This edition of In the Know discusses strategies to cope with the onslaught of requirements, and even benefit from them.

Sincerely,

Tracy Filosa

Accept
Projects to comply with new standards and implement new business policies were once occasional events. Now, scrutiny and change are regular components of doing business. The first step is acceptance. These requirements will not go away.

Capitalize
For the most part, the standards demand good business practices. Capitalize on opportunities they provide to further the organization. Implement controls with relevant communication and training programs that facilitate and fortify the work of faculty and staff. Exploit reporting requirements as a strategic advantage. Show the real costs of education, research and service, and quantify the exponential impact of the investment. Use transparency to educate constituencies about cash flow, current use vs. restricted gifts, debt strategy and financial aid. Explain the balancing act institutional leaders must navigate, sharing the costs of long-term investments across current and future generations.  

Understand
Understand the nature of your regulatory environment. Most mandates are issued to the institution, so requirements must be managed centrally and rolled out to departments. Often the behavior of the individual employee or program can have implications across the university. For example, a security breach of credit card data on one server can impact the ability of any department to accept credit card payments. Yes, we're all in this together! The ongoing scrutiny requires colleges and universities to communicate, educate and respond cohesively across the organization.

Develop
Develop and cultivate a flexible workforce to respond to the expected and the unknown. Training and professional development opportunities should be ongoing so that employees are always growing and adapting to a changing landscape. Daily business operations have been streamlined by improved technology and integrated systems allowing staff to dedicate more effort to project work and implementing initiatives. Often this type of work motivates and exposes talent because it is challenging and develops new skills and expertise.

Expand your resources by cultivating strategic relationships with vendors, peer institutions and local and governmental organizations. You will better anticipate and react to new mandates with established communication channels.

When the one constant is change, dynamic organizations are flexible enough to respond and prepared to take advantage of a shifting landscape. Business Officers have been implementing sound business practices for years and are positioned to steer their institutions through these challenges.

A recent white paper by Olin Adams and David Shannon outlines how colleges and universities can break existing barriers to cost control. Follow this link to read their suggestions.

Cost Control in Higher Education »

Sunny Callahan of Tufts University and I will presenting a session entitled "Spreading the Competence: Budget and Financial Management Training for Departmental Administrators" at the EACUBO Annual Workshop in Boston in March.

Follow this link for more information about the BUILDING BRIDGES - 2007 EACUBO Annual Professional Development Workshop.

Building Bridges »

TAF CONSULTING helps higher education and nonprofit institutions plan, manage and develop their financial and human resources.

TAF participates in a range of projects including: financial and organizational planning, compliance management, policy and procedure documentation and business training.

Contact TAF or visit our website to learn more about our work and to read previous editions of In the Know.