Only you know your budget, your time, and how much flexibility you have to accommodate web-related needs. To help you evaluate your options, here’s a bit of information about the cost (in time and money) of the options above.
A. Training an existing employee
Training an existing employee is free. However, it’s worth noting that web editing can take time, particularly at first. Your employee may need to delegate or delay other tasks while they work on your website. If web editing will be a regular or frequent component of someone’s job, these responsibilities should be documented in the employee’s role description. (This is not necessary for infrequent or temporary web editing responsibilities.)
The training necessary to operate a McGill-branded site on our main platform (called the Web Management System or WMS) is offered free of charge and open to McGill employees, students, and even external contractors (with authorization).
Required courses for operating a site in the WMS:
- WMS 300: Site editing training
- WS 100: Writing for the web at McGill
- WS 101: McGill's Digital Standards
Additional courses which may be required for certain roles:
- WMS 301: Site management training (necessary for more important or complex site building or site management tasks, or for a site administrator role)
- WMS 302: Drop-in lab for site editors and managers (instructors can provide hands-on assistance for WMS questions)
- WS 102: Designing digital experiences with the McGill brand (for employees who will do or manage user interface design work outside the WMS)
- WS 103: UX at McGill (for staff conducting UX research)
In general, courses last 1.5 - 2.5 hours and are offered a few times per month. You can see the list of courses on the Web Services site (registration is done through Minerva).
B. Hiring a part-time employee or Work Study student
The cost of hiring a part-time employee can vary. You'll also need to respect the terms of the collective agreement (e.g. AMUSE, MPEX) your employee falls under. Your HR advisor will be able to provide additional information about the type of employee, salary scale, and appropriate collective agreement based on the role and responsibilities you have in mind.
Note that staff turnover is more frequent in this category. This means:
- You may need to invest time and effort training replacements
- You will need to have strong documentation and training processes to ensure continuity and institutional knowledge
- Particularly for students, a lack of interest in the site content may affect their level of engagement
For Work Study students, you must also meet the minimum wage indicated in the appropriate collective agreement. However, you may wish to offer more in order to attract qualified candidates. If your project is accepted by the Work Study program, you will be reimbursed $5.00 for each hour paid at the student’s hourly rate (up to a maximum established by the Work Study program, usually around 250 hours per semester). Please consult the project requirements and other information for employers on the Work Study website.
C. Adding web editing in the mandate of a future full-time employee
As in the case of hiring a part-time employee, your HR representative will be able to advise you on appropriate compensation for the role profile.
If website management will occupy a large portion of the employee's time, contact your HR advisor to make sure the position profile and compensation matches their responsibilities. Your advisor may help you update the role profile or job description.
D. Hiring a freelancer
As with hiring employees, the cost will vary based on the responsibilities in the mandate. Rates can be as low as $25 per hour, or maybe even less for recent graduates or inexperienced freelancers. Experienced freelancers might charge $45/hour or more for content entry, site building (e.g. in the WMS or WordPress) or similar work. A freelancer with specialized knowledge (ex. programming, design) may charge $100/hour or more. However, this level of qualification (and expense) is not necessary for most WMS sites.
When working with a freelancer, we recommend setting aside an additional 15 - 20% of your project budget to cover unexpected additional charges. (So if your freelancer submits a quote for $5,000, you should reserve a total budget of $6,000.)
Your freelancer will need to be trained in the WMS in order to have access, even if they are highly qualified. You will need to pay for the time spent in training. You may also be reliant on them for all future updates, unless someone else in your unit can take over at the end of the contract.
E. Hiring an agency
Hiring an agency is not recommended - or necessary - for WMS sites. However, we sometimes suggest this option for websites or applications outside the WMS.
Building a simple site can cost $10,000 - $30,000, depending on services required; more elaborate sites can cost $100,000 or more and require a rigorous call for tender process, led by Procurement Services. Once the site is built, you will also need to pay for annual maintenance to ensure that the site remains secure and continues to perform well. Depending on the popularity of the platform (e.g. Drupal, WordPress, etc.) and the complexity of its configuration, you may be dependent on your original vendor for all post-launch maintenance and modifications.
As with freelancers, we recommend setting aside an additional 15 - 20% of your project budget to cover unexpected additional charges.