Business School Services
OUR APPROACH:
Recognizing the unique characteristics of different business schools, we tailor our consulting services to address the specific needs and goals of each institution. We reject the idea of a “one-size-fits-all” approach to problem-solving, ensuring our solutions are specifically adapted and aligned with each school’s mission and values. Our work starts with hearing from and collaborating with school leadership and administration to establish trust throughout the course of our engagement, whether it’s developing a new strategic plan, determining the future of online programs, or evaluating other opportunities for growth.
Beyond familiarity with business schools, we bring hands-on experience working within and alongside them across various functions to drive their success as an official AACSB partner
Business School
Our work in this area includes:
Strategic Planning and Development- Market Research and Competitive Benchmarking
- Survey Development and Analysis
- Student Recruitment and Retention
- Academic Portfolio Management and Market Positioning
- Online Education Growth and Refinement
- Rankings Assessment
- Accreditation Support
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Connect with Us
Rice Business School
Kennedy & Company partnered with Villanova University’s university of Engineering to develop 5-7 year for the college. The plan needed to both set the strategic direction for the college and serve as a compliment to the University-wide strategic plan, “Rooted. Restless.” K&Co began their work by conducting interviews with the college’s leadership and department chairs to understand the historical context of, strengths, limitations and areas of opportunity at the university. Following these interviews, K&Co engaged the senior leadership from across the University to understand their perceptions of how the College of Engineering could support and advance the strategic goals of the University as a whole and assess opportunities for cross-institutional partnerships and collaborations.
Rotman School of Management
Kennedy & Company partnered with Rotman to review its career services function. Notable growth in the academic portfolio in recent years has led to a wider range of student populations with varying career services needs. This project focused on determining how to best organize to efficiently and effectively provide best-in-class service to its students and industry partners across a dynamic, diverse portfolio of programs.
Penn State Business School
Kennedy & Company assisted Smeal with a market study and data-informed repositioning of its graduate business portfolio, including Masters programs, certificate (for credit and not-for-credit) and Executive Education. Smeal’s portfolio was a blend of in-person, hybrid, and online offerings, with the College facing challenges partially attributed to the remote location of the University Park campus.
Vanderbilt University - Owen Graduate School of Management
Kennedy & Company partnered with Owen to identify opportunities to drive growth in the “top of the funnel” for the Executive MBA programs. This included recommendations to improve the positioning of each program, its features, and benefits; identification of promising pipeline feeders and messaging; and the staffing, budget, and program structure implications of pursuing these recommendations.
"We wanted a net price calculator that was easy to use and could be deployed by our one-stop staff to help students understand the financial ramifications of their choices. Kennedy and Company’s tool does just that while also helping us remain compliant with federal aid regulations. Our staff have really enjoyed having this additional tool for their counseling toolbox."
Colleges “definitely will be concerned and do have a right to be, but it’s a great opportunity to review the current contract they’re operating,” Snow said. She suggested potentially negotiating a contract for a shorter time frame, as well as including an exit clause or a set of terms that could end an agreement without breaking the contract. She also believes more universities may want to see an increase in transparency, particular in marketing materials. “When you’re an institution, it’s on your behalf, but you don’t see the day to day of what they’re spending and how they’re spending it,” she said. “You can be in the dark of how you’re being marketed. And in the beginning, it didn’t matter as long as the enrollment came, but now it behooves them.
1st Aid Net Price Calculator is a user-friendly tool that keeps up with the academic offerings and dynamic tuition and fee structure at our university. It provides an estimate and meaningful information to prospective students and families, blending in the financial aid award philosophy. The Kennedy & Company implementation team was easy to work with and they structured a project implementation plan that met our needs. The NPC displays on both the financial aid and admissions web page, and it continues to meet our expectations.
We engaged Kennedy & Company to audit our set of touchpoints with prospective students, analyzing how customer data flows through different systems and detailing interactions at each step. In addition to a detailed analysis of our data ecosystem, the team developed a rigorous implementation plan to help different departments optimize their activities. Kennedy & Company was very thoughtful and comprehensive in their work, so that we gained visibility and are making meaningful progress on multiple interconnected issues.
Kennedy recognized that no one knows us as well as we do. They valued our experience and knowledge, and worked with us as an integrated team. Kennedy’s collaborative approach ensured that the end-product was well-suited to our culture, our values and priorities, and our competitive environment.
“Our collaboration with Kennedy & Company has been nothing short of transformative. Through their expert guidance and strategic implementation of Salesforce Education Cloud, Spartanburg Community College has elevated its marketing, communication, and student engagement efforts to an entirely new level. The result is a sophisticated, data-driven CRM ecosystem that not only enhances operational efficiency but also empowers our teams to support student success in more meaningful and measurable ways. Kennedy & Company has proven to be an invaluable partner in our digital evolution.”
“Kennedy & Company was helpful and responsive from our initial contact with them in creating an appropriate scope of work that fit our needs, all the way through to developing the Slate Reader and Application for our over 140 graduate programs with several hundred users. Even with a decentralized admission model and with so many users involved, we were focused on creating a single solution that would be malleable for all. They helped us create a solution that fit the needs of many and were diligent and tireless in responding to our trouble-shooting questions and quest for continuous improvement. We wouldn't hesitate to recommend them and look forward to continued work on other projects.”
“Kennedy and Company’s expertise in strategic planning has been transformative for the College of Engineering. Their productive conversations brought clarity to our vision and enabled us to identify common themes that will shape the future of the College. With their guidance and ongoing support, we have crafted a clear, actionable 10-year roadmap that perfectly aligns with our goals and with Villanova’s mission, confidently positioning us for continued innovation and growth.”
“I am sincerely grateful for our partnership with Kennedy & Company. Their team has played many instrumental roles helping Palmetto College plan and execute on our growth strategies. Palmetto College is a complex organization that includes four two-year institutions located throughout the state, as well as an online degree completion programs. Kennedy & Company has helped us both transform our enrollment plans and strategies, and also translated them into actionable tasks for our teams within the Salesforce CRM. This effort has improved our adoption of the CRM and enabled our teams to better engage students throughout their time with us.”
“Kennedy and Company quickly established themselves as a critical companion when it comes to both thought partnership and modeling the implications of complex challenges/solutions. With such a broad range of support their team can provide, they have helped Mason tackle some of its most important questions facing the institution as we both develop offerings for new markets and improve student outcomes.”
