Continuous Improvement Program | Studer Higher Education

Continuous Improvement

Applying the Studer Education leadership operating system, the 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence, to align goals, behaviors, and processes.

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12-month program

Leading Incremental Change to Transform Daily Practice

Continuous improvement is a disciplined leadership practice that aligns strategy, behaviors, and daily execution to achieve measurable and sustainable results. At Studer Education, we partner with colleges and universities to embed continuous improvement into how leadership teams think, act, and lead every day.

Our approach connects strategic priorities to consistent execution, creating leadership systems that adapt to continuous change and support sustainable performance.

A Leadership-Driven Approach to Continuous Improvement

Studer Education partners with higher education leaders to apply the 9 Pillars of Leadership Excellence and embed improvement into daily leadership practice—creating focus, accountability, and momentum across academic and administrative areas.

PILLAR 1

Aim High to Achieve Excellence

Set high expectations to achieve results while living out mission and values
Cultivate a strategic vision to frame a future path
Design a strategic plan to outline aligned goals and priorities
Operationalize values to define workplace expectations

PILLAR 2

Measure What’s Important

Measure what needs to be improved.
Drive key strategic actions and progress measures to achieve important outcomes.
Set the stage for engaging in improvement conversations that focus on what’s working and what’s not.
Spend time on what truly matters and stop doing things that don’t.

PILLAR 3

Communicate for Alignment

Show how individual roles align to a shared vision and clear goals
Facilitate engaged, data-focused conversations while actively listening to input
Carefully consider how to align key words to help audiences gain insight and understanding.

PILLAR 4

Recognize the Bright Spots

Recognize and celebrate what’s working.
Dig into the details to determine the behaviors and actions that lead to success.
Engage in conversations about lessons learned from the bright spots to encourage more people to adopt them.

PILLAR 5

Value Employees to Show They Matter

Cultivate a positive, supportive, and trusting work environment where employee contributions are valued, recognized, and celebrated.
Develop strategies for gathering input on areas working well and those that need improvements.
Develop employees to continuously get better at their craft.

PILLAR 6

Exceed Customer Expectations

Serve others with great care and concern.
Create positive, memorable experiences that lead to increased customer loyalty and satisfaction.
Proactively anticipate needs and gather feedback to provide value beyond what is promised.

PILLAR 7

Align Goals, Behaviors, and Processes

Apply an execution framework to implement a system for continuous feedback to help teams stay on track and adapt as needed.
Review progress measures and aligned actions periodically to determine areas to adopt, adapt, or abandon.
Where needed, solve complex problems that impede progress. Align resources to priorities.

PILLAR 8

Develop People to Improve and Perform

Develop people to achieve positive results and high performance.
Give regular, specific, and actionable feedback on performance and behavior to help employees understand how they can improve.
Address low-performing behaviors that impede progress.

PILLAR 9

Continuously Improve to Achieve Success

Lead with an improvement mindset, scaling accomplishments, facing challenges as learning opportunities, and building a sustainable system.
Apply feedback loops as a habit of practice.
View setbacks as growth opportunities and persevere to achieve better outcomes.

“Studer Education helps us apply a continuous improvement and culture building approach to how we do business. The strategic visioning and execution process keeps us focused on the right work to build a positive workplace culture, achieve results, and serve our community with innovative, future focused workforce and academic programs.”

Dr. Tina Tinney

Chancellor
Nunez Community College, Louisiana

Empowered leaders.
Aligned teams.
Better outcomes.

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