Inholland: stakeholder research
There is no educational institution that can do without good cooperation with the business community. Especially when students need to put the knowledge they have learned into practice, the business field is a necessary component. Inholland has this same idea and wants to establish and maintain long-term collaborations with the business community. To achieve this, it is important to provide insight into how the business community views educational institutions, and in this case Inholland in particular.
Challenge
- How does the business field know the educational institution?
- What are their experiences with the educational institution?
- Where are opportunities for long-term collaboration?
Blauw was asked to take a close look at these issues. Using a stakeholder research, we engaged with business relations of Inholland in order to create valuable and insightful results for the further development of a sustainable cooperation.
Vision
What does Inholland want to achieve with the research?
Inholland wants to be a valuable partner for the business community and expects the same from the business community the other way around. With a sharp positioning, Inholland wants to respond effectively to the criteria used by the business market in choosing a partnership with an educational institution. In order to strengthen cooperation and seize opportunities to expand it further, Blauw set itself the goal of gaining insight into the basis on which the business community makes choices of possible cooperation partners in education.
- What characteristics should education have to be a valuable collaboration partner for business?
- What norms and values play an important role for companies in the selection process?
Solution
Going in depth with business partners
In order to get a picture of how the business community views cooperation with the educational field, we talked to various business relations of Inholland throughout the Netherlands. The industries in which these companies operate range from culture to finance and from education to ICT. A broad palette, spread across the breadth of the Netherlands. In order to tackle these interviews as efficiently as possible, we conducted them by means of 25 individual telephone interviews. In this way, we were able to speak to the various companies in a short period of time and create a deeper picture of individual views.
Our focus during these conversations is on the following points:
- The perception and expectations companies have in working with the educational field.
- The experience of cooperation with educational institutions, and in particular the experience with Inholland.
- What important criteria or elements played a role in the final choice of a partnership with an educational institution. Here we entered the orientation prior to the selection process to the final choice.
- Finally, we addressed the norms and values relevant to Inholland, seeking recognition and appreciation of these among the companies.
The insights generated from the above points will help Inholland further in determining an effective (communication) strategy and an appealing positioning towards the business market.
Result
Conclusion: Inholland as indispensable factor for business
Education is an indispensable and valuable cooperation partner. Companies neither want nor can they do without it. Inholland is one of these important partners that the field does not want to miss. The companies expect Inholland to be proactive and to take the initiative to start the conversation. To then look for opportunities together and promote long-term cooperation. There is no reason for the business community to stop cooperation, this only leads to a lack of valuable knowledge sharing and development with and by teachers and students. The future of business requires input from the field of education and vice versa the same is true. This makes them two inseparable partners.
Want to know how stakeholders view your organization?
Have a stakeholder research conducted. With this, you test easily:
- What (positive) perceptions stakeholders have regarding the organization.
- How satisfied they are and what expectations they have about the relationship and cooperation.
- How satisfied stakeholders are with the organization's performance and services.
- How communication from the organization is evaluated.
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