The Value of Integration: Informed Decision-Making in Higher Ed
The Value of Knowing: A Newsletter for the Higher Education Community
Issue #2
September 2024
Introduction
In higher education, informed decision-making is critical for institutional success. A well-designed decision support framework can transform how colleges and universities allocate resources, manage programs, and align with their mission. In this issue, we explore the necessity of creating a robust decision support culture that encourages transparency and fosters collaboration across functional units. Whether you’re managing curriculum delivery, finances, faculty effort, or enrollment, effective decision support ensures valuable data is integrated in a manner that effectively informs mission aligned decision-making.
Creating an Informed Campus—The Case for a Decision Support Framework
The Challenge
One of the most significant challenges facing higher education institutions is the lack of integrated information necessary for making informed decisions. While different units, such as academic affairs, finance, human resources, and enrollment management, often operate with extensive data, this information is rarely shared comprehensively across the institution. As a result, decision-making becomes fragmented, reactive, and based on incomplete information. A robust decision support framework addresses these gaps by integrating data from key areas, such as coursework delivery, faculty effort, finances, enrollment management, and revenue sources. When leadership and staff have access to comprehensive and accurate information, they are empowered to make informed decisions that align with the institution's mission and strategic goals.
·A Lesson from Practice
Several years ago, I worked with a public university of approximately 10,000 students to establish an academic decision support framework. I quickly discovered that three of the university’s four academic colleges were operating at a high level of efficiency with positive net margins, meaning they generated more revenue than they spent. However, the fourth college was running a deficit almost equal to the surplus generated by the other three. Upon deeper analysis, it became clear that this deficit was driven by the inflated cost of academic administration, with significant resources devoted to non-teaching activities, such as program administration, external compliance, and internal service. Understanding this issue resulted in a significant reduction of these administrative activities, thus freeing up important resources to be used for innovative programming across the entire academic enterprise. This case highlights the importance of aligning resources with strategic goals and understanding the actual cost drivers within an institution. A decision support framework, informed by data across all functional units, can reveal such imbalances and provide a foundation for more effective resource allocation.
The Importance of a Holistic Approach
Developing a robust decision support framework requires the integration of data from all relevant areas of the institution, including:
Curriculum Delivery: Data on course offerings, faculty effort, and academic performance.
Human Resources: Faculty and staff data, including compensation and workload.
Financial Data: Operating expenses and revenues from all COA funds.
Enrollment Management: Data on student enrollment trends, retention, and recruitment efforts.
Auxiliary Services and Revenue Sources: Information on dining, parking, athletics, and other revenue-generating operations.
When these data points are combined into a comprehensive decision support framework, institutional leaders can make decisions that reflect the full picture, ensuring alignment with both fiscal realities and the institution’s mission.
Building a Culture of Transparency and Collaboration
Transparency in decision-making is essential for fostering trust and promoting shared governance within higher education. A decision support structure not only provides accurate data but also encourages distributed decision-making. Faculty, staff, and administrators can engage with the data, understand the factors influencing decisions, and contribute meaningfully to important discussions regarding institutional priorities. Creating this culture of collaboration requires institutions to minimize “silo-approaches” to managing data between functional units. Academic affairs, finance, human resources, information technology, and enrollment management must work together to ensure data accessibility and quality. A recent survey of Chief Business Officers (CBOs) revealed that nearly half of respondents did not use institutional data to inform decisions about program efficacy or resource allocation. This highlights the critical need for a unified approach to data collection and reporting.
Value of a Blended Approach
Adopting a blended approach that utilizes both internal staff and external management consultants is an important consideration for higher education institutions tackling complex challenges. Internal staff, who possess deep institutional knowledge, play a crucial role in gathering and maintaining continuous data streams from key functional areas such as curriculum delivery, faculty effort, and fiscal management. Management consultants complement this by bringing specialized expertise and new perspectives that enhance data analysis and integration processes. This collaboration ensures that data is not only accurately collected but also effectively utilized in decision-making, facilitating a strategic alignment with institutional goals. This approach fosters a comprehensive decision-support framework where the unique strengths of each group are leveraged, promoting informed and mission-aligned decisions in higher education.
Closing Section
A robust decision support structure is more than a tool—it’s a cultural shift. By integrating data across all key areas of your institution and promoting transparency, you can create an informed campus where decisions are made collaboratively and strategically. I hope this issue has provided you with insights into the value of decision support and how it can empower your institution to achieve its mission.
Upcoming Topics Preview
In the next issue, we will delve into Navigating Financial Structures: A Leader’s Guide to the Chart of Accounts, where we will discuss approaches to assessing and aligning the Chart of Accounts (COA) to enhance informed decision-making on your campus.
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