Strategic Plan, Elevate '28,
Objectives and Goals

Office of Advancement
Vice President
Marly Norris

Strategic Priority: Student Success   

Objective 1: Broaden alumni engagement to help students build connections to the institution and each other.

  • Goal 1: Conduct an initial audit to establish a baseline of alumni engagement with departments across the university and create a collaborative group from those departments to strategize the most effective use of alumni to contribute to student success. Subsequent to the audit, expand alumni engagement to help students build connections to the institution and each other by an identified percentage annually, based on baseline.
  • Goal 2: In year one, work with the alumni board to clarify mission, priorities and short-term, measurable goals, as well as strategies for how best to achieve them. In years two through five, implement working groups focused on those short-term goals, and create mechanisms for goal tracking and membership review process.

Objective 2: Grow support for university strategic priorities, with a focus on student success initiatives.

  • Goal 1: Establish annual revenue goals for individual programs in year one. Revisit annually to determine if additional funds are needed and to gauge success and sustainability of funding for programs for students and donor perspectives.

Strategic Priority: Academic and Inclusive Excellence

Objective 1: Build university-wide awareness of SUNY Empire philanthropic opportunities to empower academic/program faculty and staff to participate in and support academic and inclusive excellence initiatives. 

  • Goal 1: In year one, develop a leadership training program (cabinet, deans, and director levels) to build capacity for community and fundraising engagement that promotes SUNY Empire's academic and inclusive excellence. In years two through five, expand participation with a goal of training 100% of leadership by year five.
  • Goal 2: In year one, develop tools to educate faculty and program-level staff on seeking outside funding, and establish a schedule for presenting/engaging with each department on an annual basis in subsequent years, with a goal of at least one member of each department trained by year five.

Objective 2: Engage the Office of Advancement as academic and inclusive excellence strategic goals are established by other divisions to support with funding opportunities.

  • Goal 1: As early as possible in the strategic plan and priority development process, identify programs and initiatives with the best potential for collaboration and fundability; implement the collaboration in years two through five through pursuit of outside funding; increase requests to outside funders, as well as funding by identified percentage annually relative to the baseline metric.

Strategic Priority: Organizational Effectiveness 

Objective 1: Reinvigorate Foundation Board to increase contributions (time, talent, treasure) to institution.

  • Goal 1: In year one, work with the appropriate committee of the Foundation Board to holistically assess the current board. In years two through five, seek to add 5-7 new board members with skills and capacity that diversify the board membership and meet university needs.
  • Goal 2: Increase board giving by an identified percentage annually relative to the baseline metric. Baseline and annual goal percentage to be established in 2023.

Objective 2: Review and restructure Office for Advancement operations to maximize effectiveness and grow staff engagement with other departments.

  • Goal 1: Align performance programs, resources, and professional development opportunities with strategic priorities, including the establishment of metrics for all team members.
  • Goal 2: In year one, review data systems and ease of reporting on measurables, streamline processes, and implement appropriate software solutions to enable accurate, timely reporting on relevant data. In years two through five, implement a continuous improvement, evidence- and accountability-driven advancement operation.

Strategic Priority: Raising our Public Profile 

Objective 1: Increase contributed revenue to support strategic goals established by other departments.

  • Goal 1: Establish revenue goal increase by an identified percentage annually relative to the baseline metric to be established in year one.
  • Goal 2: Grow donor retention rate by an identified percentage annually relative to the baseline metric to be established in year one.
  • Goal 3: Reinvigorate employee giving by an identified percentage annually relative to the baseline metric to be established in year one.
  • Goal 4: Build corporate and foundation relations program with an executive director to be hired in year one, and goals established for years two through five after a baseline is determined.

Objective 2: Position the Office for Advancement as an internal and external resource for the institution.

  • Goal 1: Plan and execute increased events across the state (both alumni and community) by an identified percentage annually based on baseline, as well as on surveys of audiences (to be established in year one).
  • Goal 2: Seek opportunities to work with other departments, such as partnerships and sponsored programs, to maximize revenue through the work of the executive director of corporate and foundation relations. Establish baseline in year one and determine goals and annual percentage increase from that baseline in years two through five.