This document discusses efforts to improve the student experience at WGU, a small university in North East Wales, by addressing the fragmentation of student services across multiple departments and locations. Proposed solutions include establishing a single point of contact for student services and reducing contact points from 17 to 5, alongside implementing process improvements using lean principles. Despite challenges such as limited resources and departmental resistance, initial changes have shown progress in enhancing service efficiency and student satisfaction.

1. Cross departmental effectiveness to improve
the student experience: a case study
Louise Medlam, Academic Registrar
Lynn Jones, Deputy Academic Registrar

2. The background - WGU context
• Small University based in North East Wales
• 6500 Students
• ⅔ are over 21, >50% part time, high % of WA/WP, DSA, and individual needs
• Multiple locations - 5 across NE Wales, 1 in London
• Fragmented service delivery; provision from multiple departments
• Limited resource, complex demands

3. The Issues..
• Lack of clarity for students over who does what, when and where
• More than 20 different locations/contact points for various student-facing
services
• An example - after induction week , enrolment involved visiting at least 5
locations in different buildings
• All had different opening hours
• Online service provision split by departments, very hard to navigate
• Causing confusion, frustration, and a very poor experience
- for students and staff!

4. The solution, in an ideal world…
• Single point of contact for all student-facing services
• Clarity over opening hours and service level provision, meet the needs of all
students
• All staff take ownership and responsibility - focus is on resolution of query and
the student need, not the ‘role’ of departments or individuals
• Online support and self-service needs to be intuitive and accessible

5. However…back to reality ….
• Practicalities of limited resource, and no further investment
• Different departmental priorities
• Some agreed we needed to change but too busy to plan and make changes
• Some didn’t want to make changes (why?)
• Repeating the same conversations
but making no progress ….

6. How to get things moving….?
• Clearly communicated rationale of why the changes were needed
the and expected benefits
- improved student experience
- more efficient use of existing resource
• Support from senior managers
• Small initial changes that will make a difference
• A little bit of luck along the way
• Dealing with setbacks

7. Actions taken…
• Nov 2016 – One stop shop working group
• Identified some ‘quick wins’ and implemented them
• Reduced 17 contact points to 5 for the main campus
• Review of processes and workflows that go across multiple departments
• External facilitator, used LEAN principles - focus on process and outcomes
• Using opportunities for change - various restructures, consistent focus on improving
cross departmental working and improving student experience
• Persistence and perseverance
• Grasp opportunity and respond quickly

8. LEAN principles - focus on process and outcomes – an example of a before….

9. And during….

10. Improvements made ….
• Sept 2017 – changes to Enrolment and Induction
• Academic Registry restructure - Governance & Policy separated from Operation
& Process
• Single building location for all registry staff
• Single service desk for all Registry & Student Data queries
• Co-location in same building with other student-facing service desks
• Other department restructures used to re-build business processes and improve
links
• ‘When to refer’ – signposting guide for staff
• Registry online info all in one place for students
• Use of technology
• Close working with SU

11. Challenges still to overcome…
• Not all student facing staff co-located –
• - but the service access point is and staff now come to the students
• Physical moves not quite finished – but benefits already clear
• Single Student File – electronic format
• Different service desks still have different opening hours –
- clarity maybe more important than uniformity
• Culture change – progress made but must continue

12. Any Questions?
l.medlam@glyndwr.ac.uk
l.jones@glyndwr.ac.uk