What Brought You Here Today?

• Briefly, what triggered you to open this conversation about enrollment now?
• Which single enrollment metric feels most urgent to fix this cycle? Options: Fall census shortfall, Decline in applicant volume, Lower yield after admit, Counselor coverage gaps, Admit-to-deposit timing issues, Other
• Tell the story behind your most recent missed target—what exactly happened and when did you first notice it?
• How are you currently forecasting feeder-market trends (tools, cadence, owner)? Options: Internal historical trend models, Third-party market reports, Ad hoc staff estimates, No formal forecasting, Other
• Who on your team feels the pressure most acutely when targets are missed (name roles)? Options: VP of Enrollment, Admissions Director, Enrollment Marketing Manager, Counselors, Financial Aid, President/Provost, Other
• If you had to pick one outcome you cannot compromise on for next fall, what is it? Options: Total headcount, Net tuition revenue, Yield percentage, Diversity goals, Retention readiness, Other

Are We Mistaking Tools for Strategy?

• If your SIS, email platform, and spreadsheets disappeared tomorrow, would your ability to meet targets change—and how?
• Which system currently acts as the single source of truth for a prospect’s status? Options: SIS (prospect module), CRM, Email platform, Counselor spreadsheets, No single source, Other
• How frequently do records get out of sync between your SIS and outreach tools? Options: Near real-time / automated, Daily manual sync, Weekly batch exports, When someone remembers, We don't sync
• Give an example of a time a tooling mismatch cost you engagement—what was lost (students, time, dollars)?
• Which vendors or internal teams maintain those integrations today (IT, vendor, BAs)? Options: Internal IT, External SIS vendor, Third-party integrator, Admissions team, No one / manual
• How do counselors feel about the current tools—frustration, resignation, or something else? Options: Frustrated, Overwhelmed but coping, Neutral, Optimistic, Excited for change

Where Is the Leak Really Happening?

• Which stage in your funnel loses the students you least expected—and why do you think that keeps happening?
• Share your most recent conversion ranges (or select ranges) for click → application → admit → deposit. Options: Click→App <1% / 1–3% / 3–6% / >6%, App→Admit <10% / 10–25% / 25–50% / >50%, Admit→Deposit <5% / 5–15% / 15–30% / >30%
• How do you currently measure counselor coverage (territories per counselor, outreach frequency, response SLA)? Options: Spreadsheet tracking, CRM territory module, Manual assignment emails, No formal tracking, Other
• Which feeder markets are missing projections and by roughly how many students? Options: Local county/region, Statewide cohort, Out-of-state markets, International markets, Multiple regions, Other
• When a promising lead drops out, what is the usual root cause you find (financial aid, timing, engagement, incorrect data)? Options: Financial aid package, Timing/late outreach, Poor follow-up, Wrong contact info, Program fit, Other
• How often do you A/B test outreach sequences or territory assignments to improve those conversion points? Options: Regularly (monthly), Occasionally (per cycle), Rarely, Never

Who’s Actually Owning Enrollment Outcomes?

• If a board asked who’s accountable for hitting yield targets, what name or role would you give them—and do they have the levers to change outcomes?
• Which roles must be involved to run a pilot and make a scale decision (check all that apply)? Options: VP Enrollment, Admissions Director, Enrollment Marketing, Financial Aid, IT/SIS, Compliance/Legal, Provost/Academic Affairs, Institutional Research
• How do academic leadership and financial aid currently influence offer strategy and yield? Options: Directly set offers, Recommend to admissions, Limited involvement, No consistent process, Other
• Who signs off on TCPA and data-compliance decisions—and how confident are they in current controls? Options: Legal counsel, Compliance officer, VP Enrollment, IT/Data governance, No clear owner
• Describe the governance cadence you’d need to decide to expand from a pilot to campus-wide scale. Options: Weekly steering, Bi-weekly working group, Monthly executive review, Ad hoc decisions, Other
• When decisions stall, where do they get stuck most often (budget, politics, technical risk)? Options: Budget, Campus politics, Technical integration, Provider trust, Other

What Would Hitting Target Actually Feel Like?

• Imagine next fall you hit your enrollment target—what would change emotionally and operationally across your office?
• Which KPIs would you point to first as proof that the pilot worked? Options: Applications, Yield %, Deposit counts, Counselor contacts per lead, Time-to-contact, Other
• What level of uplift (percentage points or student count) in yield or deposits would make the pilot a clear win? Options: <2% / <10 students, 2–5% / 10–50 students, 5–10% / 50–150 students, >10% / >150 students
• What counselor behaviors would you expect to see change if the new platform worked (examples: response time, outreach volume, more targeted messages)?
• Which analytics or dashboards would you need on day 1 of pilot vs. in year two? Options: Contact activity & response, Conversion by territory, Yield projections, SIS sync health, TCPA compliance logs, Other
• Who beyond admissions would celebrate this success and why? Options: Financial Aid, Academic Departments, President/Provost, Institutional Research, Advancement/Alumni

Hidden Workarounds We Need to Name

• What’s the most common manual workaround in your recruitment process that a new vendor would find surprising?
• Which spreadsheets, scripts, or ad hoc processes are still critical to operations (select all that apply)? Options: Territory assignment spreadsheets, Manual mail-merge emails, CSV exports for campaigns, Custom scripts for SIS exports, Shared Google Sheets lists, Other
• How long does it take to re-train or re-map those spreadsheets into an integrated workflow during a pilot? Options: <2 weeks, 2–4 weeks, 1–3 months, Longer than 3 months, Unsure
• What hidden costs do those workarounds create (staff time, missed students, compliance exposure)?
• Who on your staff is unofficially responsible for keeping those stopgaps alive? Options: Senior admissions staff, Data analyst, IT generalist, Temporary staff, No one / everyone
• If we removed one workaround tomorrow, which would deliver the biggest immediate benefit?

What Could Make or Break a Pilot?

• If I told you SIS integration might be delayed by six weeks, would you still run a pilot—and what contingency would you need?
• Which risks would cause you to pause a pilot (select up to three)? Options: SIS synchronization failures, TCPA/compliance gaps, Counselor resistance, Insufficient data quality, Budget overruns, Vendor support issues
• What SLA for data sync is minimally acceptable to you? Options: Near real-time (<5 minutes), Hourly, Daily, Weekly batch, No strict SLA but monitored
• What measurable acceptance criteria would you require to sign off on the admissions-cycle pilot?
• What budget parameters or pricing models would constrain pilot scope (one-time, subscription, per-seat)? Options: Fixed pilot fee, Monthly subscription, Per-counselor seat, Success-based/ROI share, Other
• Who would be on your escalation path if the pilot started failing (roles and contact expectations)?

• Pre-Experience Data & Context Alignment
• Scenario Design & Success Path Mapping
• Live Scenario Run — System & Counselor Simulation
• Acceptance Criteria Validation & Impact Forecast
• Executive Stakeholder Review & Sign‑Off

• Customer to approve pilot start or to confirm required remediation items and timelines.
• Validate counselor coverage improvements and identify remaining workload bottlenecks.
• Identify any integration or data failures with assigned owners and timelines for fixes.
• Seller to log defects and prioritize fixes for any integration or automation failures observed.
• Customer to provide one counselor for follow-up roleplay and feedback within 5 business days.
• Update scenario scripts to reflect any agreed changes and schedule a re-run if needed.
• Present Measured Results vs Acceptance Criteria
• Reach a documented decision (pass, conditional pass, or fail) against the pilot acceptance criteria.
• Provide a short, numeric forecast of the pilot's estimated enrollment and revenue impact.
• Agree owners and deadlines for any remediation required before pilot start.
• Seller to deliver a one‑page Impact Forecast and a Pass/Fail report within 48 hours.
• Introductions & Objective Framing
• Create remediation tickets and assign engineering/IT owners for fixes that block pilot acceptance.
• One‑Sentence Diagnosis, Consequence, and Future State
• Obtain executive alignment and formal sign-off to proceed with the admissions‑cycle pilot.
• Agree a governance cadence and assign executive owners for escalation and compliance responsibilities.
• Establish clear next steps and dates for the deployment kickoff and SLA confirmation.
• Circulate signed pilot MOU or conditional approval within 2 business days.
• Schedule deployment kickoff meeting and weekly governance cadence.
• Assign executive owner for pilot oversight and a technical lead for SIS/TCPA compliance.
• Customer confirms a one‑sentence current state that will guide the scenario.
• Quantified consequence values agreed to drive urgency in the experience.
• Dataset and pilot boundary checklist validated and any data gaps identified with owners assigned.
• Customer to deliver corrected SIS extract and territory mapping within 48 hours.
• Seller to publish a one‑sentence current state and a one‑sentence future state for validation prior to Scenario Design meeting.
• Assign data owner to remediate any missing fields and confirm by date.
• Review Validated One‑Sentence Current & Future State
• A finalized set of scenario scripts ready for execution.
• Clear, numeric acceptance criteria and KPIs locked for each scenario.
• TCPA and SIS control points identified and assigned to owners.
• Seller to produce executable scenario scripts and automation flows for each persona.
• Customer to confirm persona mappings and any consent text required for TCPA.
• Create measurement dashboard template populated with agreed KPIs.
• Environment Check & Test Data Load
• Demonstrate proof that the platform can deliver the defined future state for representative scenarios.
• Run Scenario 1 (Ad Click → Deposit)
• Highlights from Scenario Proofs
• One‑Sentence Current State
• Forecast Enrollment & Financial Impact
• Persona & Funnel Selection
• Acceptance Decision and Conditions
• Consequence Quantification
• Run Scenario 2–3 (Alternate personas)
• End‑to‑End Scenario Mapping
• Discuss Edge Cases and Risk Mitigations
• Decision & Next Steps for Pilot Entry
• Define Success Metrics & Acceptance Thresholds
• Data Inventory & Validation
• Observe Counselor Routing & Coverage
• Governance Cadence & Pilot Kickoff Plan
• Identify TCPA and SIS Controls Within Scenarios
• Capture Failures, Tiebacks & Immediate Fixes
• Confirm Pilot Territories & Acceptance Criteria
• Immediate Administrative Next Steps

• Import and Clean Lead Data
• Configure SIS Bi-directional Integration
• Deploy TCPA-Compliant Communication Automation
• Configure Admissions Pipeline Stages
• Activate Territory Management for Counselors
• Set Up Event and Campus Visit Tracking
• Deploy Application-to-Enrollment Lifecycle Triggers
• Enable Yield and Conversion Dashboards
• Deploy Mobile Counselor App with Offline Sync
• Deduplicate and Merge Contact Records
• Integrate Payment and Enrollment Deposit Tracking
• Provision Role-Based Permissions and SSO
• Run Data Reconciliation and Sync Monitoring
• Train Counselors on Platform Workflows

Import and Clean Lead Data

• Do you have existing lead/contact datasets that need to be imported for the pilot? Options: Yes, No
• What formats are the lead files currently in? Options: CSV/Spreadsheet, SIS export, Marketing platform export (e.g., paid ad platform), CRM export, Other
• Approximately how many lead/contact records will be included in the pilot import? Options: Less than 1,000, 1,000-10,000, 10,000-100,000, More than 100,000
• Do records include lifecycle attributes we need to preserve (e.g., stage, source, campaign, counselor assignment)? Options: Yes, No, Partially
• Are there PII/FERPA or other compliance restrictions on how lead data must be stored or masked? Options: Yes, No
• Do you require transformation or standardization (e.g., phone formats, state names) during import? Options: Yes, No
• List any custom fields or mappings required for your lead records (free response)

Configure SIS Bi-directional Integration

• Which SIS vendor/version will this pilot integrate with? Options: Ellucian Banner, Ellucian Colleague, PeopleSoft/Oracle, Workday Student, Other/Custom, Not sure
• What sync direction do you require for the pilot? Options: Bi-directional (read/write both ways), Inbound only (SIS -> CRM), Outbound only (CRM -> SIS)
• Which data objects must be synced as part of the pilot? Options: Applications, Contacts/Leads/Prospects, Admissions decisions, Enrollment/deposits, Event/visit attendance, Custom objects
• What is the required sync frequency for the pilot (choose closest)? Options: Real-time (webhooks/API), Near real-time (minute-level), Hourly, Daily, Batch/on-demand
• Are there field-level validation, transformation, or business rules that must run during sync (e.g., status mapping)? Options: Yes, No
• Who will provide SIS admin/API access and who is the technical contact (name, role, timeline)?

Deploy TCPA-Compliant Communication Automation

• Does your institution currently capture phone/SMS consent and do you have the source(s) of consent recorded? Options: Yes - consent recorded in SIS, Yes - consent recorded in marketing platform, No, Partially
• Which channels will be used in the pilot (select all that apply)? Options: Email, SMS/text, Phone calls (manual), Automated voice, In-app/push notifications
• Do you require built-in TCPA opt-in/opt-out capture and time-stamped audit trails? Options: Yes, No
• Do you have any pre-existing consent language or workflows that must be preserved? Options: Yes, No
• Are there telephone numbers or user segments that must be excluded from outreach (e.g., internal lists, DNC)? Options: Yes, No
• Describe any campaign cadence constraints tied to admissions calendar or compliance that the automation must enforce (free response)

Configure Admissions Pipeline Stages

• How many distinct pipeline stages do you want modeled for the pilot (e.g., inquiry, applied, admit, deposited)? Options: 1-4, 5-7, 8-10, More than 10
• Do you need custom stage definitions and acceptance criteria tied to SIS statuses? Options: Yes, No
• Should stages automatically advance based on events (e.g., application received) or remain manual? Options: Automatic, Manual, Hybrid
• Which actions should be triggered at key stage transitions (emails, tasks, notifications)? Options: Email templates, Task assignments, SMS, Counselor notification, Other
• Do you require distinct pipelines for undergraduate/graduate/continuing education? Options: Yes, No
• List any stage-level SLAs or acceptance criteria we should validate in pilot (e.g., response time, conversion targets).

Activate Territory Management for Counselors

• How many counselors and territories will participate in the pilot? Options: 1-5, 6-15, 16-50, More than 50
• How are territories currently defined and tracked (e.g., spreadsheets, zip codes, high schools)? Options: Spreadsheets, SIS fields, Manual assignment, Other
• Do you need automatic territory assignment rules (by zip, county, feeder high school) or manual assignment? Options: Automatic, Manual, Hybrid
• Should counselor quotas/caps or workload balancing be enforced? Options: Yes, No
• Do territories require hierarchical ownership (e.g., regional manager > counselor)? Options: Yes, No
• Describe any exceptions or special routing (e.g., legacy relationships, VIP prospects) that the system must honor.

Set Up Event and Campus Visit Tracking

• What types of events will be tracked in the pilot (open houses, tours, virtual info sessions)? Options: Campus visits/tours, Open houses, Virtual events/webinars, School visits, Other
• Do you need integration with ticketing/registration systems or check-in kiosks? Options: Yes, No, Not sure
• Is real-time attendance/check-in required to update prospect status in the pipeline? Options: Yes, No
• Do events need capacity management, waitlists, or automated reminders? Options: Yes, No
• Which calendar systems should events sync with (e.g., Google Calendar, Outlook)? Options: Google Calendar, Outlook/Exchange, No calendar sync, Other
• Describe any event-specific reporting or conversion metrics you want tracked (free response).

Deploy Application-to-Enrollment Lifecycle Triggers

• Which lifecycle events should trigger automation (select all that apply)? Options: Application submitted, Application decision, Admission offer sent, Deposit paid, Registration completed
• Do triggers require conditional logic (e.g., program-specific, merit-based)? Options: Yes, No
• What actions should triggers perform (emails, task creation, SIS update, counselor alert)? Options: Email, Task assignment, SIS update, SMS, Counselor notification
• Are there timing constraints relative to academic deadlines that triggers must respect? Options: Yes, No
• Do you require test scenarios and acceptance criteria for each trigger before go-live? Options: Yes, No
• List any exceptions or manual override rules required for lifecycle triggers (free response).

Enable Yield and Conversion Dashboards

• What primary KPIs should the dashboards show for the pilot? Options: Applications, Admits, Deposits, Yield rate, Counselor productivity, Custom
• Do you need cohort-level reporting (by feeder market, campaign, counselor)? Options: Yes, No
• What refresh cadence is required for dashboard data? Options: Real-time, Hourly, Daily, Weekly
• Who should have access to dashboards (roles or specific users)? Options: VP Enrollment, Admissions Director, Counselors, Marketing, Other
• Do you require exportable reports or scheduled email reports? Options: Yes - exports, Yes - scheduled emails, No
• Describe any custom metrics or formulas (e.g., adjusted yield) needed for pilot evaluation (free response).

Deploy Mobile Counselor App with Offline Sync

• Will counselors use iOS, Android, or both for the pilot? Options: iOS, Android, Both
• Is offline data access and sync required for areas with poor connectivity? Options: Yes, No
• Do you require device management controls (MDM) or restrictions on mobile data storage? Options: Yes, No
• Which mobile features are essential for the pilot (call logging, SMS sending, check-in, note capture, map of schools)? Options: Call logging, SMS sending, Visit check-in, Note capture, Territory maps
• Do you need push notifications for assigned tasks or critical alerts? Options: Yes, No
• List security or privacy requirements for mobile access (PIN, biometrics, data retention) (free response).

Deduplicate and Merge Contact Records

• Do you require automated deduplication rules during import or as a separate cleanup job? Options: During import, Separate cleanup job, Both, No dedupe
• Which matching keys should be used for deduplication? Options: Email, Phone number, Name + DOB, SIS ID, Custom identifier
• What merge policy should be applied when conflicts exist (prefer SIS, prefer most recent, manual review)? Options: Prefer SIS, Prefer most recent, Prefer CRM data, Manual review required
• Do you want a review queue for potential merges with human approval? Options: Yes, No
• Should we preserve an audit trail of merges and deletions for compliance? Options: Yes, No

• Statement of Work (SOW)
• Order Form — Pricing & Billing
• Pilot Acceptance Criteria & Sign-off
• SIS Integration & Data Sync SLA
• TCPA & Communications Compliance Addendum
• Data Processing Agreement (DPA) & Security Addendum
• Governance & Scale-up Cadence Charter
• Implementation Schedule & Milestones
• Training & Change Management Agreement
• Support, Escalation & Remediation Agreement
• Termination, Remedies & Rollback Plan
• Change Order & Scope Amendment Process

• Pilot Outcomes Review (Applications, Yield, Counselor Productivity)
• Counselor Adoption & Blocker Workshop
• Data Integrity & SIS Integration Triage
• Issue & Enhancement Register Sync (Governance)
• Executive Pilot Decision & Year-Two Rollout Planning

• Agree on governance cadence and communication plan for progress updates.
• Schedule targeted training sessions and distribute updated playbooks to counselors.
• Track counselor adoption metrics weekly and report progress to the governance register.
• Opening & Pre-work Confirmation
• Resolve the critical data issues that undermine pilot metric validity and assign technical owners.
• Agree on a clear remediation timeline with testing and deployment gates.
• Define monitoring and escalation procedures to prevent recurrence.
• Execute the agreed data fix plan and deliver test reconciliation within the committed window.
• Enable daily sync health report to be published to the shared workspace until stable.
• If required, open a vendor support ticket with SIS and route to executive escalation.
• Review Open Register Items
• Maintain a single, prioritized register of pilot issues and enhancements aligned to year-two goals.
• Ensure each top-priority item has an owner, SLA, and acceptance criteria.
• Welcome & Objectives
• Update the shared register with reprioritized items, owners, and SLAs within 48 hours.
• Create enhancement specs for the top 3 roadmap items and route for stakeholder review.
• Schedule the recurring monthly governance sync and distribute invites.
• Executive Summary of Pilot Findings
• Obtain an executive decision on whether to scale campus-wide and under what conditions.
• Secure commitments for required budget and resourcing or outline steps needed to obtain them.
• Document any compliance mitigations required prior to scale and owners for those mitigations.
• If approved, produce the formal scale-up proposal and budget request within 7 business days.
• If conditional, list and assign the required compliance and data items with deadlines for sign-off.
• Schedule the governance kickoff meeting for year-two rollout with executive sponsors.
• Confirm which pilot acceptance criteria have been met and which have not.
• Document the primary causes for any metric shortfalls with assigned owners for investigation.
• Agree on an immediate decision (pass, conditional pass, or fail) and the follow-up cadence for unresolved items.
• Publish the validated metric dashboard and baseline comparison to the shared workspace.
• Assign investigation owners for each metric variance with deliverable dates.
• Update the shared issues/enhancements register with meeting outcomes and status.
• Context & Pre-work Review
• Capture a prioritized list of adoption blockers directly from counselor users.
• Agree on immediate quick wins and owners to materially improve counselor productivity.
• Establish a short-term enablement plan to address capability gaps and reduce resistance.
• Implement top 2 quick-win fixes (assigned owners) within agreed 2–4 week window.
• Review Agreed Acceptance Criteria
• Impact/Effort Prioritization
• SIS Sync SLAs & Current Status
• Adoption Metrics Snapshot
• Financial & Consequence Analysis
• Compliance & Risk Review
• Roadmap Mapping
• Roundtable: Top 3 Blockers from Counselors
• Reconciliation Findings
• Present Validated Pilot Metrics
• Co-design Mitigations & Quick Wins
• Resource & Timeline Ask for Year-Two Rollout
• Root Cause Deep Dive
• Assign Owners & SLAs
• Gap Analysis & Root Causes
• Prioritize & Assign
• Governance Cadence & Communication
• Remediation Plan & Timelines
• Decision & Conditions
• Decision Mapping
• Training & Enablement Plan
• Monitoring & Escalation
• Next Steps & Owners