Connect Optimization & Admissions Restructuring Presented by Dani Rollins, Crystal Garvey, Mark Morman, and Jesse Homan Hobsons University 2015

2. Connect Optimization &
Admissions Restructuring
July 28, 2015

3. Presenters
• Dani Rollins, Director of Admissions
Northern Illinois University
• Crystal Garvey, Senior Associate Director, Admissions Systems & Processing
Northern Illinois University
• Mark Morman, HE Consultant
Hobsons
• Jesse Homan, Implementation Specialist
Hobsons

4. Agenda
• About NIU & Undergraduate Admissions
• Challenges
• Reimagining our Admissions Office
• Connect optimization project
• Lessons learned
• Continuing our success
• Questions

5. • Founded in 1895
• Total Enrollment: 21,138
• Undergraduate: 15,814
• Graduate: 5,020
• Law: 304
• 6 Undergraduate Colleges

6. Undergraduate Admissions
• 30 Full time staff
• 5 part time/extra help
• 65 student support staff (including Graduate Assistants)
• Approximately 26,000 applications
• ~60,000 supporting documents
• Hobsons client since 2007

7. Challenges
Lack of
consistent
leadership
Morale issues
Decentralization
Information
hoarding
No professional
development
Mistrust of
admissions
Staff turnover

8. Internal Issues:
Challenges
External Issues:
• Down 2 associate directors
• 9 processing staff
• 5 admissions counselors
• Mismatched duties and
personnel
• Morale
• Decentralization
– Multiple recruitment voices
• Mistrust and loss of
confidence in Admissions
• Poor communication flow

9. CRM Challenges
• Connect was a microcosm for what was going on
in Admissions
– Lack of organization and leadership
– No oversight
– No training or documentation
– Messages were inconsistent, badly planned, poorly
written or simply didn’t exist for some segments
Recruitment communication ceased in September of 2014

10. Moving Forward
The New Admissions Office

11. Guiding Methodology
• Access to data
– No one “owns” information
• Efficiency and accuracy
• Ongoing, meaningful training
– All staff, semi-annual
• Consistent, sincere communication
– Internal and external constituencies
• Customer service
– Internal and external constituencies

12. Recruitment and
Outreach
Events,
Tours,
Customer
Service
Communications
Systems,
Processing

13. Recruitment and Outreach
• All counselors report to one Senior Associate Director
• Several new counselors
• Territories and travel
– Reimagining travel priorities and frequency
• Created and maintained in Connect
• New websites
• Professional development
• New daily visit presentation

14. Events, Tours & Customer Service
• Recruitment visits as events in Connect
– Daily visits & tours
• Online sign in via Connect
• Email is generated while the student is on campus
– High school and CC visits
• Call center reorganization
– Outbound callers utilizing Telecenter
• approximately 400 calls per shift
– Daily follow up protocols via Connect email and
Telecenter

15. Communications/Marketing
• Campus wide centralized Marketing and
Communications
– Handles Admissions social media/web
– Print publications
• New associate director and CRM analyst positions
created
• Updated website
– More accessible, friendly feel
• Market survey in the works

16. Systems & Processing
• Several new hires
– Cross-training
• Automating remaining paper/manual processes
– Scanning inquiry cards
• Increased efficiency and access to information
– Outlook interface
– College review reports
– Query viewer access and training for all staff

17. Systems in Use
Hobsons
Connect
(CRM)
Application OnBase
PeopleSoft
(MyNIU)

18. Hobsons Connect Optimization Details
• Massive system clean-up
– There are currently over 12,000 filters
– Catalogued the most useful filters in one place
• All contacts are now flowing through a “Stage Funnel”
– Suspect
– Inquiry
– Applied
– Decision
– Confirmed
• Enrolled term will be passed via nightly interface
• Territories
– Defined, assigned nightly via bulk edits

19. Hobsons Connect Optimization Details
• Organizations
– Students assigned to their high schools or
community colleges
• Rebuilt multiple online interest pages
– Removed fields
– Updated branding
• All admissions senior staff trained

20. Supportive
Training Communication
Access to
Information
Service &
Efficiency
Foundations

21. Continuing the Success…
• What did we learn? Big take-aways?
• Develop reports and dashboards to maximize stage,
territory, and organizational assignment work
• Annual Hobsons consulting hours for tune-ups and
training
– Communication plan rebuild
– Further automation

22. Continuing the Success…
• Modeling Best Practices
– Pilot with College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
– Annual CRM tune-up and training
• Earlier student to student engagement
– Peer-led customer service
– Student recruiters
• Continue to refine procedures and communications: ants
vs elephants

23. Questions?

24. • Dani Rollins, Director of Admissions
(815) 753-8301
drollins1@niu.edu
• Crystal Garvey, Senior Associate Director, Admissions Systems & Processing
(815) 753-7994
cgarvey@niu.edu
• Mark Morman, HE Consultant, Hobson’s
Mark.Morman@Hobsons.com
(513) 985-6005
• Jesse Homan, Implementation Specialist, Hobson’s
Jesse.homan@Hobsons.com
(513) 924-3277
Contact Information

25. Thank You!