January 2005

Recently, I was asked to be a member of an interview team at a local university that was searching to fill the position of Enrollment Manager. There were many qualified applicants, two of which were internal candidates. As we talked with these internal candidates, it became very obvious to me that although they possessed great skills for their current job function, they were lacking in larger, broader-based enrollment related experience outside their job functions. This limited not only their understanding of what it means to be an enrollment manager, but it also limited the seriousness of their candidacy for the position. Both candidates would have been potential finalists had they had broader enrollment related experience.

From that series of interviews, it became very apparent to me that colleges and universities need to be much more proactive and take a much larger role in providing enrollment leadership experiences to those individuals that are identified as potential future enrollment leaders. These opportunities can be built in at your college or university. Succession planning should be done at all levels, not just at the highest levels of administration. Providing these leadership opportunities does not take large capital investment. In fact, many cost nothing at all. It’s just a matter of committing to developing individuals that have potential.

Here are some ideas:

1. Serving as a member on an enrollment task force or committee. The easiest way to start developing potential enrollment leaders is to have them be a part of your enrollment management committee or taskforce. This not only exposes them to the issues your institution is facing, and discussion regarding the potential solutions, but it also helps to develop networking skills with others.

2. Research on a specific enrollment. A very easy way to build the skill set of a potential enrollment leader is to have them research an issue that your college is facing, develop solutions ideas and then reporting at your next enrollment management team meeting. This provides them with experience in resolving challenges, builds their skills of involving others in solution development, and promotes their knowledge base.

"Succession Planning needs to take place at all levels of the university."

3. Professional Memberships. If you purchase university-wide memberships to national organizations like NACADA, CCA, or others there are often there are a number of free associate memberships that you receive. These can be given to those you have identified as potential enrollment leaders. This allows exposure to broader enrollment topics and issues that colleges are facing nationwide and to see how these challenges are being met and resolved. 4. Regional or National Enrollment Conferences. As you plan your travel budget for next year, be sure to include enough financial resources to provide potential enrollment leaders the opportunity to attend a regional or national enrollment conference. There are many out there that focus on a variety of enrollment based topics. This exposes your future leader to broader issues and it also helps them to identify possible resolutions. For the most part, we all have similar challenges and someone else may have found an effective solutions which you can adopt.

5. Assist with Enrollment forecasting. An easy way to expose a potential enrollment leader to the rigors of being enrollment manager is to allow them the opportunity to assist in the development your institution’s enrollment forecast. This allows them a hands-on experience in researching, reviewing, manipulating and analyzing data to create a realistic enrollment forecast.

6. Developing an enrollment plan. A truly eye-opening experience for a potential enrollment leader is to actually create an enrollment plan for a semester or entire enrollment/recruiting cycle. Putting all the enrollment components together in a creative yet efficient and effective way to create a unified enrollment plan can be a daunting task. Providing first-hand experience in a low-risk environment is a great way to expose a potential enrollment leader to the complexities of being an enrollment manager while allowing them the opportunity to build greater self-confidence as well as building confidence in their overall enrollment abilities and skills.

These opportunities that will help your college lay a strong foundation of understanding what enrollment is all about for those that are interested in advancing through the ranks. It is critical that future leader’s understand what it means to be an Enrollment Manager and how important it is to be able to see the ‘big picture”.

Charles Valentine has over 14 years experience in higher education at short-term institutions and university-level institutions. His professional roles include adjunct faculty, and administrative positions in advising, student affairs, and student services. Charles has extensive experience in developing and implementing enrollment strategy, process refinement and staff training. He has special emphasis on student services, advising and career development. He also regularly participates in data analysis and report development initiatives. He holds both an MBA and Masters in Counseling.