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The world, and the way it works, is very different now than it was even five years
ago. Business, industry, government, entertainment and, of course, education have been
revolutionized by nearly light-speed advances in information technology, or IT; and the
revolution continues.
 IT is shorthand for the computers, software, networks, satellite links and related
systems that allow people to access, analyze, create, exchange and use information in
ways that, until recently, were almost unimaginable.
Much of our world now runs on information technology. It fosters innovation and
promotes economic development. Increasingly, people depend on IT – and expect it to
be there -- to help them not only do things better and faster, but also to do things they
could never do before.
In North Carolina, people expect much the same of the University: help in
expanding their opportunities and achieving their goals. They have come to rely on the
16 campuses to improve the quality of their lives by educating them and their children, by
giving them access to a world of ideas and possibilities, by helping them achieve their
goals and by serving their communities.
People now expect their banks, supermarkets, gas stations and airlines to have the
IT capability to offer them better, faster and more convenient services, and they are going
to expect the same of their University.
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