CRM Strategic Initiatives
Overview
When projects command priority in the IT department's annual schedule, they are elevated as a Strategic Initiative, earning precedence and our full resources.
Data 360
The Salesforce Data 360 Strategy for Pepperdine University aims to harmonize data, resolve identity, and drive actionable insights to support University leadership's request for expanded unified institutional reporting and to establish a single source of truth.
Phase One
The Data 360 initiative, currently deployed on the Waves Org, integrates applicant data from Slate (Seaver Undergraduate) and Unite (CSOL) to provide a comprehensive reporting funnel. The first phase of this project centers on data cleanliness and application visibility through the harmonization of Waves recruitment data and identity resolution to create a unified view of prospective students. Additionally, Einstein Modeling and calculated insights have been deployed to improve activation and segment targeting.
Strategy
The long-term strategy involves expanding these harmonization and resolution efforts
across broader university data sets to build holistic constituent profiles and leverage
AI for data-driven decision-making. As Data 360 matures into a single source of truth,
the focus will shift toward operationalizing this intelligence for the benefit of
the entire Waves community, including prospective and current students, families,
faculty, and alumni.
Key components of this expansion include:
- Integration of further data sources, such as PeopleSoft, Cvent, and Raiser's Edge.
- The transition from data warehousing to actionable intelligence, utilizing predictive analytics to support student success and academic excellence.
The implementation of Salesforce Data 360 at Pepperdine University establishes a centralized data and analytics foundation designed to provide a unified, trusted view of the recruitment and admissions funnel. Initiated to fulfill university leadership's request for comprehensive institutional reporting, the project harmonizes disparate data into a single source of truth for actionable insights.
Engaging Waves
The "Engaging Waves" Initiative is a strategic effort rooted in Pepperdine University’s mission to strengthen student success, elevate our institutional value, and foster a connected community. By adopting a constituent-centric approach, we seek to enhance the Pepperdine experience from the very first point of connection.
A Unified Approach to Student Success
Anchored by the adoption of Salesforce as our centralized Constituent Relationship
Management (CRM) solution, Engaging Waves unites the University's faculty, staff,
and core operations. To fully accomplish our goals, this ecosystem also integrates
powerful, university-centric tools including Salesforce Marketing Cloud for intentional,
coordinated University communication and Cvent for dynamic University event management.
Currently focusing our efforts on prospective and enrolled students, their families,
and our dedicated team, we are streamlining processes specifically across recruitment,
enrollment, and student retention. Together, this unified suite of tools empowers
us to thoughtfully anticipate the needs of our community and deliver exceptional,
personalized service that supports each student's academic journey and personal growth.
Why an Enterprise CRM?
At Pepperdine, CRM is more than innovative technology; it is a leadership-driven strategy. It allows us to transition from isolated systems to a single, scalable enterprise platform. This solution empowers all facets of the University to collaborate seamlessly as one institution, while crucially ensuring that each of our schools retains the autonomy to define and execute its own unique strategic processes.
Cultivating Lifelong Relationships
By transforming how we manage recruitment, events, communications, and student data today, we are laying the vital groundwork for a comprehensive CRM lifecycle approach. This journey begins the moment a student feels called to explore Pepperdine, is carefully nurtured throughout their academic career on campus, and will eventually support a seamless, lifelong relationship with every Wave.