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About the TDA¶

This page provides information on who makes up the TDA and what it does.

Who¶

The Technology Design Authority is currently composed of the following members:

Core Leader
Chair : Chief Architect
Deupty Chair : CISO (Technology Operations)
Secretary : Head of Service Management
Architecture
Business Architect
Data Architect
Security Architect
Technology Architect
DevOps
Head of DevOps
Business systems
Head of Business Systems and Services
Infrastructure
Servers and Storage : Head of Backend Infrastructure
Collaboration and Infrastructure : End User Services Manager
Network Systems : Infrastructure Operations Manager (Networks)
Product and Service Design
- Head of Product & Service Design : Head of Product & Service Design
- Head of Digital Transformation : Head of Digital Transformation
Research Computing Delivery
Infrastructure and Platform
Delivery Management Office
Head of DMO

It shall be the duty of the TDA:

To approve generic architectural proposals which describe the desirable state of the University’s digital systems.
To develop and own a set of well-defined and evolving technical standards, tools, frameworks, platforms and practices balancing breadth of functionality while restricting divergence.
To ensure that requests that come in through portfolios are scrutinised to ensure that appropriate steps have been taken in determining need and that requests are expressed as need not solution.
To agree the gating schedule with the Project Manager, or the member of staff fulfilling the role of the project manager.
To approve non-functional requirements for any tendering documents.
To monitor the implementation of the non-functional requirements for projects.
To receive and make decisions on technical designs of the project including non-functional requirements, which are based on the desirable state of our digital systems ensuring that wherever possible, developments, new or existing, conform with architectural guidelines.
To document and publish the decision-making matrix on the intranet.
To document and communicate the outcome of the gating decisions to the key stakeholders.
To define, develop and maintain artefacts for the standard submissions and ensure that these scale to the project, remain effective and up to date.
To review feedback at the TDA Exit Gate and, where required, act on recommendations to ensure TDA gating is effective.

The TDA will meet tri-weekly.
Agenda items and papers will be available and published on the UIS intranet five working days before the relevant meeting.
Anyone in UIS may attend for a particular item.
Minutes will be available within five working days of a meeting.
Decisions may not be agreed at a first meeting where the issue is discussed.
In exceptional circumstances, the Chair (or Deputy Chair) of the TDA may make decisions. Any such decision and the reason why it is exceptional should be communicated via the intranet as soon as possible. The Chair will act to ensure that timely challenges can be made by circulation.
Any TDA decision proposed by the executive should be open to challenge at the next TDA meeting (although that is not the same as overturning a decision).
There will be a TDA distribution group to notify of updates to the TDA intranet. Any member of UIS may subscribe.in advisory capacity as required.

Not every TDA meeting will consists of a project TDA gating event.
The TDA gating events will be agreed in advance and added to the TDA meeting agenda in accordance with the agreed schedule.
In exceptional circumstances, TDA gating can be convened outside of the tri-weekly meeting pattern. Any such decision and the reason why it is exceptional should be communicated via the intranet as soon as possible.

You can contact the TDA by emailing tdasecretary@uis.cam.ac.uk.