Eduventures

Eduventures, Inc. is a privately held research and consulting firm that provides data, analysis and consulting to institutions of higher education and the higher education community. Founded in 1993, it has a sole focus on higher education and as of November 2009 works with over 300 colleges and universities across the United States.

In addition to traditional consulting, Eduventures offers Learning Collaborative programs – shared-cost research programs that conduct strategic and operational research for specific departments or schools within an institution of higher education. Through an annual membership, Learning Collaborative members institutions can commission consulting projects and receive access to large-scale, strategic research studies that draw upon data and practices from across the membership. In addition, members receive access to an online library of previous research, the ability to participate in webinars and meetings with peers, and the opportunity to access Eduventures’ analysts.

The six Eduventures Learning Collaboratives are:

• The Academic Leadership Learning Collaborative
• The Continuing and Professional Education Learning Collaborative
• The Development Learning Collaborative
• The Enrollment Management Learning Collaborative
• The Online Higher Education Learning Collaborative
• The Schools of Education Learning Collaborative

History

The company was founded in 1993 by Michael R. Sandler. A lifelong entrepreneur and graduate of the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, in 1989 Sandler had been appointed a fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where he conducted research on the relationship between business and education. Sandler soon began issuing a yearly “Education Industry Report” that was one of the first attempts to analyze education as an industry sector. Eduventures later expanded its services to include financial research and advice to education entrepreneurs and the venture capital community . From there, Eduventures branched into new areas such as advising publishers and technology providers about the higher education and K-12 markets and began providing traditional strategic consulting to colleges and universities.

In August 2004, Eduventures founded the Continuing and Professional Education Learning Collaborative, its first Learning Collaborative program. Other Learning Collaboratives soon followed, with the Academic Leadership Learning Collaborative launched as the most recent program in March 2008.

Eduventures is financially backed by Knowledge Investment Partners LLC, a group of four investors in Cleveland and New York who specialize in the education and information service sectors, and the Invus Group LLC .

Products and Services

Eduventures Consulting Services

Eduventures Consulting Services (ECS) works with schools and companies looking to overcome strategic and tactical challenges and pursue growth and revenue opportunities.

For institutions of higher education, most ECS projects fall into four broad categories:

• Developing strategic plans
• Prioritizing investments
• Improving decision-making and operational capabilities
• Conducting activity, process, and product audits

For suppliers serving the education market, typical ECS projects include:

• Surveys
• Focus groups
• Sponsorships
• Sponsored speaking engagements
• White papers
• Market messaging

Eduventures Learning Collaboratives

Eduventures offers six Learning Collaborative programs for colleges and universities – shared-cost research programs that conduct both strategic and operational research for their members. An annual fee provides Learning Collaborative members with:

Collaborative Research – Collaborative research studies are large-scale research initiatives that draw upon data or practices from schools across the entire membership. Each Learning Collaborative conducts one to three Collaborative Research studies per year, with the topics chosen by the member institutions.

Custom Analysis – Each Learning Collaborative member can draw upon Eduventures research and analysts to assist them with challenges specific to their institution. This assistance can take many forms: primary or secondary research studies; access to a library of existing research; conversations with Eduventures' analysts; facilitated networking with other member institutions.

Implementation Support – Each Learning Collaborative holds webinars and meetings that allow members to interact with other members, Eduventures analysts and other subject-matter experts. In addition, Eduventures research staff speak with member institutions as needed to provide guidance and data.

According to materials from Eduventures, the missions of the six Eduventures Learning Collaboratives are as follows:

1. The Academic Leadership Learning Collaborative assists provosts and other senior academic leaders by providing data and insight to increase managerial effectiveness at both a school and program level and to measure and improve the success of students and faculty.
2. The Continuing and Professional Education Learning Collaborative helps universities and colleges identify revenue and growth opportunities, improve organizational operational performance, and stay abreast of leading management practices within the continuing and professional education community.
3. The Development Learning Collaborative assists colleges and universities in improving the effectiveness of their institutional advancement efforts by helping them generate new ideas, prioritize investment decisions, benchmark staffing and productivity levels for discussions with internal stakeholders, and improve the professional development of their staff.
4. The Enrollment Management Learning Collaborative helps colleges and universities increase operational efficiency in their marketing and recruitment activities, better measure prospective and current student perceptions and trends, and improve the impact of their financial aid and retention efforts. In addition, it helps members promote student engagement and success.
5. The Online Higher Education Learning Collaborative undertakes market and operational research to help universities and colleges grow their online enrollments, develop strategies for online higher education, and reduce costs through increased operational efficiencies.
6. The Schools of Education Learning Collaborative helps deans and leaders within schools of education by providing data and insight to assist them in improving operational efficiencies, demonstrating accountability in a difficult policy environment, and developing and improving programs to meet the needs and interests of their current and potential students.

Leadership

• Tom Dretler – President & CEO
• Peter Stokes – Executive Vice President & Chief Research Officer
• Abigail Callahan – Managing Vice President, Marketing, Strategy, and Communication
• Don Fabricant – Managing Vice President, Sales and Member Services
• Alicia Martinelli – Managing Vice President, Finance & Operations
• Eric Bassett – Managing Director, Eduventures Consulting Services
• Kristen Fox – Managing Director, Academic Leadership Learning Collaborative, Development Learning Collaborative, Enrollment Management Learning Collaborative & Schools of Education Learning Collaborative
• Richard Garrett – Managing Director, Continuing and Professional Education Learning Collaborative & Online Higher Education Learning Collaborative
• Tim Mann – Program Director and Senior Analyst, Academic Leadership Learning Collaborative
• Kim Reid – Program Director and Senior Analyst, Enrollment Management Learning Collaborative
• Jennifer Zaslow – Program Director and Senior Analyst, Development Learning Collaborative

External links

• http://www.eduventures.com