CASE STUDY
Hargrave Military Academy
How Hargrave Military Academy Switched Systems to Report With Ease & Make the Admissions Process a Breeze
In order to serve their families and stay at the top of their game, the Hargrave Military Academy team needed a student enrollment management system that would provide parents with a simple and enjoyable experience and make the admissions process a breeze for their families and their team.
At A Glance
Hargrave Military Academy is a private, all-male military boarding school serving grades 7-12 in Chatham, Virginia with an optional postgraduate year. The school focuses on the holistic development of young men, seeking to train them up to be leaders of character and prepare them for lifelong success.
The Problem: An Outdated, Laborious Tool
Before the admissions team at Hargrave Military Academy began using Finalsite Enrollment, the system they were using made it difficult to complete tasks, run reports, and learn basic functions. It didn’t live up to expectations for their office, and it wasn’t ideal for parents. As Wesley McClure, Director of Admissions at Hargrave Military Academy explained, “Our primary pain point was the difficulty of use in the system, both from the parent perspective as well as from the admin perspective on the backside. Our previous CRM was clunky, outdated, and challenging to use from the parent perspective.”
Parents complained about difficult data entry, and the system didn’t always save data properly leading to applications and progress being lost. Their team also struggled to remain as efficient as they wanted. They needed a system that fit their goals and offered them the tools they needed to enhance their process.
The Solution: A User-Friendly System with Valuable Features
One of the primary reasons Wes said they chose the product was because of the ease of use offered on both ends of the product and the way it enhanced the parent experience. “We wanted something to look fresh and new and clean that would not hinder parents from diving into that online application process. (It) has a clean, attractive look. It’s not hard for parents to look at it and know what to do. The format is straightforward and the auto-save features improved the parent performance. We’ve had numerous compliments from parents about the ease of process and how simple it is to use,” Wes said.
The team also uses many of the products features to enhance data collection, easily communicate with families, track progress, and store and retrieve the data they want in an efficient manner.
Wes shared, “It gives us the ability to automate communications that are lighter touches without taking away from the personalized experience. The software gives us the ability to truly track what we’re doing. I love the checklist, notes, and actions on the side panel. And I love that everything is searchable because you can go in and see how each aspect impacts your performance. It has the granular data analysis we were looking for. We can pull reports and data and manage parents through the admissions process with everything from reminders and checklists, to email automation and communication to the ability to pull reports very simply. You don’t need a master’s degree in database management to be able to pull a report and that was a big win for us.”
“As an admissions office leader, I know that it's the best software on the market and I would challenge anyone to take it up and use it. I think they'll find that it not only improves their processes but it also helps improve their family experience tremendously.”
WESLEY MCCLURE | DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS
HARGRAVE MILITARY ACADEMY
The Result: A Positive User Experience (UX) and Customer Experience (CX)
“(It) came in and helped us simplify things making our team more efficient, and creating a smooth and easy parent process so families have a better experience as they engage with us in the admissions journey. (It) functions in the same way the admissions process flows, it functions like we think, and that makes it easy to use. You don’t have to learn things differently in order to be able to use this system. We’ve been able to tailor it to our needs internally, and also to our family’s needs. That has helped us have greater customer satisfaction and increase the comfort level of our staff with our software on the backside.” Wes expressed.
The product helps the Hargrave Academy team provide an unmatched experience for their families with a clean interface and great user experience on both ends. “We looked at a lot of systems, but nobody’s look, functionality, customer support, or ease of use could come close to Finalsite Enrollment,” Wes added. “We’re no longer dealing with challenges related to data entry or retrieval. The search and report functions are very robust and yet very simple to use.”
The whole team is able to do more with a student enrollment management system that meets their needs. They have also been impressed by the customer support offered. McClure said, “The customer service is top-notch. From implementation all the way through to today, they never fail to be 100% supportive. They don’t just simply resolve issues, they also help you learn how to do things yourself in the future and provide tips and techniques to help you manage the system and get more out of it. They’ve been phenomenal and very helpful.”
“If I had a friend who was considering trying (the product), I would tell them to go ahead and make the move. It’s one that they won’t regret. I doubt they can move into a software system that would be better or that they’re leaving one that’s better. I don’t feel like there’s really anything at stake for them. As an admissions office leader, I know that this is the best software on the market and I would challenge anyone to take it up and use it. I think they’ll find that it not only improves their processes but it also helps improve their family experience tremendously. As families go through the admissions process and look at other schools, one way you can stand out is by making your admissions process as straightforward as possible. Finalsite Enrollment does that extremely well, I’m not aware of anyone that does it better,” Wes remarked.
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