The Challenges of Strategic Planning and Enrollment Management CAIR – San Francisco 2015

1. The Challenges of Strategic Planning and Enrollment Management CAIR – San Francisco 2015 Address by J. Fredericks Volkwein Professor Emeritus and Founding Director of the Institutional Research Program Penn State University Address by J. Fredericks Volkwein Professor Emeritus and Founding Director of the Institutional Research Program Penn State University

2. The All Too Familiar Higher Education Context -The job market increasingly rewards higher levels of educational attainment. -State level Public Funding is difficult. -Institutions compete more intensely for private giving. -Students and their families bear more of the costs of college attendance. -Government funding for student loans, and consequently student debt, have increased dramatically.

3. The All Too Familiar Higher Education Context - Competition for students is becoming more intense, so campuses are investing heavily in enrollment management and student services aimed at both domestic and international students. - The Regulatory Climate has forced campuses to hire specialists to respond to a myriad of federal and state and accreditation requirements. - Consequently, the proportion of the campus FTE workforce devoted to activities other than teaching and research has increased on average from one-third to two-thirds.

4. What is Strategic Planning ? Planning can be defined as a conscious process by which an institution assesses its current state of affairs and the likely future condition of its environment, identifies possible futures for itself, and then develops organizational strategies, policies, and procedures for selecting and getting to one or more of them. By Marvin Peterson The scholarship on planning shows strong agreement about sequence of steps: mission, objectives, external analysis, internal analysis, development of strategic alternatives, strategy selection, implementation, and control of the strategy. (Ginter et al.)

5. Strategic Planning vs. Conventional Long Range Planning • Strategic Planning • External focus • Process oriented- a stream of decisions by the CEO • Dynamic and change oriented • Innovative, creative, risky • A Vision of the Future that guides decision-making • Conventional Planning • Internal focus • Product oriented- A Master Plan guided by the CPO • Emphasizes stability • Relies on safe steps • Blueprint for the future that is to be carried out

6. The Leadership for Strategic Planning

7. The Heart of Strategic Planning • In business organizations, bettering one’s condition includes capturing market share and improving profits. • In higher education, bettering one’s condition includes hiring better faculty, recruiting stronger students, upgrading facilities, strengthening academic programs and student services, and acquiring the resources needed to accomplish these things. • The “strategic” part of strategic planning involves shaping the institution in ways that will assure mission attainment by capturing and maintaining a market niche in the competition for resources, faculty, and students.

8. The Janusian Nature of Strategic Planning External Competition for Market Niche and Resources Internal Reshaping, Self-Assessment, Evaluation and Improvement

9. Institution Niche BuildingCommon Strategies for Capturing Market Share: In Business • High Quality • Low Cost • Convenient • Special Product In Higher Education • Top Tier/Name Brand • Low cost or Best Buy • Convenient/Accessible • Specialized Institutions & Programs focused on particular vocations and careers

10. Strategic NichesSeparate Competitive Markets Ranked by U.S. News National Categories • Top Tier Universities • Other Universities • Top Tier Liberal Arts Colleges • Other Lib. Arts Coll. • Professional Schools • On-line Programs Regional Categories • North • Bachelors • Masters • South • Bachelors • Masters • Midwest • Bachelors • Masters • West • Bachelors • Masters Local Most Community Colleges

11. Strategic Planning Examples Public Universities in New York State SUNY Albany SUNY Binghamton SUNY Buffalo SUNY Stony Brook City University of NY

12. BinghamtonStrategy Public Ivy Image Fewer Students, Smaller Size More Selective Invest in Undergraduate Education & weighted more heavily toward programs in humanities, arts, literature, languages Bottom Up Approach to Quality Examples: Public = U.C. Santa Cruz, William & Mary Private = Dartmouth, Princeton, Rice

13. Invest Heavily in STEM Research & Graduate Programs Recruit Faculty Stars Stony Brook Strategy National Research University Image Top Down Approach to Quality Examples: Public = U. Cal. Berkeley Private = Johns Hopkins

14. Maintain Mission and Program Balance Both Undergraduate & Graduate Education Both Faculty Research & Teaching Both Student Selectivity & Access Low Cost & High Quality & Medium Size Sciences/Social Sciences/Humanities/Prof Schools Public = University of Virginia, U.C. Santa Barbara Private = Harvard, Stanford, Cornell University Albany Strategy Balanced All Around Image Examples:

15. Buffalo Strategy Flagship Image More Students, More Faculty, Larger Size More Resources Bigger is Better Examples: Public = Ohio State Univ., Michigan, Penn State Private = New York U, Univ. Southern.California

16. CUNY Strategy Urban Service University Image Open Access, Local draw Faculty Address Urban Problems Most Students Pursue Vocational Curricula Political and Corporate Support Examples: Public = Temple, Wayne State, Chicago State, San Francisco State Private = Boston U, Howard U, Miami U

17. Different within-sector Strategies Public Universities in New York State SUNY Albany SUNY Binghamton SUNY Buffalo SUNY Stony Brook City University of NY

18. The Value of Starting with a Model • Encourages Clarity of Purpose • Serves as a Logic Chart, Road Map, Organizer • Assists Workload Conservation (concentrates energy and attention, streamlines the planning process, reduces the amount of data collection, data storage, analysis, and reporting)

19. Strategic Planning Model (Shirley and Volkwein, 1978) External Constraints, Needs, Threats & Opportunities Institutional Mission Educational Purpose Role and Scope Goals and Objectives Decisions on Programs, Priorities, Policies, Budgets Strategic SWOT Matching Process Internal Capacities Strengths & Weaknesses

20. Taxonomy of Mission Statements(Volkwein, Lang & Lopers-Sweetman, 1991) • LEGAL CHARTER: Government, corporate, or private • MESSIANIC TABLETS: Vision articulated by the President or Trustees • HISTORICAL: what the institution is, how it came to be • ACTION PLAN: goals and objectives, often provoked by external situation/forces • INSTITUTIONAL CULTURE: faculty/student common internal understanding about the educational philosophy and purpose of the institution. • SCALE & CAPACITY: enrollments, resources, and physical requirements needed for goal attainment • ANTHOLOGY: compilation of mission statements from administrative offices and academic departments

21. Vision Statement • L.L. Bean (1947) “Sell good merchandise at a reasonable price, and treat your customers as you would your friends, and the business will take care of itself”

22. Campus Contexts: Variable Environments • Variable Population Growth: • No/Slow population growth and stable/declining school enrollment (Most New England and North Central States) • Higher growth (Most Southern and Western States) • Variable Revenue Systems: • States that rely heavily on graduated personal income taxes versus sales & natural resources taxes • Variable Economic Growth: • Relatively steady/predictable economic growth versus unsteady/variable economic growth • Variable Public/Private Balance: • Some States have a high proportion of student enrollments in private and for-profit colleges and universities.

23. ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING Analyzing the changing environment – Needs/Constraints/Threats/Opportunities

24. Internal Assessment of major strengths & weaknesses Evaluative Criteria to Assess Programs & Services– Quality- Adequacy of resources and services Faculty Productivity in teaching, research, scholarship, & service Library, facilities, equipment, technology Student outcomes & Program goal attainment Need- Mission Centrality Comparative & locational advantage Current and projected demand Cost- particularly in relation to revenues and benefits

25. Strategic Planning Model (Shirley and Volkwein, 1978) External Constraints, Needs, Threats & Opportunities Institutional Mission & Educational Purpose Role and Scope Goals and Objectives Decisions on Programs, Priorities, Policies, Budgets Strategic SWOT Matching Process Internal Capacities Strengths & Weaknesses

26. The Key Objects of Planning Include: • Academic and Research Programs (which to add, grow, leave unchanged, reduce, discontinue). • The Financial Plan (revenues and expenditures). • Human Resources Planning (Positions & Salaries). • Buildings & grounds, Furnishings & Equipment, Facilities & Space Management, Technology & Information Systems. • The Enrollment Plan (Three Stages: Student Admissions, Orientation & Integration, and Persistence & Success).

27. Four Roles for Institutional Research in the Strategic Planning Process External Analysis Determining Need (scanning, monitoring, forecasting) Evaluation Analysis Determining Effectiveness (Documenting the Results, monitoring performance) Decision Analysis Determining Cost/Benefit (The consequences of alternative choices) Internal Analysis Determining Quality (assessing strengths & weaknesses)

28. Typical IR Activities Supporting the Planning Process Environmental Scanning at the Beginning Analyzing Population Trends Analyzing Economic Forecasts Strategic Planning Research Tracking Rates of Admissions, Attrition, Graduation Projecting revenues Peer Benchmarking Space Use & Facilities Analysis Projecting Enrollments Employee Compensation Analysis Evaluating Program/Policy Impact Estimating Employee Turnover Developing/Tracking Key Performance Indicators Feedback at the End

29. The Importance of Enrollment Management • The financial health of public and private institutions alike are substantially enrollment-driven. • Student recruitment, admissions, enculturation, and education are expensive activities that become even more costly under conditions of high turnover. • E. M. serves as an important mechanism for promoting student-institution fit. • Good E. M. demonstrates institutional effectiveness to stakeholders. • Thus, E. M. has become one of the most important ingredients in strategic planning.

30. THREE-STAGE ENROLLMENT Attracting, Admitting, and Enrolling Students MANAGEMENT MODEL Orientation and Integration Persistence, Graduation, Success Volkwein- Penn State, CSHE

31. Attracting, Admitting, and Enrolling Students Stage 1 THE TRADITIONAL EM CORE • Student Choice and Fit • Admissions Marketing • Applications Management • Tuition Pricing • Financial Aid Packaging • Strategic Niche Building Volkwein- Penn State, CSHE

32. Orientation and Integration Stage 2 THE FIRST-YEAR EXPERIENCE • Orientation • Curricular Access & Advisement • Campus Climate • Remediation • Support Services • Academic and Social Integration

33. INSTITUTIONAL EFFECTIVENESS • Student Learning and Academic Performance • Satisfaction and Institutional Commitment • Student Tracking and Retention • Alumni Studies & Career Outcomes • Improvement Persistence, Graduation, Success Stage 3 Volkwein- Penn State, CSHE

34. Enrollment Projections Revenue Projections Orientation & Integration Research on Student Choice Assessing the student experience Enrollment Management Research Financial Aid Packaging Student Tracking Tuition Pricing Analysis- Studies of Campus Climate Evaluating Support Services Admissions Yield Research Research on Attrition/Persistence/Graduation Admissions MarketingStudies Feedback from alumni and employers

35. Admininistrative Options for Organizing Effective Enrollment Management • Form An EM Committee • Designate an EM Coordinator, Director, or Office • Matrix Management Responsibilities for EM • Create an Administrative Division or VP for EM

36. Form An EM Committee • Useful way to begin – quick, low cost, familiar way to address • campus problems • Promotes Collaboration and Systemic Thinking • about student recruiting and retention • Commonly chaired by Admissions Director or Student Affairs VP, • or sometimes a Faculty Chair • Little authority to implement change • Can be an ineffective time sink

37. Designate a Director/Coordinator of EM • Assign EM responsibility to an existing mid-level manager • More accountable than a committee but person-dependent • Potential workload conflict between the coordinator’s • responsibilities for EM and other duties

38. Give Matrix Management Responsibilities for EM to a Senior Administrator • More centralized, more organized way to promote • constructive change • Direct connection to the resources and influence • of top management • Dual reporting relationships for the heads of key EM offices • More elaborate, confusing, and difficult to implement • It’s success is more administrative-culture dependent

39. Create an Administrative Division for Enrollment Management • Requires the most Administrative Reorganization • (usually with a VP title) • Pulls together all the campus offices & operations that impact EM • Most centralized, most effective, most disruptive, most costly

40. In Conclusion, “Well then, if ‘commandments’ seems too harsh to me, and ‘planning guidelines’ seems too wishy-washy to you, how about ‘The 10 Policy Statements’ ?”

41. Volkwein Predictions for Higher Ed • 1. University Enrollment will Grow & become more diverse – due to population growth, • increased participation rates, and need for • educational credentialing. • 2. Higher Education Decisions and Policy will become increasingly research based. 3. Driven by Accountability, Attention to Educational Outcomes will increase.

42. Volkwein Predictions 4. Economies of scale will favor large institutions, and small campuses will struggle. • Larger colleges and universities (in general with some exceptions) are more efficient to run (have less cost per student). • Larger and better supported institutions (in general with some exceptions) have higher salaries, more financial aid, more elaborate facilities and technology. 5. The most successful colleges and universities (of all sizes) will continue to be those that find a special niche and manage their enrollments effectively -- Educational and financial success will come to those that build a special identity for particular populations of students, particular areas of faculty expertise, or particular curricula.

44. Use Remaining Slides ONLY IF Needed during Q&A

45. The Levels of Planning Include: Strategic/Institutional Level --Carried out by the Executive & VPs & Governing Board --Concentrates on Mission and attaining Long Range Goals --Most likely to benefit from good Institutional Research Tactical/Middle Management Level --Carried out by the Deans and Office Directors --Concentrates on Academic Programs and Administrative Priorities --Middle Time Frame (2 or 3 years) Operational/Implementation Level --Carried Out by the Faculty & Professional Staff --Concentrates on Taking Action Steps that Achieve Objectives --Short Time Frame (usually one year or one budget cycle)

46. The Bureaucratic OrganizationWhere Administrators work Executive Control Hierarchical Lines of Authority and Communication Authority Based on Position Division of Labor Delegation of Responsibility Tightly-coupled Rational Communication thru Channels Resolve conflict via the Hierarchy Rules & Regulation Guide Behavior to Ensure Equity in Treatment of Employees and Clients Places High Value on Efficiency, and Theory X

47. The Professional OrganizationWhere Faculty Members Work Professional Control and Values Authority Based on Knowledge Shared Decisions Based on Merit and Persuasion Resolves Conflict via Consensus Open Communication and Mutual Trust Places High Value on Effectiveness, and Theory Y Loosely-coupled

48. These Separate Value Systems Live together in Colleges and Universities with IR in the middle Leadership and Governance IR The Admin. Bureaucracy The Faculty Professional Organiz.