Why the digital age demands adaptability
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BEING ADAPTABLE AROUND TECHNOLOGY WRITTEN BY
SHANNON LEWIS
PRODUCED BY
STUART IRVING w w w.pe nrho s.wa. ed u . a u
PENRHOS COLLEGE
Neil Mullally, Director of Information Communication Technology at Penrhos College, discusses how important it is to be adaptable in the digital age in order to stay at the forefront of innovation
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West Australian all-girls school, Penrhos College has been inspiring girls to become extraordinary women since 1952. A part of
the Independent Girl’s Schools Sporting Association (IGSSA), it offers education from Kindergarten through to Year 12 as well as boarding. A pastoral care organisation with a rigorous academic program, its focus on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) has seen the College recognised for has led it to win several awards, including being the first school to win the 2017 Governor’s School STEM Award in both the Primary and Secondary categories (after which Penrhos stood down, in order to allow other schools to shine). “A Penrhos girl is independent and resilient. She is the girl of today, well-prepared and equipped for the challenges of tomorrow. We are committed to providing an education that honours our traditions and Christian values in a climate of technological and
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PENRHOS COLLEGE
“There is a lot of human error in everything that happens. No matter what industry you’re in, people make mistakes. But it’s making sure you’ve got the right processes and governances in place to capture the mistake, learn from the mistake, and make sure the mistake doesn’t happen again” — Neil Mullally, Director, Information Communication Technology, Penrhos College global change. Our girls are free to pursue excellence in an environment free from gender stereotypes in the subjects
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they study, the activities they participate in and the careers they ultimately choose.” says Mullally. Neil Mullally has been working at Penrhos College as Director of Information Communication Technology (ICT) since July of this year. With 25 years’ experience in IT, he has a broad background that he brings to the education sector, having worked in such varied fields as finance, retail, manufacturing and critical infrastructure being Perth Airport. “I’ve worked in industries where we have our own data centres on premise through to finance where everything was outsourced into our own NOVEMBER 2019
CLICK TO WATCH : ‘VIRTUAL REALITY LEARNING AT PENRHOS COLLEGE’ 07 private cloud including Managed
comes to regulations regarding infor-
Services.” Says Mullally, “We have a lot
mation security and data protection.
of physical infrastructure on site at
“From my experience, other industries
Penrhos.” As Director of ICT, Mullally
are very heavily regulated,” he says.
oversees five teams, from service deliv-
“For finance industries you have to meet
ery, systems & infrastructure, network
APRA (Australian Prudential Regulation
security, corporate application support
Authority) regulations, and in the airport,
and PMO.
you have very heavy regulation with
Penrhos College has always been
CASA (Civil Aviation Safety Authority).
at the top of tech innovation in the
In education, there is no governing
education sector. It was one of the first
body that tells you how to operate with
schools to offer personal laptops to
regards to information security.” His
every single student from Year 5, an
solution to this has been to bring his
initiative now followed across Australia.
knowledge of other industries into
According to Mullally, though, the edu-
Penrhos, settling on the NIST (National
cation sector overall is behind when it
Institute of Standards and Technology) w w w.pe nrho s.wa. ed u . a u
PENRHOS COLLEGE
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standards and frameworks, making
what industry you’re in, people make
Penrhos a leader in the education
mistakes. But it’s making sure you’ve
sector by taking this kind of action.
got the right processes and govern-
During his time at the airport,
ances in place to capture the mistake,
there was a significant data breach.
learn from the mistake, and make sure
According to Mullally, “there was an
the mistake doesn’t happen again.” He
awful lot of quick learning around that
uses this mindset not only internally,
breach that I’ve introduced to Penrhos
but when outsourcing as well. When
to prevent us from having those sorts
searching for cloud-based solutions
of issues in the future.” Education about
to store sensitive data, Mullally insists
data security and its importance, he
all potential vendors go through an
states, is key in determining these safe
information security checklist. “It’s
practices. “There is a lot of human error
very onerous, but if the third party can
in everything that happens. No matter
respond positively to the questions, as
NOVEMBER 2019
it aligns with the NIST framework, it will
automating work-flows is a start but
help me filter out which third parties
overall, we want to improve accuracy,
take information security seriously and
effectiveness and/or efficiency and
which don’t.” This sort of documenta-
then redesign those processes to real-
tion is mutually beneficial. The school
ise the improvements. “We’re like any
ensures its information is protected and
other organisation,” says Mullally. “We
“the vendors are reassured that their
have an abundance of tools. The strat-
product and business model is sustain-
egy is to take stock of what we have
able in multiple industries.”
available, and what we actually need
The focus, for Penrhos, lies on its
to go forwards.” For Mullally, it is about
back of house. “Front of house is spec-
embracing the technology already avail-
tacular,” affirms Mullally. “Back of house
able to them, rather than just seeking
is the area that usually gets left behind.”
outwards for new solutions.
Streamlining processes is the way forward, using existing tools to assist with
“One of the biggest challenges in education sector is time,” says Mullally. “In
E XE CU T I VE PRO FI LE
Neil Mullally Neil Mullally is a multi-skilled IT Manager with over 25 years’ experience in the IT industry and over 16 years as a Manager of IT teams. Very high level of experience in Cyber Security whether Cloud or On-premise solutions, evaluating, integrating and supporting innovative technologies to help internal and external customers achieve their goals, while effectively maximizing return on resources and providing cost effective solutions for everyone concerned. Very capable with a proven track record ensuring the smooth running of ICT systems with both on premise and outsourced support teams providing IT services that improve the efficiency, performance and overall return on investment of a company.
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READY FOR A DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION? We work with a number of institutions in the Education and Public Sector as their trusted advisors in: • Cloud Solutions • Cyber Security • Business Transformation • Automation
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1952
Year founded
the corporate world, you would organise a meeting during business hours, and that would be that. In the teaching world, teachers are bound by their class
AU$100mn Approximate revenue
400
Approximate number of employees
time-table, so things don’t go as fast as you’d like.” This is why Mullally points to the importance of using Agile and Lean methodologies when designing new solutions and implementing projects. “Every organisation I’ve worked in, I’m very big on Lean and Agile. I think both Lean and Agile has its place, so I utilise both methodologies.” From daily standups to scrums, Penrhos uses Agile as a methodology for project delivery. “Right
NOVEMBER 2019
“We want to provide the best experience possible and the people that can provide the best information for us are the people that are using the technology” — Neil Mullally, Director, Information Communication Technology, Penrhos College
ultimate goal is to provide perfect value to the customer through a perfect value creation process that has zero waste.
now, we’re re-visiting what student
From an organisational perspective,
laptops and devices we use. We engage
“we’re highlighting our top 20 processes
a student working group to help assist
that we want to review that will provide
in evaluating the new devices. Gone
the best value for us through
are the days when just the department
time, money or efficiency
head makes the decision, we now
gains, whether that be the
ensure a more collaborative approach with all stakeholders.” Lean methodology, Mullally says, has been
customer experience we offer parents accessing our student portal or finance
very helpful
and teaching,” says
in mapping
Mullally. “We want to
current
provide the best expe-
and future processes
rience possible and the
for efficiency gains.
people that can provide
From a technology
the best information for us
perspective, Lean provides a
are the people that are
framework for the college to help
using the technology.”
understand our customers value
Having formed a
and focuses its key processes
strategic partnership
to continuously increase it. The
with ES2, a consulting a nz .busi ne ssc h ief. com
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PENRHOS COLLEGE
C O M PA N Y FACT S
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“We’re very big on the core values of education that allow the girls to become leaders in the industry” — Neil Mullally, Director of Information Communication Technology at Penrhos College
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“ Gone are the days when just the team manager makes the decision” — Neil Mullally, Director, Information Communication Technology, Penrhos College
organisation that specialises in enterprise security and solutions services, Mullally believes the collaboration offers a lot of value. “This partnership is supported by consultancy, project management, training and managed services with offices where our mission is to be a trusted advisor of businesscentric services and solutions,” explains Mullally. “Our focus on business outcomes and our proactive attitude has enabled us to be a leader in our industry locally, nationally and internationally.”
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By this time next year, Penrhos will
usage that can both be used to allow
be the home of a brand-new Science
us to become more sustainable as an
and Innovation Centre. An AUD $15mn
organisation and as a teaching tool.
project, it will further bring technology
The Science Innovation Centre will allow
into the learning sphere. Partnering
Penrhos to stay at the top of the indus-
with Rutledge AV, the centre will include
try. “Once its built, we’re looking to be
a premier room with video walls that
the premier girls’ school in Perth and a
can be used to share information with
leading education provider from K-12.”
the wider community. Also aided by Crestron and Cisco, the centre will serve as a method of practicing data analytics for the students, collecting information about power and water w w w.pe nrho s.wa. ed u . a u
Penrhos College 6 Morrison St Como WA 6152 Australia T +61 8 9368 9500 www.penrhos.wa.edu.au