When anyone thinks of a customer relationship management (CRM) system, they think of it as an enterprise business solution as it allows an organization to manage customer data. As a result, the idea of utilizing a CRM in a higher education setting seems unlikely. Yet with the issue of falling revenues and rising costs, CRM is gaining usage in the higher ed sector as a way to manage the student cross-life-cycle.
What are the benefits of a student's cross-life-cycle CRM?
Simply put, it improves relationship management between the university and the student. Using a higher ed CRM coupled with the right business process management software, institutions are able to:
- Connect with students through communication channels
- Create interactions that are targeted and specific to the student
- Create high-quality experiences through workflows
- Make educated resourcing decisions with regards to interactions
- Create a 360-view of the student journey.
How Can a CRM Be Applied in Higher Ed?
Many people hold the false perception that higher ed institutions use CRM only to manage transactions between departments. But, according to Gartner, “Student cross-life-cycle CRM is a CRM deployment that creates a campuswide, 360-degree view of a student across their major life cycle phases, beginning with pre-college and moving through prospect, applicant, enrolled, graduated and alumni statuses. This is in contrast to a departmental CRM implementation that is focused on a single functional and siloed set of business processes.”In order for post-secondary institutions to implement a CRM properly, they need to think of it as a strategy first and a solution second. Think of it as a three-way approach.
- What are your institution’s goals?
- Do you need a strategic or transactional CRM?
