• Concept design
• Continuous services
• UI/UX design
• Websites and web services

Metrospective, Metropolia University of Applied Sciences’ new online media

The Metrospective online media replaces the previously fragmented publishing channels and provides a natural way to explore the diverse content of Metropolia University of Applied Sciences all in one place.

Metropolia’s new online media, Metrospective, supports the visibility of higher education expertise.

Metropolia is an international and multidisciplinary university of applied sciences operating in the Helsinki metropolitan area. Metropolia forms a community of over 18,000 students and more than 1,000 experts, where diverse people and worlds meet. Metropolia conducts high-level research and development work, for which a new, modern online media was needed to make it visible.

Metrospective is an online media platform that publishes articles by the university’s experts and students, as well as audiovisual content such as podcasts. The platform replaces the previously fragmented publishing channels and thus provides readers, listeners, and viewers with a natural way to explore Metropolia’s diverse content all in one place.

The Metrospective online media was launched in January 2025 after a testing and approval process. Before the launch, a third-party accessibility audit was carried out on the site, and the identified shortcomings were corrected prior to the final release.

Discover the new Metrospective online service of Metropolia University of Applied Sciences.

metrospektiivi.metropolia.fi

From fragmented publishing channels to a unified online media – project objectives

The starting point for the renewal was Metropolia’s need to streamline its publishing activities. The aim of Metropolia’s publishing operations is to support research, development, and teaching, as well as to produce and disseminate the knowledge and expertise generated in connection with the university’s activities both to professional audiences and to anyone interested in the topics.

Previously, Metropolia’s articles and audiovisual publications were dispersed across separate publishing channels, which made it difficult to improve the openness, accessibility, and impact of its publishing activities.

The main objectives of the renewal were:

• Clarify the publication processes and support functions for articles and audiovisual content
• Create a centralized, user-friendly publishing platform
• Improve the impact of the university’s publishing activities
• Strengthen the visibility of Metropolia University of Applied Sciences’ expertise and R&D activities

A concept tailored based on the requirements specification

The project began with refining the requirements specification. In the initial phase, Metropolia’s project team and redandblue made the necessary adjustments to the concept, resulting in detailed specifications and the creation of the site’s technical architecture.

During the concept refinement:

• The content structure and content types of the online media were clarified
• A sitemap was created and navigation requirements were specified
• Necessary page templates and their content elements were defined
• User roles and permission levels for the content management system were planned
• Required information for implementing integrations and other technical constraints for the service was identified and specified

During the specification phase, regular meetings were held to ensure that both parties developed a shared understanding of the content of the online service solution to be implemented. The concept refinement particularly focused on the user experience from the perspectives of both content creators and readers. The online media needed to serve both internal and external users smoothly while being easy for content contributors to use.

The solution particularly focused on:

Integrations as part of the online publishing platform

Key integrations for the functionality of the online media included connections to Metropolia’s Microsoft systems and external services.

• Integration of a URN identifier generator with the National Library service, enabling permanent web addresses for individual content items.
• Implementation of Microsoft Entra ID integration for login, providing Metropolia staff with secure and seamless access to the system.
• Integration of an analytics service to collect user data for further development of the site.

The customized integrations streamline the publishing process and eliminate the need for manual work, freeing up resources for content creation. The solution also places particular emphasis on security and the reliability of the server environment. All data processing takes place within the EU/EEA in accordance with data protection legislation.

Continuous development and partnership ensure smooth operations into the future.

Collaboration with Metropolia’s Project Communication and Publishing Services team continues even after the online service launch. Redandblue provides support, application maintenance, and further development services, enabling the continuous evolution of the online media.

Redandblue serves as the primary point of contact for all technical publishing and maintenance inquiries related to the online media. The partnership aims to ensure that Metrospective continues to meet the needs of Metropolia’s publishing activities in the future.