3

Click here to load reader

HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION - Dan …postsecondary.gatesfoundation.org/.../11/McKinsey-Article-Condensed...HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION Part 1: Perspectives from the Field We

  • Upload
    hathien

  • View
    213

  • Download
    1

Embed Size (px)

Citation preview

Page 1: HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION - Dan …postsecondary.gatesfoundation.org/.../11/McKinsey-Article-Condensed...HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION Part 1: Perspectives from the Field We

PERSPECTIVES FROM THE FIELD | 2014 www.gatesfoundation.org | 1

HIGHER EDUCATION

TRANSFORMATION

Part 1: Perspectives from the Field

We are in a new era for higher education. Institutional

leaders must adopt new strategies and models to

survive and thrive and to guarantee a sustainable,

successful future for their institutions and their

students. This means offering students an education

that is more affordable, personalized, and relevant.

Institutions are not only grappling with better methods

and innovations to accommodate students’ needs, they

are also struggling with economic pressures to define

the value of a degree, increase college completion

rates, and provide high-quality education, while

lowering tuition costs.

We partnered with the strategy consulting firm

McKinsey & Company to conduct in-depth interviews

with more than 100 higher education experts and

leaders at four-year colleges and universities to

identify key themes for successful changes.

Interviewees included institution presidents and

provosts who are dedicated to staying in front of the

changing higher education landscape, policy and

thought leaders who have studied and contributed to

the evolution of higher education, and members of the

private sector who are becoming more interested and

immersed in the restructuring of higher education.

From our conversations, we identified three key

themes about what it takes to define a clear and

unique value proposition. We also learned about the

emerging, promising choices certain institutions are

making to meet the needs and demands of today’s

students, amidst changing economic dynamics. These

conversations helped surface models of

transformational change that are leading to noticeable

results for students – in particular, the new student

majority.

Today’s higher education students are different from

college students 25 years ago. The once traditional

college goer has been replaced by a new student

majority—low-income students, first-generation

college students, and students of color. And with this

ever-diverse student population comes new demands,

requiring more personalized interventions and

technologies to address their changing needs and

goals.

Getting Ahead of the Curve How can colleges and universities stay ahead of the

curve and uphold the promise of a valuable degree to

their students? Institutional leaders pointed to three

distinct themes they think should be considered to

manage the increasing and inevitable changes in

higher education.

Most leaders acknowledged that a one-size-fits-all

strategy is no longer sufficient to be successful or

sustainable in today’s world. In other words,

institutions must define a differentiated value

proposition and be deliberate in the execution

against it – which usually means making tough

choices and tradeoffs. Leaders highlighted promising

choices certain institutions are making to ensure

student results.

“This is the university for the 21st century adult

learner…we aspire to be the provider of choice for adult learners by meeting students

where they are – academically, geographically”…and offering quality

instruction and the assessment of learning.”

- John Ebersole, President of Excelsior College

Page 2: HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION - Dan …postsecondary.gatesfoundation.org/.../11/McKinsey-Article-Condensed...HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION Part 1: Perspectives from the Field We

PERSPECTIVES FROM THE FIELD | 2014 www.gatesfoundation.org | 2

Another theme among institutional leaders was a lack

of dramatic reshaping of their institutions. While

almost all colleges and universities are experimenting

and tweaking their models, few institutions have

radically restructured their postsecondary experience.

The third common theme among institutional leaders

is that transformation is not easy; it is a long,

challenge-filled process that requires unwavering

dedication and visionary leadership. The leaders

interviewed suggested a set of recommendations to

help institutions overcome hurdles they might face

during strategic changes, such as engaging

stakeholders early and often, using data to

communicate and provide validity, and prioritizing

what matters most for the institution and students,

among others.

“I’ve always hoped this work we do will inspire other schools to do their own version, or

rather, own flavor.”

- Dan Porterfield, President of Franklin & Marshall College

“We’ve done this pretty much the same way for, not decades but centuries and I think the

door opened by the digital revolution is opening us to a whole new clientele that’s really going to change the profile of higher

education for the better.”

– Nancy Zimpher, Chancellor of SUNY

The graphic above illustrates a framework of issue areas for institutional leaders to consider explicitly and in relationship with

each other to ensure they make decisions that best align with their institution’s goals, and help each institution organize and

operationalize a value proposition.

Page 3: HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION - Dan …postsecondary.gatesfoundation.org/.../11/McKinsey-Article-Condensed...HIGHER EDUCATION TRANSFORMATION Part 1: Perspectives from the Field We

Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing

countries, it focuses on improving people’s health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks

to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle,

Washington, the foundation is led by CEO Sue Desmond-Hellmann and Co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren

Buffett.

© 2014 Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. All Rights Reserved. Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is a registered trademark in the United States and other countries.

PERSPECTIVES FROM THE FIELD | 2014 www.gatesfoundation.org | 3

Institutional Snap Shot | Georgia State University

Georgia State University (GSU) is a leader in increasing

student access and completion using data-driven student

supports, but that has not always been the case.

In 2003, GSU’s faculty and leadership recognized that

GSU was falling short in its mission to serve the

surrounding Atlanta community. After a year-long

strategic visioning process, GSU refocused its value

proposition on the promise of student success and

completion for a diverse, urban population historically

prone to dropping out. Not only did GSU define a

concrete value proposition, it also organized interventions

based on its strategy and was deliberate in the execution,

including data analysis and measurement of successes.

GSU has been managing this major strategic shift for 10

years with two waves of initiatives. The first initiatives

were organizational transformations in support of student

success, including a new leadership role of Vice President

of Enrollment Management and Student Success,

overseeing the offices that interact with students from

application to graduation. The second wave was a

portfolio of interventions developed to increase

enrollment of underserved groups and likelihood of

student success. Both were based on robust analytics and

evidence.

GSU leadership increased student access and completion

by focusing on transformation using four of the 10 major

value propositions: student profile, primary student focus,

affordability, and student supports. Using the value

proposition framework, GSU was able to make strategic

choices that best aligned with the goals of the institution

to ensure increased student success.

A few of the interventions implemented by GSU included

a restructured, proactive academic advising system to

provide predictive analysis and targeted coaching for

students and timely feedback for advisors, and the Keep

Hope Alive Program dedicated to provide financial

support and coaching to help students regain lost

scholarships.

As a result of GSU’s commitment to using data and

measurement and implementing initiatives to drive

student outcomes, it has seen significant progress toward

the goals of diversity and completion. Notably, GSU has

had an increase in students eligible for Pell Grants, now

58 percent, and six-year graduation rates, from 32 percent

in 2003 to 54 percent in 2014.