timelines with the Digital and eLearning Solutions team. Delays in meeting delivery times for finalised content could result in development not being completed by the due date.
  5. It is the responsibility of the Director, Marketing, Advancement and Community Engagement to ensure there is a marketing staff member allocated that will be available throughout the process for direction and confirmation of work.
B. Submit request for non-campaign work Content Coordinator
  1. Log a ServiceNow job to the ITS Service Desk to be assigned to the Digital and eLearning Solutions team with the required details (see Appendix A). Requests for major changes outside the established marketing campaigns that impact the look and feel and recruitment aspects of the website will need approval from the Web Strategy Group (Marketing) (see C below)
  2. Submit requests no later than:
    • 5 working days for minor changes
    • 20 working days for major development changes
  3. Ensure the content is accurate and will be finalised within the agreed timelines with the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and that the Content Coordinator or delegate will be available throughout the process for direction and confirmation of work.

2. Changes to the current students area

  ACTIVITY RESPONSIBILITY STEPS
A. Submit request for work Content Coordinator
  1. Log a ServiceNow job to the ITS Service Desk to be assigned to the Digital and eLearning Solutions team with the required details (see Appendix A??). Requests to add or remove section will need approval from the Web Strategy Group (Current Students)
  2. Submit requests no later than:
    • 5 working days for minor changes
    • 20 working days for major development changes
  3. Agreement on a delivery date will be confirmed after consultation with the Digital and eLearning team after the requirements have been finalised.
  4. It is the responsibility of the Site Owner of the relevant business area to ensure the content is accurate and will be finalised within the agreed timelines with the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and that a Content Coordinator or delegate will be available throughout the process for direction and confirmation of work.

3. Changes to landing pages of school and research areas

  ACTIVITY RESPONSIBILITY STEPS
A. Submit request for work Content Coordinator
  1. Log a ServiceNow job to the ITS Service Desk to be assigned to the Digital and eLearning Solutions team with the required details (see Appendix A??). Requests for major changes that impact the look and feel and recruitment aspects of these pages will need approval from the Web Strategy Group (Marketing) (1C below)
  2. Submit requests no later than:
    • 5 working days for minor changes
    • 20 working days for major development changes
  3. Agreement on a delivery date will be confirmed after consultation with the Digital and eLearning team after the requirements have been finalised.
  4. It is the responsibility of the Site Owner of the relevant business area to ensure the content is accurate and will be finalised within the agreed timelines with the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and that a Content Coordinator or delegate will be available throughout the process for direction and confirmation of work.

4. Changes to staff landing page

  ACTIVITY RESPONSIBILITY STEPS
A. Submit request for work Content Coordinator
  1. Log a ServiceNow job to the ITS Service Desk to be assigned to the Digital and eLearning Solutions team with the required details. Requests to add or remove section will need approval from the Digital and eLearning Solutions team
  2. Submit requests no later than 10 working days before publish date. Exceptions apply for urgent staff or HR announcements, which will be actioned as a priority.
  3. Agreement on a delivery date will be confirmed after consultation with the Digital and eLearning team after the requirements have been finalised.
  4. It is the responsibility of the Site Owner of the relevant business area to ensure the content is accurate and will be finalised within the agreed timelines with the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and that a Content Coordinator or delegate will be available throughout the process for direction and confirmation of work.

5. Changes to all other areas

  ACTIVITY RESPONSIBILITY STEPS
A. Content changes Content Coordinator
  1. Changes are to be managed and performed within the business area
  2. It is the responsibility of the Content Coordinator to ensure the content is current and accurate.
  3. Changes made by the publishers needs to be approved by the Content Coordinator.
B. Development changes Content Coordinator
  1. Log a ServiceNow job to the ITS Service Desk to be assigned to the Digital and eLearning Solutions team with the required details.
  2. Submit requests no later than:
    • 10 working days for minor changes
    • 20 working days for major development changes
  3. Agreement on a delivery date will be confirmed after consultation with the Digital and eLearning team after the requirements have been finalised.
  4. It is the responsibility of the Site Owner of the relevant business area to ensure the content is accurate and will be finalised within the agreed timelines with the Digital and eLearning Solutions team and that a Content Coordinator or delegate will be available throughout the process for direction and confirmation of work.

Supporting Documents

Forms

Responsibility

  • The Chief Operating Officer, as the Approval Authority, is responsible for monitoring the implementation, outcomes an scheduled review of this procedure.
  • The Director, Digital Channels and Strategy, as the Document Owner, is responsible for maintaining the content of this procedure as delegated by the Chief Operating Officer.

Promulgation

The Web Management and Publishing Procedure will be communicated throughout the University via:

  1. an Announcement Notice via FedNews website and on the ‘Recently Approved Documents’ page on the ‘Policies, Procedures and Forms @ the University’ website to alert the University-wide community of the approved Procedure;
  2. distribution of e-mails to Head of School / Head of Department / University staff; and Site Owners
  3. distribution of e-mails to Content Coordinators and publishers

Implementation

The Web Management and Publishing Procedure will be implemented throughout the University via:

  1. an Announcement Notice via FedNews website and on the ‘Recently Approved Documents’ page on the ‘Policies, Procedures and Forms @ the University’ website to alert the University-wide community of the approved Procedure;

Records Management

Document Title Location Responsible Officer Minimum Retention Period
Policy Document Approval Form The University’s approved records management system Policy Systems Administrator or delegate

Originals should be retained by the Policy Sponsor

Copies can be disposed of once the administrative use has

concluded

Electronic record will be retained in the University’s records management system
Service requests and authorization for change The University’s approved IT Service Management System Team Leader, Digital and eLearning or delegate Electronic record will be retained in the University’s IT Service Management System
PrevPrev  UpUp  NextNext
I.T. 
 Information Technology Services Operations Manual - Master Data Management, Data Classification and Usage, and Data Storage


Policy Glossary

Approval Authority: Chief Learner Experience Officer Original Issue 04/12/2002
Policy Sponsor: Director, Digital Channels and Strategy Current Version: 08/11/2023
CRICOS Provider Number 00103D Review Date: 14/08/2026
TEQSA Provider ID: PRV12151 Provider Category: Australian University
RTO Code 4909 Policy Code OG2023