AQIP Strategy Forum

1. AQIP Strategy Forum April 25 – 27, 2012 Chicago, IL

2. Who was there? • Kerry Hart, MCC President • Susan Clough, Vice President of Finance • Betty McKie, Vice President of Instruction • Kent Bauer, Vice President of Student Success • Derek Grubb, Director of Institutional Effectiveness • Kathy Frisbie, Faculty, Chair of the Health Sciences Division, and Chair of Strategic Planning Team • Greg Thomas, Faculty, AQIP Liaison

3. Why we went • Necessary for Reaccreditation. • To strategize ways to improve effectiveness at our institution. • To share with and learn from other institutions.

4. Importance of Accreditation • Keeps our doors open • Assures the public of quality in its educational institutions

5. Importance of Quality Improvement • Earmark of a successful organization

6. What did we do? • The first half of the Strategy Forum was focused on the development of an action project in an area we as an institution recognize as needing improvement. • The second half was focused on developing a quality culture initiative.

7. Action Project • The area we as an institution recognized prior to the forum as needing improvement was Category 7, “Measuring Effectiveness” • Why? • The Portfolio Appraisal Report from AQIP repeatedly brought it to our attention. • We ourselves see the need to better document how we use data in making institutional decisions.

8. What is the project? • Title: “Aligning Data Needs and Processes” • Focus is on better aligning data needs to decision making processes at every level of college operations. • To be initiated in the Fall, when everyone is back from summer break.

9. Quality Culture Initiative • What is the state of our quality culture now? • What can we do to improve it?

10. Culture Survey • Prior to the Forum MCC employees participated in an online quality climate survey. • Gives us a snapshot of our current quality climate. • Results from all 14 participating institutions were compiled. • The identities of individual institutions were kept confidential. • The data revealed our standing in sixteen distinct aspects of institutional climate.

11. Aspects of quality climate • Institution Focus • Institution Integration • Locus of Authority • Management Style • Performance Orientation • Reward Orientation • Stakeholder Orientation • Identification with the Institution • Conflict Resolution • Culture Management • Disposition Toward Change • Employee Participation • Evidence-based Orientation • Goal Clarity • Human Resources Orientation • Task Structure

12. Understanding the results • 6 point scale 0 = lowest 6 = highest 3 = neutral • Code • Green bar = the average score of all 14 participating institutions • MCC = institution “Y”

13. Conflict Resolution • The degree to which the institution encourages its employees to air conflicts and criticisms openly.

15. Culture Management • The extent to which the institution actively and deliberately strives to shape the culture it wants through conscious, intentional actions.

17. Disposition Toward Change • The degree to which employees are creative and innovative, and constantly search for better ways of getting the job done.

19. Employee Participation • The extent to which employees participate in the decision-making processes of the institution.

21. Evidence-based Orientation • [Awaiting exact definition from AQIP].

23. Goal Clarity • The degree to which the institution creates clear objectives and performance expectations.

25. Human Resources Orientation • The extent to which the institution has high regard for its human resources.

27. Identification with the Institution • The degree to which employees identify with the institution.

29. Institution Focus • The extent to which the insitution concentrates on those activities that constitute the fundamentals of its business.

31. Institution Integration • The degree to which the parts of the institution operate in a coordinated way by co-operating effectively towards the achievement of overall institutional objectives.

33. Locus of Authority • The degree of responsibility, freedom, and independence that individual employees have.

34. Locus of Authority • The degree of responsibility, freedom, and independence that individual employees have.

35. Management Style • The degree to which managers provide clear communication, assistance, and support to their subordinates.

37. Performance Orientation • The extent to which individuals are held accountable for clearly defined results and a high level of performance.

39. Reward Orientation • The degree to which performance determines recognition and rewards.

41. Stakeholder Orientation • The extent to which the institution seriously seeks out and actively responds to the views of its students and stakeholders.

43. Task Structure • The degree to which rules, regulations, and direct supervision are applied to manage employee behavior.

45. What does all this mean? • MCC rocks!

46. A note of caution • Participating institutions were instructed to have at least 50 employees complete the survey. • MCC had a return of about 42. • The fewer people surveyed, the less reliable the results.

47. What we learned at the forum • We’re on the right path. • We’re never done. • How we improve is up to us. • Internally determined, not externally mandated.

48. Strategy Forum Team

49. Hard at work

50. What is that thing crawling up the side of his face?