Strategic Planning & Implementation

From Strategy Day to Strategic Plan

“It is energizing to think creatively about how we see the next phase of the institution with outside professionals who have been working with a lot of different colleges … and [that's] what makes Credo special,” observed Carmen Twillie Ambar, President of Cedar Crest College.

Ambar is now at an inflection point in her college presidency as she embarks on the second strategic plan of her tenure. Her cabinet is a fast-moving team and was looking for a like-minded planner who was really going to keep them on task.

What drove Cedar Crest College to Credo was the balanced scorecard. It appealed to their way of thinking about the one or two key things they can do that will have the most ability to move the college forward. Credo is also helping Cedar Crest take all the data collected on campus, and determine the most effective ways to use it for the strategic goals of the institution.

Stay tuned for more as Cedar Crest builds and implements its strategic plan for the future and find out the full story behind why Cedar Crest College chose Credo as their Strategic Planning partner following President Carmen Twillie Ambar's no-fee Strategy Day. 

Engagement, buy in, and momentum are critical to the success of your strategic plan. Credo realizes the entire campus must truly own a strategic plan for it to have any lasting effect on the community. Community Days provide a forum for the community to provide feedback on the direction and strategic priorities for the institution.

It is a chance for the campus to share their experiences and ideas with the leadership of the institution, as well as a way for the strategic plan to gain momentum with faculty, staff, and departments. Campus Community Days spread excitement across the campus, unite your institution, and bring about positive change. Community Days can be as intimate or as open as fits the culture of your campus. We know that a strong, aligned leadership team is essential to the success of colleges and universities in these challenging times for private higher education.

Our Thriving Retreat will bring your team together for an intensive day and a half with one of our lead consultants to evaluate your current reality and help develop a clear path for success. We will examine areas of urgency as uncovered by your team’s collective responses to The Thriving Framework® Diagnostic Tool, evaluate the relevance and strength of your current strategic plan, and craft a draft strategy map for action.

Our partner campuses report the following benefits from participating in Community Days and the Thriving Retreat:

• Increased awareness of the strategic plan and initiatives;
• Increased buy in and momentum from the campus community;
• The creation of a safe place as a forum for dialogue, questions, and feedback;
• Institution-wide commitment to positive change on the campus and in the community at large.

With Credo’s SPI, you will receive access to and training for the Thriving Scorecard (TSC), a strategy performance measurement tool utilized by corporations and higher education institutions to set strategic goals and measure progress towards growth milestones.

The Thriving Scorecard Provides:

• Transparency & Accountability: Today’s stakeholders want to know where the institution is going and the progress being made. The Thriving Scorecard allows stakeholders to transparently see progress updates. Web-based reporting can be adjusted so that different stakeholder groups have different views.

• Savings: With greater clarity and alignment, revenues can grow and expenses can be contained. The institutional Thriving Scorecard (Tier 1) facilitates these savings. Even greater financial health can be generated when Divisional (Tier 2) scorecards are developed

• An on-going partner: Credo will work with our partners on your campus to implement the TSC, and empower your leadership and campus community to implement initiatives towards comprehensive and collaborative success.

“I really like the use of the Scorecard, because you’re looking at internal capacities, processes, student stakeholders, and financial resources, with all of these blending together to lead to success.”

-Ron Slepitza President, Avila University

Implementation is where planning meets action. We will stay with your planning team to create accountability and motivation towards achieving goals big and small. Our team has the expertise to customize training for your team so your campus can accurately collect data and use it effectively to meet and exceed target goals.

Throughout the implementation process your campus receives:

• Implementation support post board-approval, including phone, email, and teleconferencing access to two senior consultants and your project manager;
• On-going use of the Thriving Scorecard to track your progress, print board books and other critical reports, and provide campus-wide accountability towards achieving initiatives;
• On-going support as needed;
• An updated project plan as you successfully complete and move into the next phase of tasks;
• A supportive team who is as dedicated to the success of your plan as you are.