Case Study #5: How a University Executive Education (UEE) Center grew Revenue by developing the best solutions for its clients

Challenge:  Buyers of Executive Education programs were faced with evolving job profiles for leaders in their organizations. New competencies and experience were becoming required and the programs they invested in to develop executive talent had to reflect these changes. HR leaders needed to have programs to build globally focused, diverse, innovative management teams to compete in rapidly changing markets. Their University partners needed to adapt curricula to these evolving trends.

Solution: The University Executive Education (UEE) program transformed the way that they developed curricula with their clients. They tapped into more of the University’s resources to deliver the most impactful solution. Two tactics were added to the sales process to build the best possible course for clients.

  1. Customized solutions: The UEE focused discovery on the challenges Buyers faced and the results they were looking to achieve. Courses, libraries and faculty were positioned in relation to the unique challenges of each client.
  2. Reviewing Solutions: Courses were reviewed with leadership, Learning & Development, Human Resources and a pilot team of learners. They walked through how the course was developed and changed over time to come to its final state.

Results: The UEE were able to see the results of the new tactics within six months. Quarterly bookings improved 25% YoY. Keys to success included:

  1. 33% higher win rates due to programs being viewed by clients as better and different from any other solution
  2. 12% shorter sales cycles as all departments and teams were able to vet the solution and leave believing that the solution has been properly tested