President Paul W. Ferguson's 18th goal in the Centennial Commitment:
Review and Implement Best Practices in University Management for all administrative organizations, operations and fiscal practices to support academic and research agendas with input from the diverse intellectual capital of the campus: Initially focused in the areas of comprehensive Enrollment Management, Marketing and Communications, Advancement, Legal Services, Governmental Relations and Community Engagement, and Strategic University Space Allocation
As part of Ball State President Paul W. Ferguson’s Centennial Commitment, the university will be combining, dividing up or eliminating parts of the administration within the next few months.
Initially, Enrollment Management, Marketing and Communications; Advancement Services; Legal Services; Governmental Relations and Community Engagement; and Strategic University Space Allocation will be the first areas the university focuses on, but all administration will be covered.
Julie Hopwood, senior advisor to the president and chief of staff, will oversee the reorganization of Enrollment Management, Marketing and Communications while each sector of administration is choosing their own method to reorganize.
Hopwood is evaluating each area to make sure it is up to date. If a sector doesn't meet efficiency standards, they'll readjust to bring it closer to expectations. She said she wants to make sure all positions meet industry standards.
Hopwood has done a reorganization similar to this at other institutions, and said she thought it was a thorough and collaborative approach.
“I find it to be successful because it empowers individuals,” Hopwood said. “When you say reorganization, sometimes that can be somewhat threatening or it can be perceived as a negative. What I’d like people to experience is that it can be empowering and very positive. When individuals feel recognized and heard and they feel they’re a part of an evolution to a better position, then they’re more likely to embrace it and help the institution evolve.”
While Hopwood said she couldn’t guarantee departments wouldn't shrink from job losses, she said the goal was simply to match tasks to talent.
“This is not intended to be threatening; this is not intended to be a negative,” she said. “I have no intention of recommending anyone be terminated.”
One of the other areas that is being reorganized in the first wave is alumni relations, which falls under Advancement in Ferguson's goal. Cheri' O’Neill, president and CEO of the Ball State University foundation, is heading the reorganization.
Instead of focusing on job descriptions and specific positions like Hopwood, O’Neill is trying to bring everyone in alumni relations together.
“That way, hopefully we really streamline our messages with how we work with our alumni and friends, and also our students,” O’Neill said. “We want to make sure everything we’re doing is truly unified.”
She said it’s important to have everyone working as streamlined as possible.
“It’s been great, bringing the structure together and really talking about skills and how can we utilize them best,” O’Neill said.
O’Neill said the staff reacted positively to the announcement of the reorganization, sending a bouquet of flowers afterward. O’Neill also promised up front there would be no layoffs as a result.
“There’s so many people that are passionate here,” she said. “The biggest thing is the excitement and love they have for Ball State and they see this as an opportunity to come together.”
Mike Goldsby, executive director of the Entrepreneurship Center, said the reorganization should help Ferguson achieve his vision for the university.
“Senior leadership in any kind of organization is about setting a vision and in order to have that vision fulfilled, you have to surround yourself with people with the same type of values and people who can be very helpful in fulfilling that vision,” he said.
Goldsby compared the university's reorganization to Southwest Airline's customer service over Delta.
He said the Southwest Airlines founder’s plan was to make the employee happy and more cordial, which would in turn make the customers happy.
“Most comes from bottom up – letting the university create small visions to fit within big vision,” Goldsby said. “That’s getting faculty engaged and they feel involved, and if they’re in a good state of mind and are excited, they’ll walk into the classroom and teach better. Everything starts from the top.”
He said from the looks of the cultural change that is going on, he thinks it will be effective.
“It won’t happen overnight, but the first indications across campus are very good,” he said. “The further we go down this path, the more excited we get.”
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