Capital University

CMS Migration to Umbraco

For future-proofed scalability and flexibility.

Challenge

Capital University’s outdated CMS was limiting innovation, creating inefficiencies in content management, and failing to support a scalable, secure, and user-friendly digital experience.

Solution

By migrating to Umbraco, we delivered a modern, scalable, and high-performance website that empowered university teams with efficient content management, improved security, and a seamless multi-site framework tailored for future growth.

Background

Capital University’s website was built on Ektron, a legacy CMS that had served its purpose but was becoming increasingly difficult to manage. As the university’s digital needs evolved, it became clear that a more modern and flexible platform was necessary. Here’s what we set out to address:

Evolving Technology Needs: The Ektron CMS had reached its limits, making updates more challenging and slowing innovation. The university needed a platform that could support a more dynamic digital strategy.
Scalability for Growth: As new departments and initiatives emerged, the university required a multi-site solution that could expand seamlessly without added complexity.
Streamlined Technology & Scalability: The university needed a multi-site solution that could centralize its digital presence, simplify platform maintenance, and reduce the complexity of managing multiple frameworks across departments.
Data-Driven Personalization: To improve engagement, the university aimed to harness first-party data for personalization, A/B testing, and more informed decision-making.

This wasn’t just about a new website—it was about building a future-proof digital foundation that could scale with the university’s ambitions.

CMS Strategy From Ektron to Umbraco

Our mission wasn’t just to migrate content—we needed to find the right CMS and create a scalable, high-performance web experience. After an in-depth evaluation, Umbraco emerged as the best fit for its flexibility, cloud-readiness, and ease of use. We started with a deep dive into Capital University’s needs, evaluating multiple CMS platforms based on scalability, security, and content management efficiency. With Umbraco’s flexibility and intuitive interface, we knew it was the right fit. Our strategic CMS selection ensured that Capital University’s new platform wasn’t just a replacement—it was a game-changer for their digital operations.

Capital Law School (multi-site variation)

Multi-Site Framework Expanded Authoring with Brand Consistency

Universities have diverse audiences, from students and faculty to prospective applicants and donors. We architected a multi-site framework that gave each department control over its content without breaking brand consistency. This allowed different teams to manage their own sites while keeping the user experience seamless, reducing bottlenecks, and empowering internal teams to make updates efficiently.

Trinity Lutheran Seminary (multi-site variation)

Design & Theming Balancing Vibrancy and Usability

The look and feel of the new site needed to match Capital University’s vibrant academic culture. Our design team developed a visually compelling yet highly functional theme that balanced modern aesthetics with accessibility standards. We crafted a student-first experience that improved navigation, enhanced usability, and met WCAG conformance to ensure inclusivity.

CU-mobile1

CU-mobile2

CU-mobile3 (1)

Content Strategy Seamless Content Migration

A CMS migration can be a make-or-break moment for any institution. We carefully planned and executed a transition from Ektron to Umbraco, ensuring minimal downtime, preserving SEO equity, and optimizing performance. With a content mapping strategy in place, we made sure nothing was lost in the shuffle—only improved.

Security Responsible Data Protection

Security is non-negotiable in higher education. We implemented enterprise-level security protocols, ensuring the new Umbraco platform protected sensitive data while remaining highly performant. But security wasn’t the only priority—we also enabled first-party data capabilities, allowing the university to personalize content, conduct A/B testing, and leverage heatmaps to optimize user engagement.

Training Collaborative CMS Training

A successful website isn’t just about launch day—it’s about long-term sustainability. We worked closely with internal teams and external agencies to align strategies and ensure a seamless rollout. Our hands-on training empowered content managers to take full advantage of Umbraco’s features, giving them the confidence and tools they needed to maintain and enhance the site post-launch.

Results Digital Transformation Success

We’re still tracking long-term results, but early signs point to huge success:

Faster Site Performance – Pages load quicker, mobile responsiveness is solid, and users can navigate with ease.
More Efficient Content Management – Staff can now update and customize content seamlessly without a dev team.
A Future-Proof CMS – The new setup is built to scale, ensuring Capital University’s digital experience stays modern and adaptable.

By replacing Ektron with Umbraco, Capital University now has a powerful, flexible, and future-ready CMS that will evolve alongside its students, faculty, and stakeholders. This project proves that the right technology—when combined with the right strategy—can transform how institutions engage with their audiences.

Having worked with Diagram for several years, we knew their insight and partnership would be essential to the success of this project. Together, we created a modern, unified website that reflects Capital’s brand and centers the needs of our students, alumni, and future student audiences. By consolidating multiple sites into a flexible, easy-to-manage platform, we’ve streamlined our digital presence and set the stage for future growth.

Russel Pepper, Director of Digital Marketing, Capital University