strategic planning models in higher education

They suggested that higher education A Strategic Planning Process Model for Developing Open Educational Resources Shu-Hsiang Chen, Jaitip Nasongkhla, and J. Ana Donaldson. Operations are the steps to implement strategy and therefore deliver on the mission. Too often strategic plans fall short of serving as a guiding light for the future. While there are multiple models of strategic planning, many of which include a periodic review of the resulting goals and objectives, there are few systematic assessments of the impact of the process itself. Trustees and faculty members wonder what all the fuss was about, why the process was so time-consuming and arduous and why, in the end, the work seems to have had so little real impact. University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma, University of South Florida-Sarasota-Manatee, University of South Florida-St Petersburg, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, West Valley/Mission Community College District, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine, Bruce Springsteen and the Biden-Harris Victory, Teaching Online in the COVID Crisis: What We Have Learned, Responding vs. The opposite of “provide all students with a transformational learning experience”? For intentional strategy formation, involving key stakeholders is important, if not essential. The concept of strategic planning has extensively been used to formulate institutional objectives of higher education institutions into time bound deliverables. Strategy is a primary example of that “inescapable interdependence” the AAUP’s 1966 Statement on Government artfully framed over 50 years ago. The better ones convey particular actions with respect to target audiences, as well as articulate outcomes. 8, No. Strategic planning in higher education requires both reliable financial projections and a deep understanding of how various projects, initiatives, and scenarios will impact your college or university. Be the first to know.Get our free daily newsletter. The problem with many college and university strategic plans is that they do not articulate choices; they are internally, not externally focused, and are muddied by operations. Institutions still need plans. Failure in strategic planning can be disastrous. Rather, they came about because a few savvy faculty members saw the need to offer a doctoral program in a new format in higher education management (the where-to-play decision). As academics, we have been preachers of management theories and concepts but, when it comes to the real world of practicing DeVos speech offers no relief to borrowers, Students at Emory & Henry earn credit for hiking Appalachian Trail, Embedding Certifications Into Bachelor's Degrees, Students seek pass-fail options again for fall in light of COVID-19, Long-term online learning in pandemic may impact students' well-being, Events | The 2020 Election Results: What Higher Ed Can Expect for the Next Four Years | Tuesday, Dec, Analysis: Florida's developmental education reform worked, Live Updates: Latest News on Coronavirus and Higher Education, We are retiring comments and introducing Letters to the Editor. 72) facing institutions of higher education, strategic planning is critical. Institutions would be better served to first start by articulating statements of strategy and then creating operational plans to deliver on those statements (see the University of Vermont’s College of Education and Social Services pathways in its planning document). Strategy exists if some competitors choose different, if not opposite, paths. Through synthesized research findings and teaching insights, the authors collaboratively devised a comprehensive communication planning model that is based on a series of strategic questions designed to focus a higher education institution’s communication approaches, and that includes a project-management framework guiding strategy and tactics along a continuum ranging from the most … While each opposite may occur in practice, rarely are they stated as institutional goals. But plans are not strategies. The environment for most universities is volatile and variable, not static and predicable; it is challenge dependent and not time dependent. By framing different types of conversations as part of strategic planning efforts, our hope is that we can generate different, and more beneficial, outcomes from those processes. The model uses the concepts of the systems approach, combines elements of models in the literature, and shows the relationships and … Perform low-impact research. Yet despite all this investment of time and resources, few strategic plans enjoy strong consensus that they are meaningful and have a real impact on the trajectory of the college or university. He argues that you do not have an effective strategy if you and your competitors are doing the same things. master of New College of the Humanities. Colleges and universities invest a tremendous amount of time and effort (holding many meetings with various constituent groups on and off campus to gain input) -- and sometimes also money (for consultants) -- in their strategic plans. The higher education landscape continues to experience change. “Great,” we said, “but better at what? Certainly, strategic plans are important to academic institutions. “I’ve been involved in three different strategic planning efforts at my institution. In addition, we profile two successful strategic planning processes, including the timeline, participants, procedures, and lessons learned. Request your custom consult below and a member of our team will be in touch. 3… But what is clear across many competing definitions is that strategy: 1) is the link between mission and the realities of the external, competitive marketplace, 2) is about choices associated with organizational direction and 3) differs from operations. What might happen if rather than developing and arguing over objectives, goals, timelines and key performance indicators, administrators, faculty members and trustees spent the time framing and asking a limited number of strategy-related questions? Enter your email address below to opt in: Visit one of Hanover’s COVID-19 Resource Centers for clear, actionable information to help you design your response to the pandemic, Copyright © 2020 Hanover Research / All Rights Reserved /. This article reviews the systems approach to strategic planning as a method to enhance the planning processes. “Educate students for the global 21st century,” anyone? SPHE emphasizes key strategies for effective leadership, communication, and assessment throughout the seven planning phases. So if the results are less than impactful, then why do we invest so much in strategic planning? ), Furthermore, we in higher education seem quite enamored with five-year plans. But other strategy emerges from the work on campuses, particularly among the faculty. The Strategic Planning in Higher Education(SPHE) approach provides a seven-step blueprint for establishing planning priorities, guiding the process, and bringing the plan’s goals to fruition. Strategy is the purpose for which you will be taking these operational steps. Models for successful strategic planning abound and often … Dr. Hinton's guide shortens the learning curve and unites college leadership with its intuitive, step-by-step approach. During a recent workshop on strategy (and not planning), the following exchange occurred between an experienced administrator and one of us. Strategic planning for higher education: plan for a better tomorrow, today . Strategy has numerous definitions, and those people who work on strategy in other settings like health care or the corporate sector often disagree on its meaning. As she realized during this exchange, the real objective shouldn’t be to improve planning, but rather to improve the institution and position it for success in the long run. As the roads and conditions keep changing, colleges and universities may be better served by keeping an eye on the horizon rather than trying to follow turn-by-turn signs. Strategy is what we say we will do, but it also is about the cumulative effect of what we have done. English, British – ANZ; English, British – UK; Need to respond to change as it happens? As a result, they need to further strengthen their capacity for strategic performance. These operational plans can decouple operations from strategy, develop a short-term (12- to 18-month) road map, and ensure greater agility and responsiveness as needs arise and conditions change. Three Stages of Strategic Planning 3.1. Most strategic plans tend to adopt an artificial focus of five years (the bold ones aim for 10 years or more). How about “Produce cutting-edge research?”. Furthermore, we in higher education seem quite enamored with five-year plans. Roger Martin, former dean of the business school at the University of Toronto, has a wonderful test about plans versus strategy. Therefore, institutions either: 1) revise their plans and priorities as the world evolves during that five-year window or 2) ignore some (or most) of what is in their plans as they respond to new challenges and pursue emergent opportunities. Cathy Trower is president of Trower & Trower Inc. (a governance consulting firm). A short plan cycle may also mitigate the tendency to front‐load or back‐load goals during the planning process. We discuss common pitfalls and guiding principles for gaining buy‐in, implementing the plan, and financial planning. Planning models in the literature were examined, and a new model specifically oriented to institutions of higher education is presented. Strategy Map. This essay is based on a chapter in their new book, Practical Wisdom: Thinking Differently About College and University Governance. The Synario modeling engine communicates changes to your projected financial statements, including cash flow, as you make them. Thus, we have the title of this essay (which is an intentional overstatement, as we will explain below). And historically in higher education, it has been overlooked in conversations about each. Our website uses cookies to improve your experience on our site. Once the program in higher education took root, others saw the potential for similarly structured programs in school administration, education entrepreneurship, medical education and for chief learning officers. Why should time matter more than other variables that might define strategy and its direction? 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Most strategic plans tend to adopt an artificial focus of five years (the bold ones aim for 10 years or more). The examples they provide support using data to inform planning and striving to balance aspiration with reality. This approach includes the following steps: 1. It originated in a consultation exercise which we held in 1998 to review our approach to strategic planning. He co-directs the Penn Project on University Governance. What key objectives will best ensure that we fulfill our mission in the foreseeable future? Harrisburg University of Science and Technology, Indiana University of Pennsylvania-Main Campus, Indiana University-Purdue University-Fort Wayne, Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis, Instructional technology / distance education, Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College, Marketing / public relations / government relations. Better as an institution or better at planning?” Her reply, sheepishly: “Ah, better at planning.”. And all the while, those who lead the planning process can be heard saying, “This plan will not sit on the shelf (this time).”. (Most do not, but they generate a pretty good laugh. Operations address how to do things right, whereas strategy is about the right things to do. (For some, the answer is simply five years of reprieve before they have to go through the planning process again.). Not only do they educate and train students but they also create new ideas and knowledge for the short-term contemporary issues as well as long-term A concentration on strategy might help institutions operate more efficiently, make smarter choices among competing priorities and set the course for a sustainable future. Articulating the right things to do is difficult work. At the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education, the suite of executive programs is a key strategy. Provide some students with a transformative experience or provide all students with a less than transformative experience. Maybe institutions would be better served by focusing on the other half of strategic planning: the strategy. Please visit our contact page. This report examines best practices in strategic planning at higher education institutions and profiles the strategic plans and planning processes in place at five specific institutions. They were not created through a committee or market analysis. Strategic Planning in Higher Education Abstract Higher education institutions around the world are taking on more responsibility for their own future planning. A focus on strategy is intended to help institutions experiment and take initiative, to ask questions and create synergies, and to move institutions ahead in often unknown and unknowable environments. for strategic planning in high er education which is modif ied fro m Jonson’s model Keepin g in mind the differen ce in context between business and governmental higher education organization. As we have said here, strategy is not planning. Involve more people, develop new metrics, hire different consultants, have leaders say earlier in the process that “this plan will not sit on the shelf.” But what if improving planning is the wrong focus? Model and plan for financial KPIs such as net tuition revenues, in-state and out-of-state tuition revenues, and discounts. The first model we will highlight is the "Basic" Strategic Planning … How well do higher education strategic plans provide answers to those deceptively simple questions? Framing the right questions can help craft strategy, as those questions can energize the collective will and creative good thinking across campus that is needed to address today’s pressing challenges. How is the environment evolving and what does that mean for our competitive advantage? What is magical about 60 months? Who are our key audiences and how are their needs and aspirations changing? By continuing to use this website, you consent to our use of cookies. The report comprises the following two sections: Receive industry-leading insights directly in your inbox. It includes a brief history of strategic planning, emerging challenges in higher education, basic models and steps of a strategic planning process, adapting strategic planning to unique needs of higher education, and a look into the strategic planning at the California State University system. Their key points often are expected, and they share much in common with those of similar, but also dissimilar, institutions. Colleges and universities would be better served by focusing on the other half of strategic planning: the strategy, Peter Eckel and Cathy Trower argue. If strategy were easy, every organization would have a well-articulated and impactful one. In this regard, the conceptual idea of strategic planning plays a key role in the development of the Iraqi educational process, and many researchers have explored it as a critical tool that prepares institutions of higher education to respond to future scenarios and educational needs. A strategic plan in the education sector is the physical product of the strategic planning process and embodies the guiding orientations on how to manage an education system within a larger national development perspective, which is evolving by nature and often involves constraints. Between the key factors, specialized literature states it as the most important factor in … As noted in an Inside Higher Ed article, some of the commonalities of successful strategic planning models for higher education include having an inspirational presidential vision with input from the faculty and a stamp of approval by the board. B. E. International Journal of Information and Education Technology, Vol. Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey, Missouri University of Science and Technology, North Dakota State University-Main Campus, North Orange County Community College District, Northern Virginia School of Therapeutic Massage, Northern Wyoming Community College District, Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute, Oklahoma State University - Center for Health Sciences, Patient simulation at Springfield Technical Community College, Pennsylvania State University-Main Campus, Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Abington, Pennsylvania State University-Penn State Harrisburg, Rancho Santiago Community College District, Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing, San Joaquin Delta Community College District, San Jose/Evergreen Community College District, San Mateo County Community College District, source: istock.com/CEFutcher uses: Student, source: iStock.com/FlashSG uses: faculty retirement, source: iStock.com/hocus-focus uses: open education resources, source: iStock.com/marekuliasz uses: ethics, source: iStock.com/monkeybusinessimages uses: adult education, source: istock.com/nigelcarse uses: Finance, source: Lauren Rouppas uses: affordable care act, source: Wikipedia/Janto Dreijer uses: tablet, source: Wikipedia/Ludovic Bertron caption: gay students, source: wikipedia/strngwrldfrwl uses: remedial education, source:iStock.com/AnthiaCumming uses: S.T.E.M. Kaufman’s Strategic Planning Model • systems framework model by Kaufman • model has undergone extensive improvements during the last 2 decades • initially presented in systems analysis of 6 steps • Organization Elements Model (OEM) – systems framework of 4 major clusters of 13 steps & improved into 3 major clusters of 12 steps 34. Photo courtesy of New College of the Humanities/Simon Jones. Think compass, not map. Founding Director Alan Lightman is pictured on the center right. These pitfalls can lead to unrealistic timelines and/or a loss of momentum. Therefore, if the opposite of your strategic choices looks stupid, then all competitors are going to have pretty much the same strategy as you, doing you little good. Strategy as a field may have a lot to offer colleges and universities. 3. Peter Eckel serves as senior fellow and director of leadership programs at the Alliance for Higher Education and Democracy in the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. Have questions? They design and put in place new data systems to track progress and create elaborate metrics and key performance indicators. Workday Adaptive Planning helps higher education teams accelerate budgeting and expense cycles, align resources against priority programmes and courses, and streamline critical processes like enrollment planning. We know that it can feel lik… Although there is a general agreement on the conceptual note on the strategic planning process, the differences are conspicuous in its internal process of transformation from strategic formulation to implementation. Drawing again on the work of a range of strategy thinkers, examples of potentially impactful questions include: In the end, as Martin and his colleagues suggest, strategy is fundamentally about answering two key questions: 1) Where to play and 2) how to succeed. Access the best custom research to help hit your organization’s goals. Now there’s a way to run your college or university with speed and agility . fields, source:iStock.com/clu uses: library digitization, source:iStock.com/CurvaBezier uses:federal funded programs, source:iStock.com/maxuser uses: academy-industry relationships, source:iStock.com/MTMCOINS uses: sergeant, source:iStock.com/SimplyCreativePhotography uses: student finance, source:iStock.com/tillsonburg uses: strikes, source:Wikipedia caption: Notre Dame Quad, source:Wikipedia/Lakshmansrikanth uses: law library, South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, South Metropolitan Higher Education Consortium, South Orange County Community College District, Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, State University of New York at New Paltz, Stella and Charles Guttman Community College, Student Community College of Baltimore County, Students at Community College of Baltimore County, SUNY College of Agriculture and Technology at Cobleskill, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Tressel speaks to students on campus. Given the demands on campuses and the complexities that academic leaders face, might institutions be better served by looking at the future through some new lenses rather than reinvesting in yet another round of similar work? The most popular strategic planning model goes by no particular name, but is frequently used in many large companies, all across the world. For example, the opposite of “performing high-impact research”? Now they matter a good deal to the institution. Institutions hold retreats, often over many days, to talk about plan implementation and progress. A good strategic plan can improve student outcomes, keep great teachers and enhance the reputation of district leadership. (PDF) Strategic Model and Strategic Planning in Higher Education | Gamze Sart - Academia.edu In the era of the 21st century, the best higher education institutions have more than one role. The solution, tried and tried again, on most campuses is to improve planning efforts to create better strategic plans. Decide on short-term strategies that will allow you to reach milestones which clearly show progress towards achieving the company vision. They need plans to operationalize their strategies. 2. A strategy without a plan may simply be a wish. Yet unlike operational priorities, strategy is not time bound. Our newsletters are packed with helpful tips, industry guides, best practices, case studies, and more. Basic Strategic Planning Model. The strategy that is pursued comes through collective and intentional efforts as well as through emergent activities by colleges, departments and even individual faculty members. Strategy, as a concept, sits between mission and operational plans. The result for most institutions is that faculty members, administrators, trustees, alumni and others spend a lot of time and energy developing documents that give incomplete directions. This guide reviews good practice in strategic planning in higher education (HE). Strategy is set and advanced by a collaborative effort. Identify (or re-identify) the goal of your organization, and make sure the mission statementis consistent with this. and how will you succeed? VISION. Separate products to serve distinct purposes. And once answering those, developing a series of operational plans to deliver on strategy, such as linking budgets with priorities for the next two years? Section 1 examines best practices in strategic planning for higher education institutions. What is magical about 60 months? Plans appear in highly visible places on websites. What criteria is used to demarcate what is inside and outside those boundaries. Strategy is the pathway to deliver on that mission. What do we not do or consider not doing? A strategy map is a visual tool designed to clearly communicate a strategic plan and … Too many university strategic plans are mostly outcomes or ideals (or unfunded “wish lists”), without an articulation of strategy. What are the boundaries of our efforts? At Morgan State University, listening sessions, town hall meetings, and a regularly updated website promoted involvement from a wide swath of the campus community.

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