PMI is a registered trademark of the Project Management Institute

Knowledge Exchange Forum

October 28, 2003

Building Stakeholder Buy-In Through Strategic Process Visioning: Case Study

Jeffrey CarpenterJeffrey.Carpenter@US.IBM.COM

703-465-6068

Scenario: Four campuses in the University of

North Carolina System wished to identity ways to improve student services.

Their current student service model was organized in departmental silos.

For example, the financial aid office managed services one set of systems and processes; the housing office used another; the admissions office used yet another.

The departmental silos rarely talked to each other or worked to coordinate their processes, as a result, the customer (the student) bore the burden of navigating the maze of forms, systems, and processes to receive student services.

BursarBursar RegistrarRegistrarAdvisingAdvisingAdmissionsAdmissions FinancialAid

FinancialAid

Complete degree

map

Schedule meeting

with advisor

Review intended course

schedule with

advisor

Receive offer of

admission

Request information

Review course

listings for upcoming

term

Submit approved

course schedule

Add/drop courses as

needed

Receive authoriza-

tion to register

Receive confirmed

course schedule

Receive billing

statement

Paytuition

bill

Payfines

Receive funds

Notify University of intention

to enroll

Submit promissory

note/ scholarship

forms

Accept aid

award

Receive notification

of aid award

Receive promissory

note/ scholarship

forms

Complete degree

map

Schedule meeting

with advisor

Review intended course

schedule with

advisor

Receive offer of

admission

Request information

Review course

listings for upcoming

term

Submit approved

course schedule

Add/drop courses as

needed

Receive authoriza-

tion to register

Receive confirmed

course schedule

Receive billing

statement

Paytuition

bill

Payfines

Receive funds

Notify University of intention

to enroll

Submit promissory

note/ scholarship

forms

Accept aid

award

Receive notification

of aid award

Receive promissory

note/ scholarship

forms

The Project Management Challenge: The provost wanted to

create a one stop student services model that integrated student services to reduce student run-around.

This would require major changes in the way the staff in each department would work. Their processes, systems, and organizational structures would have to change.

Building stakeholder buy-in was critical to the success of this change effort.

Active Student

???

Active StudentActive Student

???

BursarBursar RegistrarRegistrarAdvisingAdvisingAdmissionsAdmissions FinancialAid

FinancialAid

Complete degree

map

Schedule meeting

with advisor

Review intended course

schedule with

advisor

Receive offer of

admission

Request information

Review course

listings for upcoming

term

Submit approved

course schedule

Add/drop courses as

needed

Receive authoriza-

tion to register

Receive confirmed

course schedule

Receive billing

statement

Paytuition

bill

Payfines

Receive funds

Notify University of intention

to enroll

Submit promissory

note/ scholarship

forms

Accept aid

award

Receive notification

of aid award

Receive promissory

note/ scholarship

forms

Complete degree

map

Schedule meeting

with advisor

Review intended course

schedule with

advisor

Receive offer of

admission

Request information

Review course

listings for upcoming

term

Submit approved

course schedule

Add/drop courses as

needed

Receive authoriza-

tion to register

Receive confirmed

course schedule

Receive billing

statement

Paytuition

bill

Payfines

Receive funds

Notify University of intention

to enroll

Submit promissory

note/ scholarship

forms

Accept aid

award

Receive notification

of aid award

Receive promissory

note/ scholarship

forms

Integrated Student Services• Receive notification of admission• Notify University of intention to enroll• Receive notification of aid award• Accept aid award• Receive promissory note/ scholarship forms• Submit promissory note/ scholarship forms• Receive funds• Receive billing statement• Pay tuition bill• Pay fines• Schedule meeting with advisor• Review intended course schedule with advisor• Complete degree map• Receive authorization to register• Request registration information• Review course listings for upcoming term• Submit approved course schedule• Receive confirmed course schedule• Add/drop courses as needed

Integrated Student Services• Receive notification of admission• Notify University of intention to enroll• Receive notification of aid award• Accept aid award• Receive promissory note/ scholarship forms• Submit promissory note/ scholarship forms• Receive funds• Receive billing statement• Pay tuition bill• Pay fines• Schedule meeting with advisor• Review intended course schedule with advisor• Complete degree map• Receive authorization to register• Request registration information• Review course listings for upcoming term• Submit approved course schedule• Receive confirmed course schedule• Add/drop courses as needed

Integrated Student Services• Receive notification of admission• Notify University of intention to enroll• Receive notification of aid award• Accept aid award• Receive promissory note/ scholarship forms• Submit promissory note/ scholarship forms• Receive funds• Receive billing statement• Pay tuition bill• Pay fines• Schedule meeting with advisor• Review intended course schedule with advisor• Complete degree map• Receive authorization to register• Request registration information• Review course listings for upcoming term• Submit approved course schedule• Receive confirmed course schedule• Add/drop courses as needed

Recipe For Success: Wall Mapping With Cross Sectional Group of Stakeholders

We used process wall mapping as a way to quickly identify current state processes and brainstorm future state processes.

We found that wall mapping was not only useful for efficiently documenting processes, but had the added benefit of being a powerful tool for gaining stakeholder buy-in.

The Methodology: Don’t interview staff

solely within departmental silos to map the current state and brainstorm a future state; instead interview a cross functional group that includes the key stakeholders and influencers.

Change management occurs when staff in one department are able to see how their processes relate to processes in other departments and the inefficiencies that can occur when these processes happen in a vacuum.

Functional UnitWeek One:Prospective

Week Two:Active

(Registration,Managing Finances,Managing Campus

Employment)

Week Three:Active

(Ongoing Enrollment& Misc. Activities—

Book Purchase/Rental, Renewal of

Housing, Meals,Parking, etc.)

Week Four:Active

(Managing AcademicProgress, Seeking

Career Options,Managing Health &

Well Being)

Week Five:Graduating &

Alumni

Admissions

Financial Aid

Registrar

Bursar

Advising

Housing

Health Services

Orientation

Bookstore

Distance Learning

ID Card

Career Services

Alumni Affairs

• Appropriate unit and student representatives at each session• Participants share a “big picture” perspective but are fully

informed about current daily operations (end-to-end knowledge of their unit’s processes)

• Participants are willing and able to communicate essential information while also adhering to the appropriate level of detail

• Group is kept to a manageable size

• Appropriate unit and student representatives at each session• Participants share a “big picture” perspective but are fully

informed about current daily operations (end-to-end knowledge of their unit’s processes)

• Participants are willing and able to communicate essential information while also adhering to the appropriate level of detail

• Group is kept to a manageable size

The Methodology Continued: Use movable process tiles when mapping

processes rather than flip charts or dry erase boards so that the process team can physically move and adjust processes as you go.

Identify efficiencies with your team as you go so that the entire team can “discover” opportunities for improvement throughout the process rather than in a report that is delivered at the end.