Services
Services:
Chris Sax Consulting (CSC) supports members of the higher education industry in the achievement of their goals. Engagements with a range of perspectives are welcome, including
• single institutions or organizations
• multi-institution collaborations, consortia, and systems
• departments and programs
• professional learning communities
• individuals professionals
D7 Appreciative Inquiry Model
CSC’s D7 Appreciative Inquiry model is a collaborative and strengths-based approach. A growth mindset on the part of the consultant and the client are valued and emphasized. CSC’s D7 model is based on the founding theoretical work in Appreciative Inquiry of David Cooperrider.
Define:
Define the purpose of engagement with CSC. What are your goals?
Discovery:
Discover your foundation for building. What are your strengths? In what ways and by what means have you been successful in the past? How are you unique?
Dream:
Dream about the future and all that it could be. What is your vision for the future? What is your strategic focus? When your goals are achieved, what are the broad positive impacts?
Discern:
Discern the environment in which you are operating. What can you change? What is not under your control? What are the challenges?
Design:
Design how you can achieve your goals. What are the possible pathways to achieve your imagined future? What is needed to make each successful? How well positioned are you for these possibilities?
Deploy:
Deploy strategies to achieve your goals. What pathway will you choose to achieve your imagined future? What actions will you take?
Determine:
Determine success. What was the impact of engagement with CSC? Were your goals achieved? What adjustments are needed?
Methods
Engagements are driven by clients’ goals and context, leading to relevant and meaningful outcomes. The process begins with an exploration of the clients’ overarching purpose and objectives, organizational culture, strengths, opportunities, aspirations, and challenges to build the consultant’s situational awareness.
An initial Scope of Work Statement addresses the define phase of the D7 Model. A final Written Report addresses the discovery, dream, design, and deploy phases. The determine phase is addressed through the client’s ongoing feedback and final formal evaluation, as well as 3-month and 6-month post-project check ins with the client.
CSC uses tools and rubrics based in national professional standards and adapts them to clients’ needs to provide benchmarked guidance. Qualitative and quantitative methodologies are used, as appropriate to the engagement.
Essential Services
Specialty Services
CSC provides services in five specialty areas:
Accreditation:
Institutional and programmatic accreditation services include a specialty in using evidence to demonstrate compliance; benchmarking and gap analysis to accreditation standards; preparation and review of accreditation reports; facilitation of the accreditation self-study process; staff and faculty training on accreditation-related topics.
Assessment and Effectiveness:
A wide range of services are available for academic and institutional assessment and effectiveness. Services include: situational assessment and recommendations related to operations, workflow, processes, practices, projects, programs, and services, including key performance indicators, benchmarking, and gap analysis; evaluation and recommendations related to assessment and effectiveness practices, tools, and systems; preparation and/or review of assessment plans and reports, rubrics, and evaluative checklists and criteria; development, administration, and analysis of surveys; training on academic and non-academic assessment and effectiveness topics.
Strategic Planning:
Opportunities for engagement include review and assessment of strategic plans; facilitation of the strategic planning process; and SWOT, SOAR, SCORE, and NOISE analysis.
Programs and Curriculum:
Academic program and curriculum services include external programmatic reviews; program portfolio review and exploration of new program opportunities; design and development of new programs; development of curriculum standards, policies, and guidelines; development of program and course guides for students and faculty; review of programs and courses for diversity, equity, and inclusion principles; and training on program and curriculum topics.
Online Education:
Opportunities for engagement include online education strategic planning, assessment of readiness, and implementation; online, hybrid, and remote pedagogy; design, development, and review of online programs and online courses; analysis of online student and faculty needs and services.
General Services
CSC provides services in five general areas:
Professional Development:
Enhancement opportunities for individuals and groups are available through online (synchronous and asynchronous) and in-person trainings, presentations, mentoring, and professional learning communities.
Ideation:
Facilitated or on-call individual or group brainstorming, and scoping of topics for articles and presentations.
Review and Feedback:
Receive expert review and feedback about plans, reports, proposals, presentations, and other key documents. Feedback includes strengths, opportunities for enhancement, and alignment with best practices, recognized standards, and diversity, equity, and inclusion principles.
Data Analysis:
Quantitative and qualitative data analysis, interpretation, and preparation for presentation, including survey outcomes and qualitative theme analysis and summaries.
Writing:
Preparation of plans, reports, proposals, award applications, and grant applications.