Transforming the Advisor-Student Relationship Using Salesforce Education Cloud

Author

mirketa

September 22, 2021

How can higher education institutions increase student retention rates? How can they provide students with the best advisory plans to help them achieve their goals? How can they scale the efficiency of advisors managing multiple students, each with unique needs?

If these are concerns for your institution, Salesforce Education Cloud offers a solution!

In a survey conducted by Salesforce.org, student support was identified as the most difficult indicator to track, despite it being one of the most frequently monitored activities. Many respondents (32%) found accessing and reporting student success data “a little difficult.” Furthermore, over 60% of respondents retrieved student information by asking colleagues, searching spreadsheets, or reviewing electronic documents. However, 37% of respondents found it “difficult” or “very difficult” to share and collaborate on student data.

The dominant student counseling model is a hybrid approach, with both the central counseling department and students initiating interactions (44%). The second most common model involves active student support provided solely by the central counseling department (29%). These insights show that despite existing infrastructure, advising management can create or exacerbate challenges.

Salesforce Advisor Link: The Ultimate Solution for Advisory Services

Effective advising and recommendations are critical to academic success. Students need advisors who understand their journey—from application and enrollment to academic and career achievements. A well-structured advising process fosters a sense of belonging and improves student retention. Salesforce Advisor Link enables advisors to connect with students, identify risk patterns, and ensure academic success with ease.

The demand for enhanced advisory services has evolved. Students now expect their advisors to understand their complete academic journey, personal challenges, and career aspirations. Salesforce consulting partners and Salesforce CRM consulting services can help institutions optimize Salesforce Advisor Link to meet these demands. Whether advising on academics, sports, financial aid, or career planning, Salesforce Service Cloud implementation empowers advisors with real-time insights and collaboration tools.

Key Features of Salesforce Advisor Link

One-Stop Solution

Manage students’ progress on a unified screen with the Advisor Console, which offers insights into student participation, academic plans, and affiliations. Institutions can also leverage Salesforce custom application development to tailor Advisor Link to their unique advisory models. Over time, all advisors and support staff can collaborate under a unified consulting agreement.

Mobile Appointment Scheduling

Advisors can define their availability and consultation topics (e.g., career, academics, finance). Students can book, modify, or cancel appointments directly through their phones. Integration with Salesforce managed services ensures seamless synchronization with advisors’ calendars, enabling them to review meeting notes and follow-up actions from any device.

Meeting Management

Waiting room and front desk management are simplified with automated check-in and queue coordination. Salesforce implementation companies can assist institutions in integrating these functionalities to improve student-advisor interactions.

Easy Connect

Students can effortlessly connect with their advisors and support teams, which may include academic advisors, career counselors, coaches, and financial aid advisors. Salesforce Service Cloud integration ensures that all student interactions are accessible in one place.

Student Segmentation for Targeted Advising

Advisors can categorize students based on various criteria, such as “High Performers,” “At Risk,” or “Out-of-State Students.” These categorizations enable Salesforce Analytics Cloud to provide predictive insights, allowing institutions to offer proactive support.

Degree Planning & Graduation Tracking

Advisors can create customized learning plans to ensure students graduate on time. By utilizing Salesforce financial service cloud, institutions can also track students’ financial aid status and provide better guidance for tuition and scholarship planning.

Real-Time Alerts for Proactive Support

Salesforce CRM consulting services enable institutions to configure automated alerts based on academic performance data from Student Information Systems (SIS) and Learning Management Systems (LMS). Faculty and staff can also record manual alerts that are forwarded to academic advisors.

Scalable Communication & Engagement

Pre-built email and SMS templates allow institutions to automate appointment reminders, deadline notifications, and motivational messages. Cloud services Salesforce ensures seamless execution of these communications, helping students stay on track academically.

Conclusion: Empowering Advisors and Students for Success

Positive student experiences and personalized recommendations significantly impact retention and graduation rates. Advisors play a crucial role in shaping these experiences, but they need Salesforce consulting services and smart tools to scale their impact.

Salesforce Advisor Link, built on Salesforce Service Cloud implementation and powered by Salesforce Analytics Cloud, provides advisors with cutting-edge tools, including EDA, Einstein AI, and real-time insights. By working with Salesforce consulting companies, institutions can unlock the full potential of Advisor Link and transform student advising.

Higher education institutions looking to streamline advising services should consider engaging with Salesforce implementation partners in India or Salesforce implementation companies in the USA to deploy Salesforce Advisor Link effectively. This will ensure a seamless experience for students and advisors, ultimately leading to better academic and career outcomes.

Pranshu Goyal, Director of Products at Mirekta, states: “We envision DSM to be used by every small to a medium-sized organization dealing with bad data and want to get rid of duplicates easily with no cost. We have faced issues dealing with duplicates in our organization. That inspired us to make a solution that is not only simple to use but can be used widely to make the organization’s data clean to make them more efficient and productive. We want DSM to be a solution for every organization looking for duplicate management capability better than the Salesforce out-of-the-box solution with no additional cost.”