REHS StarRez Visual Room Selection

0%

Status

In Process [In Process]

0% complete, updated on Thu 10/29/26 9:20 AM by Emily Grifka

Changed Status from Proofing/Editing to In Process.

Details

Dates
Fri 10/16/26 - Wed 6/30/27
Acct/Dept
REHS Central Admin
Service
Projects / Project Request
Type
Technology Project / Implementation
Health
Yellow - At risk with corrective actions
Program(s)
Classification
Grow
Requirements
Spring Selection Hard Go-Live
Phased Testing Milestones
VRS interface must be fully operational for mobile devices, tables, desktops
SSO access
Real-time cart holds must be functional pre-go live
Intuitive group booking must be functional pre-go live
ADA & accessibility compliance standards must pre-go live
Real time dashboards must display live occupancy heat maps pre-go live
The system must log and flag mismatched selection attempts
Analytics must track student drop-off points and timeout metrics
Created
Fri 10/16/26 3:33 PM
Modified
Thu 10/29/26 9:26 AM

Project Proposal / Business Analysis

Project Benefit Category
Select the strategic goals this project will help to achieve
Student Success
Student/Customer/Guest Innovation
Team Member Success
Partnership
Business Continuity
Benefits
Describe any known tangible and intangible benefits of this project. Include any financial savings/gains if known.
Reduced Administrative Workload - replacing manual placement, spreadsheet tracking, and multi-step sorting
Decreased Room Change Requests -gives students a first-person virtual preview of room layouts and roommate proximity to reduce post-move-in dissatisfaction
Reduced Anxiety/Stress w/visible 'cart hold' timer to give students peace of mind during highly competitive housing lotteries
Shift to High Value Interaction - staff spend less time fielding frantic calls about room specs and can shift focus to community building and student retention strategies
Reduces Operational Overhead particularly during peak spring selection
Retention Revenue - by creating a more 'friction-free' selection process, the overall occupancy rates are positively impacted, protecting the housing revenue pipeline
Costs
Include any known costs to complete the project, including expected recurring costs after the project is completed (licensing, hardware replacement costs, etc.).
Media Asset Conversion - converting, standardizing, and clean up of a massive number of files
Potential StarRez Professional Services - many hours will be needed for polygon outlining of buildings, floors, etc. and determination of speed vs cost may determine that StarRez Professional Service hours are best utilized here, although costly
Digital Asset Management (DAM) Service procurement and execution - service providers meeting university security requirements are limited, expensive, and timeline requirements are short
In Scope
List and describe the major accomplishments required to meet the project goal as known. Also include information about support needs after the project is completed, including technical support and ongoing training and communication.
Digital Media audit, clean up, and mapping
Complex Business/System Rules Implementation - back-end rules within PortalX will need to be established and configured to enforce MSU-specific filters, including LLCs, Gender inclusive, and other classifications
Stress Testing
Pilot Launch
Training
System Handover from project team to REHS operations teams
Out of Scope
List any items that are specifically excluded from this project as known.
Physical facility renovations
Off-campus housing inventory
Hardware procurement or device refurbishment
Physical access control infrastructure or upgrades
Core PortalX redesign
Dining and Meal Plan selection modifications
Major Obstacles
1. Describe the primary obstacles (certain to occur) to the success of this project as known.
Inaccurate or outdated architectural or digital media assets
High volume server traffic spikes causing interface lag or cart timeouts for students
Data integrity and Sync mismatches - discrepancies between the visual mapping coordinates and the core StarRez database
Resistance to process change
Complex group logic conflicts
Risks
Describe the known risks (threats that may occur) that could cause disruption or failure to the project.
Addendum approval delay
Identification of and/or security review/purchase approval delays
StarRez Enterprise Cloud Outages
Asset Delivery Bottlenecks
Real time data syncs between SIS and StarRez
API and Authentication breakdowns
Scope creep from stakeholders
Knowledge gaps or key staff turnover
Desired Project Completion Date
If there is a firm deadline for this, indicate it here. Otherwise, leave blank.
6/30/2027
Impact of Late Delivery
Describe the known impact of missing the above mentioned completion date as known.
Forced Reversion to Legacy Processes/Systems
Administrative overhead/costs
Continued need for heavy support during peak selection times
Continued state of student dissatisfaction
Spike in Fall room change requests
Ranking: RHS
Divisional project ranking
98

Description

Implementing the StarRez Visual Room Selection (VRS) tool ahead of the the Spring housing selection cycle aims to dramatically improve the housing selection experience by replacing text-based drop-down menus with an immersive visual system where students navigate interactive floor plans, 3D room diagrams, and campus map layouts to choose their space.

Manager

EG
Emily Grifka

Sponsor

RG
Ray Gasser