Auditor finds way OSU could save $ 6.4 million

Ohio State University could save more than $6.4 million each year by optimizing printer and copier use, adopting consistent and efficient hiring and financial transaction processes and moving computer servers to data centers, according to a performance audit released Tuesday by state Auditor Dave Yost.

The report comes after Ohio State officials volunteered the university to be the first Ohio public college to receive a performance audit under a new state statute.

“It’s important to recognize that a performance audit looks at efficiency and effectiveness. This isn’t about finding things that are wrong, it’s asking a question of ‘How can we do better?’” Yost said. “Every dollar that we can repurpose toward education and away from back office costs, it allows you to do a better job.”

The scope of the performance audit was limited, focusing on Ohio State’s use of computer servers, printers and copiers and the multiple systems used to hire and conduct background checks on employees, according to the auditor’s office.

Auditors said Tuesday that by moving computer servers to more secure and cost-effective data centers rather than operating its own specially equipped rooms, the university could save nearly $2.4 million a year.

The audit also found that by eliminating excess copiers and printers and ensuring that each of those devices operate within the system maintained by the university’s printing contractor, Ohio State could save nearly $685,000 a year.

Other IT system changes regarding how Ohio State manages human resources, finance and student information could yield nearly $3.4 million in savings, the audit found.

Ohio State has worked in recent years to identify operational efficiencies, expanding student aid by $100 million by finding those efficiencies plus new revenue and partnerships.

“We welcome this report, which supports Ohio State’s focus on operational excellence and resource stewardship,” Michael Papadakis, Ohio State’s interim senior vice president for business and finance and chief financial officer, said in a statement. “This report will contribute to our ongoing efficiency work.”

In Papadakis’ written response to the audit, included in the report released Tuesday, he said the university already was in the process of eliminating certain computer systems and migrating servers to the Ohio Computer Center, as recommended in the audit.

The auditor already is required to complete performance audits of at least four state agencies every two years, but a new statute that went into effect last year, sponsored by Republican state Reps. Tim Schaffer, of Lancaster, and Mike Duffey, of Worthington, stipulated that Ohio’s public universities and community colleges can be among the four audits every two years. Doctoral student James MacDonald of Gahanna passes the Wexner Center for the Arts on the Ohio State campus on Monday on his way to teach a music theory class. But first, he had to negotiate the rain. His guitar was safe in its case on his back, and the umbrella hopefully took care of the rest.