Project overview
A long-term digital partnership supporting professional learning services for teachers across Ireland.
In 2017, the Professional Development Service for Teachers (PDST)—funded by the Department of Education and Skills and managed by Dublin West Education Centre—engaged JamJo to explore how digital technology could improve its systems, internal processes and delivery of services.
PDST was Ireland’s largest single support service for teachers and school leaders, providing professional learning across a wide range of curricular, pedagogical and educational areas. Its work now forms part of Oide, Ireland’s national support service for teachers and school leaders.
The engagement began as a broad digital-transformation review and led to a practical, lasting outcome: a bespoke online application and form-management platform that remains in active use and is maintained by JamJo today.
The challenge
PDST operated within a complex national education environment involving teachers, school leaders, administrators, Education Support Centres and the Department of Education.
The organisation wanted to understand where digital technology could provide meaningful improvements without compromising sensitive educational information, disrupting established services or introducing systems that staff would find difficult to adopt.
Rather than beginning with a predetermined technical solution, PDST needed a clear assessment of its existing processes, organisational readiness and realistic opportunities for digital transformation.
EXPERTISE
Research and digital strategy
JamJo conducted a comprehensive review of PDST’s existing processes, systems and technology infrastructure.
Our work included:
- Interviews with PDST staff, educators and school administrators
- Analysis of existing workflows and service-delivery challenges
- Review of the organisation’s technology environment
- Research into relevant educational technology and emerging digital practices
- Identification of opportunities, constraints and implementation priorities
- Development of a practical digital roadmap
The research highlighted that successful digital transformation would depend on more than technology. Organisational culture, available resources, data protection and staff adoption all needed to be considered alongside the proposed systems.
JamJo translated these findings into a structured strategy that allowed PDST to assess potential initiatives according to their value, feasibility and operational impact.
From strategy to a working platform
Although the complete transformation roadmap was not implemented as a single programme, the discovery process identified an immediate opportunity to improve how teachers applied for professional learning opportunities.
JamJo subsequently designed and developed a bespoke online form-submission and application-management platform for PDST.
The platform enables teachers throughout Ireland to submit applications online while providing administrators with a central system for managing those submissions. It supports teacher applications administered through:
- Dublin West Education Centre
- Monaghan Education Centre
- Clare Education Support Centre
JamJo also provides the managed hosting, maintenance and ongoing technical support required to keep the platform secure, dependable and operational.
Results and ongoing partnership
The project turned a broad digital-transformation ambition into a practical service that continues to support teachers and education administrators.
Key outcomes include:
- A live national platform through which teachers can apply for professional learning
- A centralised system for receiving and managing online applications
- Support for multiple Education Support Centres
- An established roadmap for future digital initiatives
- Greater organisational understanding of digital opportunities and constraints
- An ongoing hosting, maintenance and development relationship with JamJo
Selected recommendations from the original strategy, including improved use of data and greater collaboration with partner organisations, were also incorporated into existing processes.
A practical approach to digital transformation
This engagement demonstrated that digital transformation does not need to happen through one large, disruptive programme.
By combining stakeholder research, strategic planning and custom application development, JamJo helped PDST identify realistic priorities and turn one of those priorities into a sustainable digital platform with lasting operational value.
