“The Summit meetings resulted in two new partnerships. Our initial spend on one of those organizations was USD 800,000 and we expect it to yield dividends for many years,” said Jennifer Walsh, SVP of Strategic Initiatives and Chief Strategy Officer, Hawai’i Pacific University, a speaker and delegate at the Marcus Evans University Leadership Summit.
The Marcus Evans introductions led to partnerships that have been very helpful for our university. The first was an organization that had previously started a new university. We were familiar with the strengths of this university, but were not aware that the founders of the new institution had formed an organization to help other universities create innovative programs. That led to a very fruitful working relationship where they provided expert consultation and worked with our faculty to create a brand new degree program within just five months. Had they not been involved, we would not have accomplished as much in such a short period of time. Their experts helped our faculty to think creatively and differently about what to embed for the program to be successful. We would not have generated that on our own. The opportunity for a structured conversation at the University Leadership Summit helped us understand their capabilities and explore how we could advance our university together.
We’re hoping to expand this relationship. Our initial investment produced a template that we can also use for other initiatives going forward. Although it was a heavy lift for us financially, we feel it was a wise investment that will yield dividends for many years.
The second partnership was smaller, an investment of USD 25,000 that we plan to grow in the future. I was not aware of the group but it turned out to be a perfect partner for us. They helped us assess our military affiliated student population to determine how best to serve them. They provided a blueprint for growth, and we are now looking for ways to expand that relationship. Our meeting at the Summit helped kickstart this initiative.
Perhaps we would have hired one, but it would have taken a lot longer. Having the scheduled one-on-one meeting where we had time to explore ideas together helped catalyze these much faster. The Summit was a very fast process. It allowed for the relationships to develop much faster. It probably saved us at least one or two years. In both cases, our ROI is likely to be pretty significant and we are very excited to explore that.
There are so many providers out there, and I get cold calls and emails all the time. I do some initial discovery calls, but it depends if that need is a priority at that time. It’s rare for us to find providers that way. I appreciated having that opportunity to meet someone in person and to have dedicated time to discuss our needs and brainstorm together. Sometimes you don’t know what you’re looking for, and it’s only when you have a conversation that the needs crystalize and you have a blueprint for moving forward.
The format of the Summit was new to me and I found it very efficient. At other events, it’s harder to meet people because they’re in multiple conversations at once. It has taken longer to develop those relationships as the events were not structured for that purpose. The Summit was more productive.
Some were very interesting and started off creative discussions on those topics. I appreciated the opportunity to listen to my peers as I don’t often get the chance to do that.
Find out more about the next University Leadership Summit