Every day, offices across campuses field questions from students who need answers fast.
Unfortunately, many staff members find themselves unable to answer thanks to complicated systems and clunky, manual processes.
Managing the siloed systems with multiple logins, different screens and large amounts of student data not only takes longer, but many times, staff end up directing students to other departments altogether. Disparate systems and permissions negatively affect productivity and delay the help students need. Canisius University was dealing with this issue and needed TouchNet’s help to face it head on.
Kevin Smith, Canisius University’s Assistant Vice President and Director of Student Records and Financial Services, was already familiar with TouchNet solutions. When he found out they were releasing Student Account Advisor, he jumped at the opportunity to simplify processes and support students and staff when they need it most.
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"We converted into a one-stop shop around 2017. And this Student Account Advisor was just that last piece, kind of that perfect addition to bring it all together."
Gathering accurate information isn’t the only aspect of student services affected by these incomplete processes. There’s a whole other component when it comes to staff’s ability to efficiently serve students. Traditionally, the institution does not provide access to the ERP, which houses most of the information needed to truly streamline student support. This limits access to key information — such as holds, account balances or financial aid status — that would enable staff across campus to remove barriers and quickly help students.
Without a centralized dashboard or a single source of truth, staff were unable to provide dedicated attention and proactive service. They also needed to offer authorization controls and permissions based on each role so staff could easily access necessary information in a timely manner within a secure, self-service platform.
An all-in one hub for a student-centric approach
Canisius University already used several TouchNet solutions for other needs, but the addition of Student Account Advisor gave them access to a powerhouse product that helped:
- Provide a single, centralized view of student accounts without compromising sensitive information
- Ensure student success and positively impact retention by flagging at-risk students and potential roadblocks
- Empower advisors to personalize their one-on-ones and better support students with efficient, accurate, real-time data at their fingertips
- Take the burden off of staff by offering a solution that’s easy to train across other departments — opening up opportunities to help students on a broader level
- Build a better student experience by making it easy for them to get their issues resolved regardless of the department they reach out to
“Student Account Advisor created a true, one-stop shop experience that enabled the users to assist students and parents when discussing points that are crucial to a student's success.”
From disconnected systems to streamlined workflows
Student Account Advisor allowed Canisius University to completely unify its approach to helping students and parents by providing a holistic view of financial aid, student accounts and academic stats. This game-changing product also made it possible to support students better while taking some stress off of staff members and advisors.
It’s a significant resource in terms of saving time, boosting retention and equipping staff with all the tools they need to truly make a difference in the overall student experience.
"TouchNet is ahead of the curve and it always has products before other online payment providers."
Want to hear more? Listen to our podcast episode with Kevin.
If you’re ready to get started, request a demo today.