Effat University Strategic Plan 2022-2027

Effat University Strategic Plan 2022 -2027

Innovation and Digital Transformation

Contents

1. President’s Message

2. Effat Vision, Mission, and Goals

3. 2017-2022 Strategic Plan Achievement & Gap Analysis

4. Strategic Context

5. Methodology for the Strategic Plan

6. Summary of Market Scan Findings

7. Strategic Area 1: Mission, Vision, and Strategic Planning

• Objectives

• Action by Initiatives

• Risk Management

9. Strategic Area 2: Governance, Leadership, and Management

• Objectives

• Action by Initiatives

• Risk Management

10. Strategic Area 3: Teaching & Learning

• Objectives

• Action by Initiatives

• Risk Management

11. Strategic Area 4: Students

• Objectives

• Action by Initiatives

• Risk Management

12. Strategic Area 5: Faculty & Staff

• Objectives

• Action by Initiatives

• Risk Management

13. Strategic Area 6: Institutional Resources

• Objectives

• Action by Initiatives

• Risk Management

14. Strategic Area 7: Research & Innovation

• Objectives

• Action by Initiatives

• Risk Management

15. Strategic Area 8: Community Engagement

• Objectives

• Action by Initiatives

• Risk Management

16. Implementation Plan

• Implementation Guide

» Standing Committees

» Task and Finish Groups

• Navigating the Implementation Plan

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE

Effat University is the living legacy of its founder, Her Royal Highness Queen Effat Al-Thunayan Al-Saud (may God rest her soul), the pioneer of female education in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Established in 1999, the university has modelled itself on a broad liberal arts American style of higher education, emphasizing a holistic, inclusive, diversified educational experience for students and preparing them to be effective future ambassadors of Queen Effat’s legacy.

Crafting a Post-Pandemic strategy for a college or university requires attention to two external forces that have shaped the future outlook for higher education around the world, the cost of higher education and the digital educational technologies. Living through Covid-19 crisis has actually inspired creativity, critical reflection, transformation, and desire for renewal among faculty, staff, administrators, parents, alumni, and society as a whole.

I truly believe that a university is an amalgamation of its people and values. The Students, Board of Founders, Board of Trustees, Faculty and Staff, and Alumni have played a role of paramount importance in their unwavering support and counsel. Before we dive into the details of the Strategic Plan 2022-2027, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all the people involved in making Effat University what it is today. With the same commitment and dedication displayed by everyone in the past, I am certain that we will together take Effat University to new heights.

Effat University’s Strategic Plan 2022-2027 (the fifth of its kind) emphasizes on innovation, by inspiring everyone at Effat University to be a part of a digital transformation journey. This is a strong reflection of a nation-wide movement towards achieving Vision 2030 and the announcement of national aspirations and priorities of Saudi Arabi’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for the research, development, and innovation section. This will be achieved by empowering and engaging the stakeholders, optimizing the operations, encouraging innovative research and development, as well as providing top notch services centered around the success of students.

We are calling this strategy, Innovation and Digital Transformation.

The focus of this Strategic Plan 2022-2027 is to: i) enhance the mission and vision of the university in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 ii) strongly infuse the culture of innovation into the heart of university’s core values iii) provide a top-class learning environment and state-of-the-art facilities to enhance student experience iv) develop sustainable financial planning and management v) strongly support both professional and personal development of the faculty and staff vi) create long lasting impact with a focus on research-oriented philosophy vii) create and upscale partnerships with various entities and ramp up community presence viii) feature in the top five universities of Saudi Arabia and top 800 universities in the world.

In this strategic plan, Effat university will experience the transformation to become a co-educational institution. The decision for Effat University to co-educate was made for a demand/supply reason, as well as to maintain a competitive edge over other similar higher educational institutions in the kingdom and ensure its standing as a successful and competitive liberal arts university. In promoting the advancement of a co-educational institution, and in my capacity as a president of Effat university I formed an ad hoc committee to specifically discuss this issue in 2018. The committee produced a report stating the reasons why it would benefit Effat university to become co-educational. The committee suggested that it would be better to have male in the classroom to improve the quality, diversity, and inclusiveness of student body as well as improve campus life. Furthermore, the university would more likely become stronger because it would draw more students who were interested in studying at Effat University. The Board of Trustees read the recommendation and believed that the inclusion of male into the university would increase its reputation nationally and internationally and support the financial sustainability of the institution. Since the university had the space to accommodate male students, the Board hopes that the ratio of male to female will grow gradually to 1:1 by 2027 and the undergraduate student body would consist of 2418 student by 2027. Therefore, in January 2022 based on positive consensus from the student body, faculty and staff, University Council, and

based on the Board of Trustees recommendation, the Ministry of Education agreed to make Effat University co-educational starting in the Spring of 2022.

Effat University has successfully navigated and overcome the adversities posed by the pandemic over the course of the last few years. Despite the challenges, I take pride in the way Effat University has continued to deliver high quality education and nurture supreme talent true to the ethos of the founders. The refreshed and rejuvenated Strategic Plan 2022-2027 will continue to unlock more opportunities for Effat University while serving as a guide to triumph over any challenges. The future is very exciting and full of opportunities. I am both excited and honored to be a part of this exhilarating journey with you.

VISION MISSION GOALS

Effat University strives to be recognized among the world’s higher educational institutions contributing to scientific discovery and innovation presenting solutions to societal challenges and serving as an agent of change that advances inspired leaders and scholars in fulfilling Queen Effat Al-Thunayan Al-Saud’s vision.

Effat University prepares aspirational and effective leaders of international quality who contribute to national and global progress by interweaving Effat University Core Values into an innovative education which creates a culture of broad inquiry, intellectual engagement, and valuable societal impact.

The strategic plan of EU is focused to enhance EU’s national and international recognition by deepening its presence, impact and contribution to the social, cultural and economic vitality of the Saudi 2030 vision. EU’s strategic road map broadly consists of eight goals that form the heart and soul of the strategic plan. They are as follows:

Goal 1: Monitor the achievement of Effat University’s mission and vision in line with the Saudi Vision 2030.

Goal 2: Enhance the governance system to support institutional and program accreditations as well as national and international rankings.

Goal 3: Develop and maintain a culture of excellence in teaching and learning to make Effat University an icon of excellence in higher education.

Goal 4: Enhance the university students’ quality of life to prepare experts and leaders that uphold the legacy of Queen Effat (God rest her soul).

Goal 5: Foster a culture of innovation in the University’s work environment to make it a place of choice for the best faculty and staff.

Goal 6: Provide highly effective shared services to create sustainable learning and working environment that meet the university needs and future growth.

Goal 7: Build a knowledge community that generates creative ideas and innovations to meet future challenges and contribute to the achievement of Saudi Vision 2030.

Goal8:StrengthentheUniversity’svisibilitybybuildingrelationsandexchanging knowledge with communities nationally and internationally.

2017-2022 STRATEGIC PLAN ACHIEVEMENTS

& GAP ANALYSIS

Achievements of the 2017-2022 Strategic Plan

Research Outcome - Effat University has been successful in producing in terms of quantity and quality the research outcome it has planned for its five-year strategic plan (2017-2022) which amounted to almost 2000 research in Scopus and ISI high factor journals. Several Effat Faculty featured in the top 2% researchers in the world.

Teaching and Learning - Faculty of Effat University continued enhancing their performance in delivering quality teaching in all courses by obtaining their international certification for teaching at universities from Advance HE and were fully trained and successful in conducting effective on-line teaching and assessments during the COVID-19.

Accreditations - Besides maintaining national accreditation from NCAAA for all its eligible undergraduate programs and master programs, Effat University maintained international accreditation of its Effat College of Engineering programs from ABET and obtained international accreditation for the Architecture program from NAAB, as well as all the programs of Effat College of Business from AACSB.

Ranking - Effat University was ranked among the top 61-70 Arab Universities by QS and 71-80 universities by THE. Graduates’ Employability Rate - Effat University graduates continue to have high records of employability and graduate studies that are around 75%.

Outcomes of Gap Analysis of 2017-2022 Strategic Plan

Number of Students - The numbers of enrolled students were less than the projected numbers.

Ranking - Effat University was ranked among the top 61-70 Arab Universities by QS and 71-80 universities by THE but has not entered their world rankings yet.

International Accreditation achieved national accreditations for all its bachelor programs and 3 out of 4 graduate programs as well as ABET, NAAB and AACSB accreditation, and is still working on institutional international accreditation.

Community Partnerships - Effat University has some major community partnerships but needs to expand its relations and their social impact.

STRATEGIC CONTEXT

Effat University (EU), a private university founded in 1999, is a successful institution that has been creative and imaginative in its offerings and has succeeded in both national and international accreditation.

To further strengthen its strategic market position during 2022-2027, Effat University’s new Strategic Plan 2022-2027, based on the theme – Innovation and Digital Transformation, aims to contribute to the nation’s overarching Vision 2030 and to continue to develop and strengthen its position in the city of Jeddah, the Hijaz region, the nation, and internationally.

Our Strategic Plan is firmly focused on the future, aiming to build on the ambition and potential of the younger generation by offering a broad academic offering that is both challenging and relevant.

In order to engage fully with Vision 2030, the Strategic Plan focuses on the provision of educational experiences that will enable our students to contribute to the Kingdom economically and culturally, with an entrepreneurial approach and an innovative spirit. Our academic programs are set to develop, opening up new opportunities for meeting the future needs of a strongly developing nation. The Strategic Plan also focuses on our students’ broader competencies, so, beyond their academic studies, we are developing their broader life skills through the co-curricular achievements arising from student activities. Cultural changes imply changes in the way students learn and, therefore, the way a university must teach: our Strategic Plan recognises these changes and devotes a major pillar to the fundamental concepts of teaching and learning. We therefore aim to deploy the most appropriate pegagogical approaches across all our teaching and academic delivery as we move forward over the next five years.

As a provider of graduate-level education, Effat University has always recognised that its mission must include the scholarly achievement and research of its faculty. Building on the successes of the last years, the new Strategic Plan rises to the challenge of continuing improvement in this area. While continuing to provide ever stronger support for our researchers across all colleges and departments, we will also build critical mass and focus on key areas that contribute to our community and our students. Building the research competencies of our students is important to us, and the way to ensure that this happens is to create a strong research base within the University. In this way, both our faculty and our students will be well placed to contribute to the broad ambitions of Vision 2030.

Engagement is central to our Strategic Plan. Effat University has always adopted an outward-looking approach, but we now see this as fundamental to our mission. We see our university as a key player in the broader community, and our external stakeholders as major participants and contributors to Effat’s future activities. As a consequence, community engagement is a central pillar of the Strategic Plan. We will continue to welcome experts, business leaders, the employers of our graduates, and industry representatives to our campus, and involve them in our education and research. Our aim is to establish mutually beneficial outcomes, supporting and addressing their needs as they also support ours. This extends to our Alumnae too. Our graduates have always been part of the Effat family, and our ambition over the next five years is to deepen that relationship, so that our current students benefit from our Alumnae’s post-Effat experiences and our Alumnae can continue to benefit from lifelong learning.

Alongside this, as the Kingdom itself focuses increasingly on international engagement, so too does Effat University. In our teaching and our research strategies we are ensuring that our new Strategic Plan focuses internationally. We are aiming to extend and develop opportunities for students to spend time abroad and to extend a welcome to an increasing number of international students to our campus. Faculty too will be supported by our strategic ambitions to engage internationally, in order to support their teaching and to develop their research. Reciprocally, we aim to welcome international researchers to Jeddah.

Effat University has a long history for quality and achievement in all areas of its mission. Our new Strategic Plan 20222027 adopts a transformative approach that builds on our past successes while deepening our commitment to excellence through focus, renewed ambition, and greater engagement, both nationally and internationally through a thrifty innovationlead transformation.

METHODOLOGY FOR THE STRATEGIC PLAN

The process of strategic planning and implementation was carefully planned as follows:

Current Engagement Scope

Market Research

EU Strategies

Strategic Plan 2022-27

Visioning Workshop

EU College & Department Strategies

Phase 1

Plan Roll-out

Progress Reviews

Strategic Plan Roll-out

Phase 2

Phase 1 is the pre-planning phase that consists of a thorough market research, through extensive primary interviews, entailing three key areas: macroeconomic landscape, employee understanding, and customer understanding, to gain a deeper understanding of the higher education market and realize potential bottlenecks and improvement areas.

Phase 1 is immediately followed by Phase 2 that is designed to understand EU’s status-quo and map the gaps between the market and EU to leverage its strengths and improve the weak areas to reinstate and strengthen EU’s position in the Saudi higher education market.

SUMMARY OF MARKET SCAN FINDING

IPSOS conducted an in-depth market research on the KSA Education market in December 2021 with the following objectives to develop a sound strategic plan for Effat University (EU):

1. Macroeconomic and Employment Landscape – Economic profile of KSA and its key industries, current and future demand of programs of KSA

2. POV - Employers – Interviewing potential employers within institutions in the target segment to understand the expectations from candidates and programs

3. POV – Students & Parents – Understanding the perceptions and attitudes of the current students and potential students and their parents, towards universities and programs

To achieve the objective, IPSOS conducted a comprehensive desk research, quantitative survey with 875+ stakeholders (employers (50), current students (154), potential students (61) and parents (112) of the potential students), backed up by qualitative research for deeper insights.

Here are the key findings from the research:

MACROECONOMIC AND EMPLOYMENT LANDSCAPE

• While oil remains the major export product for Saudi Arabia, its dominance of the total export share for the country has declined over the past few years as shown in the graph below:

• Despite a decline in overall population share, female share of total workforce has increased from 11% in 1990 to 16% in 2020.

• Wholesale and retail sector is the largest employer followed by public administration and defense as indicated in the chart below:

Manufacturing

Construction

Education

Human health and social work activities

Others

• 80% of the population is employed by private companies while 20% are in government services.

• 56% of the employed population is at the bachelor’s or equivalent level.

• Human Capital Development Program (HCDP) has set a goal to raise the percentage of higher education graduates in employment within six months of graduation from 4.5% in 2019 to 20% in 2025.

POV (POINT OF VIEW) - EMPLOYER

This module captures the willingness and likelihood of employers in KSA to hire graduates of Effat University. The findings were as follows:

• Driven by Saudization, employers across sectors noted that entry level hiring is likely to grow more than 5% in the next 3 to 5 years. 6 -10% of the employees are at entry level/fresh graduates. Saudization is expected to bring about 7.6%12.5% growth in recruiting entry level/fresh graduate candidates.

• 70% of the employers surveyed also stated when it comes to recruiting candidates for entry level jobs, the University the candidate graduated from is the most important parameter.

• The key parameters used by employers to evaluate a university are the ‘Reputation’ of the university, its ‘Partnership with International Universities’, ‘Regional Ranking’ & ‘Past Experience’ with the students from the same university. Below is the snapshot of the universities considered as most reputed among employers:

Public

Private

% of the employers indicated the university name as most reputed (Unaided Responses)

King Abdulaziz University (KAU)

King Faisal University

Umm Al - Qura University

King Khalid University

Prince Sultan University University of Jeddah

Alfaisal University

Effat University

King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals King Saud University

• Effat University’s reputation stands tall amongst the private universities, with 56% of the employers considering EU as one of the most reputed universities.

• Majority of the employers state that they consider the candidates are technically sound, with very good communication skills, in addition to holding a recognized internationally accredited degree. The table below depicts the key skills preferred by the employers in order to hire candidates:

• 100% of the employers in Jeddah and Makkah are aware of Effat University, followed by 60% in Riyadh, while the awareness is lower in other regions of KSA.

• 70% of the employers that are aware of EU are inclined to recruit candidates from EU in the coming years.

• While the employers (~10) that are likely to recruit from Effat in the coming years are content with the positive reputation of the university, technical skills of the students, positive relationship with EU, etc., they have suggested that the candidates from EU would have a scope to work on their confidence level and interpersonal/presentation skills.

• 75% of the employers would like to receive direct communication from EU about their updated curriculum to the industry needs and newsletters about their students’ achievements which will increase their likelihood of hiring from the university.

• There is high demand across individual programs offered by Effat College of Engineering. Employers also noted the research done on Smart Building and Virtual Reality by EU.

• Undergraduate and postgraduate programs in finance and marketing, along with undergraduate in psychology are a few other popular programs amongst the employers.

• Other programs/subjects suggested by employers that are likely to be in demand in the coming years are as follows:

• The combined share of business, administration and law; health and welfare course enrollments among total higher education enrollments in Saudi Arabia increased from 45% in 2013 to 51% in 2019.

• EU is currently ranked as 61 – 70 in QS Arab Regional Ranking 2022, moved up from 101 – 110 ranking in 2019, tracing an upward trajectory.

• EU has established strong partnerships with 15 global universities including Duke University, Georgetown University, Syracuse University, University of Miami, Carnegie Mellon University, New York University, and Auburn University for programs ranging from engineering to business management, on par with other regional leading universities.

POV (POINT OF VIEW) - STUDENT & PARENTS

A student’s journey to choosing a university is described as follows:

1 2 3 4 5 6

various

institutes Selection of

Evaluating

Selection of

Current Students

Pursuing Education at Effat University

• Location, preferred subjects and reputation are the key parameters for evaluating among the universities.

• Even though the EU placement test (English & Math) are considered as moderately difficult, overall admission process at EU was seen as smooth.

Undergraduate Program Postgraduate Program

Effat College of Architecture & Design - B.Sc. Architecture

Effat College of Business - B.Sc. Marketing

Effat College of Engineering - B.Sc. Computer Science - Artificial...

Effat College of Humanities - B.Sc. Psychology - Clinical Psychology

Effat College of Business - B.Sc. Finance

Effat College of Engineering - B.Sc. Electrical and Computer...

Effat College of Humanities - B.Sc. English & Translation - ...

Effat College of Business - B.Sc. Supply Chain Management

Effat College of Humanities - B.Sc. English & Translation - Literature

Effat College of Business - M.Sc.Finance - Finance

Effat College of Business - M.Sc.Finance - Finance

14% 4% 2% 11% 11% 9% 6% 6% 5% 5% 5% 3%

• Before deciding on EU, current students planned on visiting the university’s official website, seek advice from their families and visiting the university’s campus as shown in the table below:

Visiting university official website to learn about the offerings

Seek family/parent’s advice

Visit the Campus

Seek friend’s advice

Refer to the reviews in the social media

Refer to the advertisements of the university

Seek Advice from Alumni

University/Education Fairs

Seek advice from teachers at my high school

• According to current students, offering scholarships, the availability of preferred programs and the quality of education are the reasons behind choosing EU as shown in the table below:

• According to current students, marketing, business administration and psychology are the graduation streams of choice for higher or further education as shown below:

• After considering the overall experience as a student at EU, 6 in 10 students are satisfied with the institution. This is depicted by the table below:

The experience / Good experience / Learning

Good

• 2 in 10 students are highly likely to continue their higher education with EU. According to current students, law program is the top program EU could consider. Increasing the number of teaching staff is the top improvement area according to current students as depicted by the chart below:

Doctors providing a sufficient number of doctors/ More Doctors to teach in all majors

Potential UG Students

Quality of education, reputation of the university and the career opportunities are the top reasons high school students consider Effat University. When comparing results with the overall universities, availability of dorms, international affiliations and ties with foreign universities are significantly higher for Effat University as shown in the chart below:

Internet and social media are the types of media most viewed by high school student. Instagram, Twitter and Facebook are the social media platforms accessed regularly as shown in the charts below:

Potential PG Students

Top reasons behind considering Effat University by postgraduate students are having affordable fees, quality of education and the alumni network. When comparing the results with the overall universities, affordable fee, alumni network, international affiliations and the faculty’s profile are reasons that are significantly higher as shown in the table below:

Internet and social media as well as the television are the types of media most viewed by potential postgraduates. Instagram and Twitter are the social media platforms accessed regularly as depicted in the charts below:

STRATEGIC PLAN STRATEGIC AREA 1: MISSION, VISION, AND STRATEGIC PLANNING

Objective 1: Implement Strategic Plan

Implement Annual Operational Plan

2022-2027

Activity towards Initiative

KPIs Responsibility

KPI-I-01 Percentage of achieved indicators of the institution strategic plan objectives

Lead: VPPD

Others: Provost/ Dean of QA/Deans/ Heads of Depts

Actions by Initiatives

• Implement Annual Operational Plan

» Formulate and set the 5-year strategic plan.

» Develop and implement the annual operational plan.

» Assess and report on the achievement of the annual operational plan for all units every Fall and Spring semest.

» Provide recommendation and improve the operational plan of the following year.

Objective 2: Appraise EU Mission Objective and Success

2022-2027

Evaluate the Achievement of EU Mission Statement

Actions by Initiatives

• Evaluate the Achievement of EU Mission Statement

KPIs Responsibility

Overall achievement of Mission Matrix consisting of select indicators that best represent mission components

» Identify the relevant KPIs that best represent the Mission components.

» Evaluate and report on the related KPIs and assess the overall achievement of the Mission.

» Provide recommendation and improvement plans where necessary.

Lead: VPPD

STRATEGIC AREA 2: GOVERNANCE, LEADERSHIP & MANAGEMENT

Objective 1: Revise Organizational Structure

2022-2027

Initiative

Restructure institutional units

Update leadership roles

Review and revise reporting lines

Evaluate leadership performance

Actions by Initiatives

• Restructure Institutional Units

KPIs Responsibility

Percentage of operational steps completed

Percentage of alignment between the responsibilities and tasks in leadership role description to the actual implementation.

Percentage of operational steps completed

Percentage of performance achieved by leaderships

Lead: VPPD

Others: Provost/ Dean QA

Lead: VPPD

Others: Provost/ Dean QA

Lead: VPPD

Others: Provost/ Dean QA

Lead: VPPD

Others: Provost/ Dean QA

» Review the current University organizational structure and number of institutional units by benchmarking with other universities of similar size and age to recommend updates at all levels.

» Monitor the effectiveness of the organizational structure based on a set of criteria and make updates if needed.

» Conduct an interim comprehensive review of organizational changes and make updates, as necessary.

» Conduct a comprehensive review of EU organizational structure by the end of the planning period in preparation for the next 5-year strategic plan.

• Update Leadership Roles

» Evaluate leadership roles and responsibilities by revising and updating the specific descriptions of these roles of leaders at different levels (President, Provost, Deans, Vice-Deans, Directors and Managers).

» Set specific authorities, responsibilities, and tasks for each leadership role based on the University Charter and the Ministry bylaws.

» Review the leadership succession plan regularly.

» Ensure the effective and efficient distribution of the responsibilities of academic and administrative leaders to achieve harmony among the different units.

» Monitor and evaluate the adherence of leaders to the description of their leadership roles and tasks annually and be ready to adjust the description based on work needs.

» Review the leadership roles and their tasks by the end of the third year of the strategic plan and make changes as needed.

» Conduct a comprehensive review of leadership roles by the end of 2026-2027 in preparation for the next 5-year

strategic plan.

• Review and Revise Reporting Lines

» Revise Effat University reporting system and reporting lines to ensure a clear and smooth flow of information from bottom-up and top-down among academic and administrative units to achieve cooperative teamwork environment.

» Update efficient reporting templates used for producing semester reports for all academic and administrative units for Falls and Springs.

» Agree on the reporting lines and templates with all units.

» Pilot the reporting system in Fall and Spring 2022-2023 to adjust as needed for use in subsequent semesters.

» Conduct an interim review of the reporting system by the third year of the strategic plan and adjust the reporting system and reporting lines, as necessary.

» Conduct a comprehensive review of the reporting system and reporting templates in preparation for the next 5-year strategic plan.

• Evaluate Leadership Performance

» Assess how far EU leaders have managed to achieve their units’ annual objectives and help them set their new objectives for the subsequent year for their units as part of oversight and accountability of EU governance system.

» Conduct an interim review by revising the tools for leadership assessment and make changes as needed.

» Conduct a final comprehensive review of leadership assessment tools in preparation for the following 5-year strategic plan.

Objective 2: Restructure College Responsibilities

2022-2027

Initiative

Establish new College/Dept strategic roles

Develop role descriptions

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

Percentage of operational steps completed

Percentage of role descriptions developed

Percentage of performance achieved by the individuals.

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/HoD/Dean QA

Lead: Provost

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/HoD/Dean QA

Others: Deans/HoD/Dean QA Evaluate the performance of individuals carrying the new strategic role

Actions by Initiatives

• Establish New College/Department Strategic Roles & Develop Role Descriptions

» Update the institutional strategic roles at the level of colleges and departments and specify their authorities, responsibilities, and tasks taking into consideration that they have both academic and technical skills to achieve effective governance.

» Update the Governance Manual to include the updated strategic roles at the levels of colleges and departments and their job descriptions/authorities, responsibilities and tasks.

» Evaluate the Governance Manual that includes the administrative and organizational flowcharts and job authorities, responsibilities and tasks by the end of the third year of the strategic plan to make changes, as necessary.

» Conduct a comprehensive review of strategic roles at the college and department levels and their descriptions to make organizational changes by the end of the planning period in preparation for the next 5-year strategic plan.

• Evaluate the performance of individuals carrying the new strategic roles:

» Evaluate individuals carrying out new strategic roles based on an agreed criteria (e.g., competence and skills) for evaluation every Spring.

» Give recommendations for improvement to the concerned individuals to improve their performance for implemetation in the following year.

Objective 3: Streamline Committee Structures

2022-2027

Initiative

Review and evaluate Standing Committees

Review and evaluate College/Dept Committees

Actions by Initiatives

2023

KPIs Responsibility

Percentage of completed initiatives/projects

Percentage of completed initiatives/projects, etc.

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/HoDs

Lead: Provot

Others: DGSR/Deans/ HoDs

• Review and Evaluate Standing Committees

» Evaluate the efficiency of current standing committees based on a set criterion and recommend improvements and updates of their mandate, structure and/or function, as necessary.

» Update and implement the standing committees based on the evaluation conducted in Fall 2022-2023.

» Monitor the initiatives and projects carried out by all committees and give a final report on their performance in Spring each year.

» Conduct a comprehensive review of the standing committees to give final assessment of their work and recommend changes for the subsequent 5-year strategic plan accordingly.

• Review and Evaluate College/Department Committees

» Evaluate the efficiency of current College/Dep. committees based on a set criterion and recommend improvements and updates of their mandate, structure and/or function, as necessary.

» Update and implement College/Department committees based on the evaluation conducted in Fall 2022-2023.

» Monitor the initiatives and projects carried out by all College/Department committees and give a final report on their performance in Spring each year.

» Conduct a comprehensive review of current college/Dep. committees to give final assessment of their work and recommend changes for the subsequent 5-year strategic plan accordingly.

Objective 4:

Attain

and Maintain Institutional and Program Recognition

2022-2027

Initiative

Obtain and maintain

Institutional and Program national accreditation

Obtain and maintain

Institutional and Program

International accreditation

Attain and maintain institutional and subject ranking

Conduct benchmarking data analysis annually

Actions by Initiatives

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

KPI-I-02 Proportion of accredited programs

KPI-I-02 Proportion of accredited programs

Position in ranking (national, regional, worldwide)

Number of programs achieving subject ranking

Proportion of Programs conducting benchmarking systematically annually

• Obtain and Maintain Institutional and Program National Accreditation

Lead: Dean QA

Others: Provost/ Deans/HoDs

Lead: Dean QA

Others: Provost/ Deans/HoDs

Lead: Provost

Others: Dean QA/ Deans/HoDs

Lead: Provost

Others: Dean QA/ Deans/HoDs

» Establish a schedule for all national institutional and program accreditations for the programs that have not received them and renew accreditations for the programs that have been accredited over the 5 years.

» Monitor, manage, and coordinate all national accreditations in preparation or in progress with the institution and concerned programs starting Fall 2022 and over all subsequent semesters.

» Implement an automated system that documents the required excellence level of accredited University programs.

» Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of QA oversight processes in steering national accreditations and recommend improvements and changes, as necessary.

» Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of QA oversight of national accreditations and recommend improvements for the next 5-year strategic plan.

• Obtain and Maintain Institutional and Program International Accreditation

» Review, and revise, as necessary, the current approach to international accreditation.

» Set a schedule for supporting the university in achieving international accreditation from NECHE over the 5-year planning period.

» Set a schedule for monitoring and supporting colleges and programs in maintaining/renewing currently achieved international accreditations (ABET, NAAB, AACSB) over the 5-year planning period.

» Set a plan for applying for other professional accreditations for all applicable programs across all colleges.

» Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of QA oversight processes in steering international accreditations and recommend improvements and changes, as necessary.

» Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of QA oversight of international accreditations by the end of the planning period and recommend improvements for the next 5-year strategic plan.

• Attain and Maintain Institutional and Subject Ranking

» Establish protocols for improving institutional and subject ranking based on monitoring and analyzing benchmarking data of the top ranked universities nationally and internationally to develop a plan to acquire the targeted institutional and subject rankings over the remaining 5-year planning period.

» Monitor institutional and subject ranking achieved annually and set plans for improvement.

» Conduct an interim review of the protocols for institutional and subject ranking and revise, as necessary.

» Conduct a final assessment of the achievements of institutional and subject rankings by the end of the planning period and provide recommendations for improvement for the next 5-year strategic plan accordingly.

• Conduct Benchmarking Data Analysis Annually

» Review, and revise, as necessary, policies and procedures for benchmarking.

» Supervise data collection and analysis of benchmarking data annually.

» Make use of the benchmarking data to reinforce and streamline the KPI management process by introducing a sound KPI framework.

» Automate the KPI management process by continually raising the benchmarks every subsequent year.

» Review the action plan for benchmarking to introduce improvements as required annually.

Objective 5: Monitor the Effectiveness of the Governance System

Initiative

Ensure the compliance of the governing bodies, by laws, and policies and procedures with relevant authorities (e.g., MoE)

Ensure the dissemination of circulations and decisions made by all governing bodies

Ensure that Effat University members follow Effat Ethical Conduct

Actions by Initiatives

2022-2027 KPIs Responsibility

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

Percentage of adherence of the governing bodies, bylaws and policies and procedures to relevant authorities (e.g., MoE). Degree of effectiveness of university governance system.

Percentage of dissemination of circulations and decisions & Percentage of stakeholders’ awareness of disseminated circulations and decisions

Percentage of violations of the code of ethical conduct (Tarbawyyat).

Lead: VPPD

Others:

Provost/Dean

QA

Lead: VPPD

Others:

Provost/Dean

QA

Lead: VPPD

Others:

Provost/Dean

QA

• Ensure the Compliance of the Governing Bodies, Bylaws, and Policies and Procedures with Relevant Authorities (e.g., MoE)

» Review, and revise, as necessary, the governance system, bylaws and policies and procedures for ensuring their compliance with regulatory authorities.

» Monitor compliance activities with regulatory authorities based on the agreed criteria and set action for improvement as necessary every semester.

» Evaluate the effectiveness of the governing bodies 4-Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of the govern-

ing body, bylaw, policies and procedures for ensuring compliance with regulatory authorities by the third year of the planning period and revise, as necessary.

» Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of policies and procedures for ensuring compliance with regulatory authorities over the whole planning period and revise as necessary for the next 5-year strategic planning cycle.

• Ensure the Dissemination of Circulations and Decisions made by all Governing Bodies

» Review, and revise, as necessary, policies and procedures for internal and external dissemination of institutional decisions.

» Monitor dissemination of relevant information to stakeholders and set and implement actions for improvement as necessary every semester.

» Evaluate the levels of awareness by stakeholders of disseminated circulations and decisions and set improvements accordingly.

» Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of policies and procedures for dissemination of institutional decisions and circulations and introduce improvements as needed.

» Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of policies and procedures for dissemination of institutional circulations and decisions and circulations by Spring 2027 in preparation for the next 5-year strategic planning cycle.

• Ensure that Effat University Members follow Effat Ethical Conduct

» Review, and revise, as necessary, protocols for monitoring ethical conduct across the institution.

» Monitor and report on the violations of ethical conduct in line with the approved protocols and take actions for improvement as necessary every semester.

» Conduct an interim review of the effectiveness of ethical protocols followed over the previous planning period and revise, as necessary.

» Conduct a final review of the effectiveness of ethical protocols over the planning period and revise, as necessary.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk: Topic

Communication gap between levels in the hierarchy

Proposing

Develop and Maintain Professional Accreditations

Stringent requirements to obtain the accreditations

Regular committee meetings to align all organization personnel on the updated policies

Adherence to NCAAA standards while using best and innovative industry practices

Task force to be established to oversee the execution of all operational steps

STRATEGIC AREA 3: TEACHING & LEARNING

Objective 1: Redevelop the Academic Portfolio

Review and reassess the current academic portfolio

Develop new academic programs

Monitor and respond to national policy on international HE regarding academic offering

Review existing, and identify new, international educational partnership opportunities (DDs, Minors)

Actions by Initiatives

• Review and Reassess the Current Academic Portfolio

Percentage of all programs reviewed

Percentage of nominated programs revised

Number of new programs developed - (BSC, MS, PhD, Minors, DM, DD, Ass Degree, Diploma, Certificate)

Percentage of operational steps completed

Number of existing partnerships per program

Degree of fulfillment of the educational partnership agreements

Number of international DDs and Minors introduced

Lead: Provost

Others: DGSR/ Deans/HoDs

Lead: Provost

Others: Dean/ Students Council

Lead: Provost

Others: DGSR/ Deans/HoDs

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/ HoDs

» Continue overseeing working parties at college and departmental levels to follow up on the Program Review schedule.

» Ensure all academic programs conduct regular assessment processes to continually improve the curriculum, through a feedback system for all teaching faculty.

» Deploy an assessment committee that reviews the reports periodically and provides feedback to the respective departments to re-assess the existing academic programs.

» Benchmark the academic programs with the leading national and international universities to review and assess the programs.

• Develop New Academic Programs

» Assess the current portfolio strengths and weaknesses, to strengthen the existing portfolio and incorporate new programs to expand the current portfolio. We recommend a framework that incorporates competitors’ strength, current students’ ratings, and sector outlook to determine if the potential course is an opportunity or not.

» Assess the current portfolio strengths and weaknesses, to strengthen the existing portfolio and incorporate new programs to expand the current portfolio. We recommend the following framework to support future planning:

Extrapolating from the leading global universities, an illustration of the framework with dummy values is provided below:

Course

Competitor

Average Strong Weakness

• Based on the market gaps and the institutional capabilities, the following decision-making academic program portfolio matrix with actionable outcomes to each scenario is recommended:

Attractiveness of the program market Weak Moderate Strong Highly attractive

• Invest to address program weaknesses

• Control risks of offering program

• Build selectively on program strengths

• Invest to build on strengths

• Protect program

• Invest to grow academic program

• Maintain program strengths Moderately attractive

• Reduce academic program

• Eliminate program

• Invest in select programs and select market segments

• Concentrate on few market segments

• Invest in select market segments

• Invest in academic programs in niche areas Unattractive

• Cut costs and investments

• Minimize investments Reduce weak program areas

• Concentrate on a few viable market segments

• Focus on redirecting strengths

• There exists an opportunity for more enrolments at the post-graduate level as there are currently very few (~4) PG courses offered. PG courses in demand should be found out using the given framework and incorporated in the academic portfolio.

• Program feasibility studies to be conducted for four to five programs per academic year.

• Monitor and Respond to National Policy on International HE Regarding Academic Offering

» Monitor developments of national policies on internationalization in higher education.

» Monitor internationalization activities in other Saudi higher education institutions.

» Monitor international higher education institutions’ activities in the Kingdom.

• Review Existing, and Identify New, International Educational Partnership Opportunities (DDs, Minors)

» Review current partners

» Evaluate effectiveness

» Recommend renewing contract or identifying new partners

» Develop and offer joint programs with international partner

Objective 2: Establish E-Learning Provision

2022-2027

Initiative

Establish T&L/elearning leadership

Review and revise e-learning facilities and resources

Develop and operate e-learning strategy

Actions by Initiatives

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

Role and team established

Percentage of operational steps completed

Percentage of operational steps completed

Lead: President

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/IT

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans QA/ IT

• Establish T&L/e-learning Leadership:

» Recruit/Assign dedicated team for the CET&L who will be responsible of establishing the e-Learning Center.

• Review and Revise e-learning Facilities and Resources

» Continue activities, finalize proposals and submit to Teaching and Learning Committee for approval.

» Invest in an adequate e-learning platform.

» Review the adequacy of the e-learning facilities and resources through satisfaction rate of the stakeholders (Faculty, students)

• Develop and Operate e-learning Strategy

» Develop e-learning programs per College/Department

» Offer the programs as per the approved schedule

» Assess the successful implementation of the offered e-learning programs by assessing:

a. Number of students registered compared to the projection,

b. Satisfaction rates of Faculty

c. Satisfaction rate of students

Initiative

Increase integration of project-based learning

Strengthen Research/ Teaching nexus in educational delivery

Review, revise and extend co-curricular education and the Effat Ambassador Program

Actions by Initiatives

2022-2027

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

Lead: Provost

Proportion of courses involving project-based learning

Proportion of courses embedding the research/teaching nexus leading to publication (With Research Publication)

Percentage of operational steps completed

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Lead: Provost

Others: DGSR/ Deans/HoDs

Lead: Provost and Dean of SA

Others: Deans/ HoDs

• Increase Integration of Project-based Learning

» Emphasize project and problem-based learning, helping students learn by constructing solutions to real-life problems through three main characteristics that are central to the twenty-first century pedagogy:

a. Problem statements are tied to curriculum and learning goals of the university.

b. Focus on the central concepts or principles of topics.

c. Projects are based on real-world problems and are presented in the form of case studies.

• Strengthen Research/Teaching Nexus in Educational Delivery

» Foster the concept of learning beyond classrooms using technology to gain a deeper understanding of complex ideas and ability to work in global teams to generate new ideas and theories.

» Lead the students to publish their work in journal/conferences.

• Review, Revise and Extend Co-curricular Education and the Effat Ambassador Program

» Deploy teaching metacognitive skills, that will help the students to plan, monitor and evaluate one’s own understanding and performance, thereby allowing them to reflect on their own critical awareness about how they think and learn, enhancing their personality.

» Conduct Focus group to revise the co- and extracurricular activities.

» Update the co- extra-curricular activities.

» Implement the programs.

» Assess the successful implementation of the program through EGC achievement and students’ satisfaction of the EAP.

Objective 4: Embed Employability in Teaching and Learning

2022-2027

Initiative

Integrate service learning within all programs

Align PLOs with market needs

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

Lead: Provost

Percentage of programs that integrate service learning

Number of programs aligned (SAQF, KSA Job Classification)

Number of students acquiring Professional Certificates

Students’ performance in professional and/or national examinations *** (KPI-P-06, SR 1.1.1)

Graduate employability and enrolment in post graduate programs ** (KPI-I-05)

Employer evaluation of the institution graduate proficiency ** (KPI-I-08)

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Deploy professional experts in teaching

Provide on-campus and off- campus field experiences

Integrate state-ofthe art technology within all programs

Actions by Initiatives

• Integrate Service Learning within all Programs

Proportion of courses professional experts deployed for teaching

Proportion of programs with oncampus and off-campus field experience

Percentage of programs that utilize state-of-the-art technology

» Identify the courses that can be conducted with Service-Learning component.

» Discuss at the beginning of the semester the projects and companies to collaborate with.

» Plan for the workshop with the company to launch the project.

» Present the outcomes.

» Assess the successful implementation through companies and students’ satisfactions.

• Align PLOs with Market Needs

» Establish and activate EU Steering Committee on Academic Portfolio (SCAP).

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Lead: Provost

Lead: Provost

Others: IT/ Deans/HoDs

» Continue Overseeing working parties at college and departmental levels to follow up on the Program Review schedule.

» Finalize new proposals to Curriculum Committee for approval if any.

• Deploy Professional Experts in Teaching

» Conduct workshops regularly within the university by inviting professional experts such as language experts, soft skill experts, etc. to prepare the students for their career ahead.

• Provide on-campus and off- campus Field Experiences

» Integrate employability skills into the course to foster skills such as team effort, time management, project management, ethics and moral dilemmas, code of conducts, communication skills, etc. to prepare the students to face real-world corporate and entrepreneur challenges.

• Integrate State-of-the art Technology within all Programs

» Learning activities must be designed on relevant and real-world incidents using appropriate technologies

Objective 5: Ensure Academic Excellence

2022-2027

Initiative

Monitor academic excellence

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

Students’ evaluation of quality of learning experience in the programs (PES) ** (KPI-I-03 &P&PG)

Average number of students in the class (KPI-P-08)

Evaluation of Faculty members to the learning Environment (FSS) *** SR 1.2.3 Grade distribution (% [A+, A] and % [D+, D, F] is less than 20%).

GPA distribution of the graduate and continuing students

% of students who progressed out of the risk status at all levels (UG & G).

First-year students retention rate (Undergraduate) ** (KPI-I-04)

Completion of Graduation rate for Undergraduate Students in the specified period ** (KPI-I-06 & KPI-P-04)

Rate of students dropping out of the programs (KPI-PG-6)

Students’ evaluation of the quality of the courses on fivepoint scale. (+Participation rate). ** (KPI-P-03 & KPI-PG-03)

Students’ evaluation of the quality of scientific supervision for PG programs (KPIS-PG-04)

Lead: Dean QA

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Attain the Effat Graduate Characteristics

Attain the English Level proficiency

% of students achieving the four Effat Graduate Characteristics annually

% of attainment of requested English level by Effat University students

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Actions by Initiatives

• Monitor Academic Excellence

» Closely monitor every student’s scores obtained in their respective programs.

» Actions must be taken after every trimester to ensure performance improvement every subsequent trimester.

» Post monitoring, we recommend the following framework to improve the academic performance of every student:

» Define student success as: timely degree completion, uninterrupted retentions, minimum cumulative GPA requirements, etc.

» Build a predictive model to arrive at a predicted success score for each student using: pre-enrollment data (income, demographic, high-school score, etc.) and post-enrollment data (class scores, attendance, etc.)

» Based on the success score, segment the students into predicted success groups: Above-average, average and below average.

» Devise strategic nudges to intervene and provide the necessary resources needed each segment.

• Attain the Effat Graduate Characteristics

» Review and monitor the progress of students and provide aid to assist the attainment goals.

• Attain the English Level proficiency:

» Conduct regular workshops to empower students’ English proficiency and encourage obtaining professional language certifications.

Objective 6: Revise Learning Resources

Review and improve learning resources

Actions by Initiatives

• Review and Improve Learning Resources

Satisfaction of beneficiaries with learning resources ** (KPI-I-07 & KPI-P-17 & KPI-PG-13)

Lead: Provost

Others: IT/Library

» Improvisation to the learning resources (textbooks, videos, relevant reading material, etc.) should be done every academic year by taking the collective feedback of both the students and the faculty.

» Constantly expand the learning resources used in the Effat library to broaden the learning gamut.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic Risk Mitigation Plan

Market data are challenging to acquire

Reputation of the newly launched program in the region

Reinforcing the academic portfolio

Shortage of faculty with expertise in the newly launched program

Conduct a thorough research project to procure data for the analysis

Effective marketing to convey the prospects (employer demand) of the newly launched program

Hire additional staff with prior experience in the newly launched program, along with newly graduated talent, as an assistant

Legal and political risk

Additional time effort and increased workload for the faculty

Technical glitches

E-Learning Provision

Enhanced Learning Experience and Skill Set Development

Lack of necessary hardware or skill exhibited by the students

Financial challenges

Resistance towards e-learning by the internal faculty

Students’ resistance towards new pedagogies

Legal formalities to be navigated by a firm specializing in education and the mission and vision of the program to be launched should be aligned well with the university faculty

Set realistic timeline expectations for the faculty with appropriate boundaries

Setting contingency plans for the faculty

The e-learning platform should be designed after carefully considering the students’ limitations to provide equal opportunities to all students

Usage of grants and endowments to facilitate the e-learning environment

Align the university faculty with the benefits of e-learning and hire staff that is skilled in e-learning if the existing faculty chooses to opt out of it

Communicate the benefits of the new pedagogies to the students and make the whole process

STRATEGIC AREA 4: STUDENTS

Objective 1: Improve Student Involvement

Revise student clubs and activities

Enhance student role in governance

# of clubs and students associations per year fulfilling IQRA value

# of sport activities conducted fulfilling IQRA value

# community service hours completed per student (volunteering) fulfilling IQRA value

% of students participating in activities out of the undergraduate students fulfilling IQRA value

% of identified institutional governing bodies with student involvement

Satisfaction rate of students’ activities

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Students Council

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Provost/ Dean/ Students Council

Actions by Initiatives:

• Revise Student Clubs and Activities

» Broaden the range of clubs and students’ organizations to help students build unique set of skills

» Support sports activities by conducting intercollegiate, intermural and community sporting events.

» Contribute to the community with activities geared towards civic engagement (volunteering in charity organization, environmental projects, socio-cultural activities, etc.).

• Enhance Student Role in Governance

» Enhance the university culture by supporting students’ participation in university governance (councils, committees).

» Improve students’ governance (students shura, student government) by aligning it with students’ interests and needs.

Objective 2: Improve Student Experience

Initiative

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Provost/ Dean/

Students Council

Improve quality of student’s experience

Invest in students

Improve student services

Encourage students to become future entrepreneurs

Actions by Initiatives

2022-2027

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

% of processes that are automated out of all target processes

% of students satisfied with the quality of co-curricular and extracurricular programs and activities

KPI-I-09 Annual expenditure rate per student

KPI-I-10 Students’ satisfaction with the offered services

# of student activities geared towards entrepreneurship

# of partnerships established # of start-ups

Lead: Dean SA

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Deans/HoD/ Dean QA

Lead: President

Others: Provost/ Dean QA

Lead: Dean SA & Provost

Others: Dean QA

Lead: Dean SA & Provost

• Automate University Students’ Related Processes

» Identify processes that need to be automated within SA.

» Devise a plan with a timeline to automate the identified processes.

» Implement the automation plan.

» Measure the satisfaction of students.

» Improve the automated processes as needed.

• Improve Quality of Student’s Experience

» Review and update co-curricular and extracurricular programs and activities (Student Success Programs).

» Revise the Academic incentives for co-curricular and extracurricular programs and activities.

• Invest in Students

» Calculate annual expenditure per student.

• Improve Student Services

» Promote and support learning activities beyond the classroom (such as field trips, site visits, hosting guest speakers, workshops, students’ seminars, etc.).

» Enhance academic services (admission, registration, advising, orientation, grievances and appeals, graduate audit, scholarship, graduation ceremony).

» mprove campus wide services (food services, technology, printing services, housekeeping services, etc.).

» Planning, designing, and implementing Campus Life student counseling and wellbeing services.

• Encourage Students to Become Future Entrepreneurs

» Cultivate entrepreneurship culture within the university by focusing on the activities geared towards entrepreneurship.

» Create opportunities for students to participate in social entrepreneurship contests.

» Develop partnerships with community entities that could support or finance EU students’ start-ups.

Objective 3: Develop International Student Mobility

2022-2027

Initiative

Establish opportunities for outgoing student mobility

Establish opportunities for incoming student mobility

Establish virtual mobility experiences within programs

International Student Ratio

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

% of graduate and undergraduate students enrolled at educational institution abroad for at least six weeks in the academic year

% of international incoming students

# of virtual mobility opportunities and programs established

Proportion of international undergraduate and postgraduate students who spent at least three months in the institution during the academic year

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Provost/ Deans/HoDs

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Deans/HoD/ Dean QA

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Provost/ Deans/HoDs

Lead: Dean T&L

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Actions by Initiatives

• Establish Opportunities for Outgoing Student Mobility

» Promote student mobility program, select and send the best eligible undergraduate and graduate students to the partner.

• Establish Opportunities for Incoming Student Mobility

» Plan and implement recruitment campaign for attracting international and visiting students.

» Update and maintain a well-informed website devoted to international students.

» Build and maintain strong relations with international entities (cultural attaché, Islamic centers, international schools, international universities,

• Establish Virtual Mobility Experiences within Programs

» Form successful virtual academic and non-academic opportunities and programs for undergraduate and graduate students with EU network of partners.

» Encourage motivated students to join the established virtual opportunities and programs with the partner universities.

» Evaluate the effectiveness of the virtual opportunities and programs and students’ satisfaction for continuous improvement.

• International Student Ratio

» Plan and implement recruitment campaign for attracting international and visiting students.

» Provide attractive scholarship/sponsorship programs and support services.

» Plan and implement recruitment campaign for attracting international and visiting students.

» Update and maintain a well-informed website devoted to international students.

» Build and maintain strong relations with international entities (cultural attaché, Islamic centers, international schools, international universities).

Objective 4: Increase Student Population

2022-2027

Initiative

Achieve sustainability through recruitment and retention of diverse body of students

Actions by Initiatives

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

% of students’ population out of the projected number in the strategic plan

Lead: Dean SA & Provost

Others: Deans/ HoDs

• Achieve Sustainability through Recruitment and Retention of Diverse Body of Students

» Launch and closely monitor a student journey management initiative, where strong recruitment and retention plans cover the entire students’, journeys based on the following different levels:

a. Enrolments – Conduct effective marketing activities on relevant students target groups, attractive online and offline recruitment processes and on-campus school recruitments from leading schools with great pass-out, to ensure enrolling good quality students. Special attention should be giving to male recruitment

b. Onboarding – Simplify the onboarding processes through efficient digital tools, bringing services directly to the students.

c. Student Life – Employ a Customer Relationship Management to track and monitor a student’s touchpoints throughout the journey.

d. Alumni Engagement – Engage alumni in building marketing capabilities and contributing to the university through donations or other non-revenue generating activities.

Objective 5: Improve Alumni Relations

2022-2027

Initiative

Graduates with entrepreneurial businesses

Improve alumni communications and data management

Develop focused portfolio of alumni activities

Establish alumni mentorship program

Improve alumni performance

2023 2024 2025

2026

2027

KPIs Responsibility

% of entrepreneurial businesses of undergraduate alumni within (12/24) months of graduation

% of completion of alumni database

Number of alumni activities developed

% of alumni participation in mentorship programs

% of alumni participation in offered training programs

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Lead: Dean SA

Others: Deans/ HoDs

Actions by Initiatives

• Graduates with Entrepreneurial Businesses

» Cultivate entrepreneurship culture within the university by focusing on the following:

a. Case studies of real-world corporate stories and operational hiccups faced by them

b. Create opportunities for students to participate in social entrepreneurship contests

c. Invite business executives to deliver lectures

d. Provide consulting services to non-profit organizations (for final year students

» Follow closely with clubs and activities that encourage entrepreneurial activities.

» Follow graduates with entrepreneurial business and invite them as motivational speakers and for workshops, etc.

• Improve Alumni Communications and Data Management

» Obtain the information while they are still students at the university.

» Build unbreakable alumni relations, promote their brand, and earn goodwill for the institution.

» Update the alumni database with all possible alumni information every semester.

• Develop Focused Portfolio of Alumni Activities

» Organize focused portfolio of alumni activities and events in collaboration with the alumni association representative through:

a. Engaged and rich discussions with alumni from different ages, locations, and professional backgrounds

b. Social media activities

c. Personalized messages to establish a strong personal communication

d. Alumni annual gathering

e. Other focused activities

• Establish Alumni Mentorship Program

» Provide mentorship opportunities for alumni by current Effat University faculty.

» Invite alumni to mentor current students through individual or group activities.

» Invite alumni regularly to the university campus to meet with the current students through seminars, speeches, etc.

• Improve Alumni Performance

» Assess the needs of the alumni for professional development opportunities.

» Offer training programs, workshops, seminars, to improve the performance of the alumni.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Improve Students’ Involvement in Activities & Governance & Experience

Student Mobility

Financial restraints

Organizational constraints (lack of time and resource)

Lack of internal capabilities

Long term commitment

Financial consideration for the student

Student Mobility

Alumni Engagements

Cultural differences between the host and home institution

Smart allocation of funds and collecting extra fees from the students participating to reduce the burden of additional funds required

Hiring additional resources to balance the workload and focus on student clubs and activities

Hire external agencies and organizations that are proficient, to deploy a few of these initiatives

Deploying systems such as CRM and capturing sufficient data should be considered a long-term goal

Form strong relationships with the partner universities, such that the host university provides a tuition waiver and free accommodation to visiting students and provide the same to the visiting students

The international office should provide psychological counselling for those students who are in culture shock or in some kind of difficulty

Language-barrier Emphasis on English learning courses

Pleasantries exchanged are usually one-way

Alumni relations solely based on financial contribution

Communication might be impersonal

Communication to be designed in an interactive way

Alumni contribution can be in other forms too such as helping in bringing in employers, mentoring students, etc. Efforts should be focused on these if financial contribution is not likely

Customized and more personalized communication to build an emotional connect.

STRATEGIC AREA 5: FACULTY & STAFF

Objective 1: Maintain the Staffing Profile that Complies with Governing Body Requirements

Initiative

Enhance the staffing profile to meet and maintain the requirements of governing bodies

2022-2027

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

% of achieve institutional Saudization body

Proportion of faculty members with doctoral qualifications (KPI-I-12)

% of Part-timers vs. Full-timers

% of achieved ranks (Full Professor- Associate Professor – Assistant Professor) (KPI-P-12, KPI-PG-11)

% of achieved recruiting needs

% of females vs males (KPI-P-12)

Lead: President

Others: Provost/ Dean

Actions by Initiatives

• Enhance the Staffing Profile to Meet and Maintain the Requirements of Governing Bodies

» Attract and recruit a qualified Saudis faculty and staff to fulfill the Saudization requirement by governing bodies.

» Promote talent Saudis within the university by offering incentives to pursue their path

» Send Saudi students abroad for higher studies to prestigious universities around the world under the scholarship program.

» dentify the needed teaching staff profile.

» Implement the recruitment process.

» Achieve the appropriate desired staffing profile complying with MoE regulations.

Objective 2: Improve Faculty Experience

2022-2027

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

Rebalance faculty workload

Foster equity diversity and inclusion strategy

Ratio of students to teaching staff (KPI-I-11, KPI-P-11, KPI-PG-10)

Proportion of faculty with reduced teaching load

Faculty satisfaction with work environment

Proportion of teaching staff leaving the institution (KPI-I-13, KPI-P-13, KPI-PG-12)

International teaching staff Ratio

Lead: President

Others: HRM

Lead: President

Others: Provost & DGSR

Actions by Initiatives

• Rebalance Faculty Workload

» Encourage the faculty to participate in different research and professional activities by receiving research support (reduction of teaching load, incentives, facilities, leaves).

» Balance faculty workload between teaching and research for research-intensive faculty.

• Foster Equity Diversity and Inclusion Strategy

» Provide an effective orientation program.

» Make the University bylaws& faculty and staff handbooks available for all employees.

» Maintain a healthy work environment.

» Enhance the climate of the university by engaging faculty & staff.

» Give employees multiple ways to provide feedback.

» Apply fair and transparent promotion procedures for all employees.

Objective 3: Extend Faculty Development Program

2022-2027

Initiative

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

Provide professional development support for novel pedagogies

Provide professional development support for research

Actions by Initiatives

KPIs Responsibility

% of graduate and undergraduate students enrolled at educational institution abroad for at least six weeks in the academic year Proportion of professional development opportunities provided to support for novel pedagogies out of the total Faculty satisfaction with professional development opportunities provided to support novel pedagogies

Proportion of professional development opportunities provided to support research out of the total Faculty satisfaction with professional development opportunities provided to support research

• Provide Professional Development Support for Novel Pedagogies

» Collect the annual needs for faculty professional development.

» Prepare an annual plan for professional development, which is implemented in three phases

a. Educational Development

b. Personal Development

c. Organizational Developmen

» Implement the PD plan.

» Assist the plan through the faculty satisfaction rate.

Lead: Provost

Others: Dean/ CETL

Lead: Provost

Others: DGSR/ Deans/CETL

» Encourage faculty to have memberships of professional societies aligned to their respective programs.

» Recognize outstanding teaching.

• Provide Professional Development Support for Research

» Develop and implement an annual plan for professional development to support research activity.

» Conduct training and workshops to enhance the faculty research skills.

» Increase the involvement of Professors in research to increase the research and innovation output.

Objective 4: Maintain Appropriate Mechanism to Recruit and Retain Competent Support Staff in all Occupational Category

Develop and implement desired support staff profile plan

Actions by Initiatives

Ratio of students to support staff in all occupational category

Proportion of support staff in all occupational category leaving the institution

Proportion of staff receiving professional development opportunities per year

Staff satisfaction with professional development opportunities provided

• Develop and Implement Desired Support Staff Profile Plan

» Attract and recruit the finest staff.

» Apply retention strategies, aimed at retaining qualified employees.

» Ensure at least 12% of Effat staff are being professionally developed.

Stakeholders’ Management

Lead: President

Others: HRM

• The development of a robust Stakeholder Management Plan (SMP) is critical to achieving project’s objectives in more streamlined and effective way. According to the industry best practices, the SMP can be bifurcated into four phases:

» Phase 1: Stakeholder Identification - Identify the stakeholders and bifurcate them into:

Internal Stakeholders

External Stakeholders

University Council Unions

Faculty & Staff

Administrative Division Personnel

Community

Government Entities

Students Media

Other Personnel

Note: There might be an overlap for some people

Phase 2: Stakeholder Analysis - Each stakeholder must be analyzed based on their influence, motivation/interest, success, etc. to develop a tailored plan to keep the stakeholders happy and committed to university’s vision. We recommend the following framework for the analysis:

Interest

• Based on the category of the stakeholder, develop a tailor-made communication strategy plan using one or more of the following communication channels:

» Push – Where information is pushed to the stakeholder either manually in the form of emails, memos, written agreement or automatically, through a work management software, where email notifications are sent every time a project action has been performed.

» Pull – Consists of information and resources like project management plan, resource load charts, and other reports stored in a central repository for stakeholders’ perusal

» Interactive – These include face-to-face meeting, training sessions, telephonic meetings, video calls and any other mode of communication involving direct human touch.

• Devise a communication plan based on the identification and segmentation of stakeholders to establish clear goals and action points. A sample table to illustrate the recommended framework is mentioned below:

Stakeholder

By

Mr/Ms Person 1 Keep Informed Push, Pull, Training Sessions Internal Monthly Provost Provost Mr/Ms Person 2 Manage Closely Face-to-Face Meeting Internal Weekly (Adhoc as per requirement) President Government Entity Organization 1 Keep Satisfied Face-to-Face Meeting External As per protocol Dean

» Phase 3: Execution of the Plan - Assign a committee headed directly by and under the supreme control of the university president responsible for the execution of the SMP.

» Phase 4: Monitoring and Improvisation - SMP cannot be static; it must be dynamic and amended and updated as and when required throughout a project (continuously improved). Disaffected people within stakeholder groups must be identified throughout the process and managed accordingly.

• To achieve the best results through the implementation of above-mentioned framework, we recommend the following to EU:

» Assign a team of 3-4 members to a committee that is responsible for the development, monitoring and implementation of the SMP.

» One member will be responsible for the mode of meetings to be conducted with the stakeholders (face-to-face, telephonic, etc.). This member will segregate the stakeholders according to their seniority and position with the university to further decide on the mode of engagement.

» Build impersonal relationship with the stakeholders at various levels through constant interaction and engagement.

» Seek their opinion and views of the stakeholders regarding various issues and activities.

» Create a feedback system where the stakeholders are empowered to share their thoughts on sensitive matters without any apprehension.

» One member within the team will be responsible for the communication channel strategy, to choose the best mode

of communication depending on the type (internal or external) of stakeholder and their importance to the university.

» One IT and process related member will be responsible for all the data to be stored and analyzed later. This process must be streamlined and eventually the same member will develop reports on a monthly basis to continually leverage stakeholders’ position with the university.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic Risk

Recruitment Criteria

Management Initiatives

Lack of talent or stringent recruitment criteria in the national market

Vision Saudization

Increasing research output with limited resource

Mitigation Plan

Nurture talent from within as a part of a fast-track initiative

Training workshops should be conducted, and lecturers should be utilized as a resource under the professors Lecturers will gain more exposure to research while contributing to more research output

Assistant professors can contribute more to the research while passing on some of the administrative responsibilities to lecturers and admin staff

Faculty Development Program (FDP)

Finding and recruiting local talent

Building an internal development centre

Knowledge Development

Incumbents should be promoted from within the university

Incentives in the form of scholarships, fast track-growth, exposure in the form of faculty exchange programs, etc

Workload amongst the internal faculty needs to be redistributed in order to make time for the inception of an FDC

Introduction of professional courses or workshops to define and align the goals in professional development

STRATEGIC AREA 6: INSTITUTIONAL RESOURCES

Objective 1: Maintain Financial Stability

Implement Financial plan reflecting EU strategy

Diversify income streams

Revise Financial Risk Management Plan

Deviation percentage (positive or negative) of expenditure and income from the budget (measured monthly, quarterly, per semester and annually)

Percentage of self- income of the institution to total income (KPI-I-14)

% of achievement for each source of income to budget

Composite Financial Index (CFI) score from Financial Statements

% of liquidity reserves to meet university liabilities

Maintain the Financial Guarantee for the total capacity of the university

Lead: VPPD

Others: MF

Lead: VPPD

Others: MF

Lead: VPPD

Others: MF

Actions by Initiatives

• Implement Financial Plan Reflecting EU Strategy

» Maintain the financial planning and management control system, with capabilities to perform budgetary and forecasting processes, financial delegations and risk management.

• Diversify Income Streams

» Develop, implement, and evaluate Revenue diversification strategy.

• Revise Financial Risk Management Plan

» Calculate & Monitor CFI index value annually.

» Monitor and plan for cashflows to maintain required liquidity ratio.

» Maintain financial guarantee amount.

Objective 2: Improve Institutional Services (IT & Facilities and Equipment)

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

Enhance/upgrade the technological solutions to support academic and administrative operations

Optimize the use of facilities and equipment to achieve safe, healthy, and sustainable campus

% of automation of administrative operations

% of violation of data security from internal and external sources

% of improvement of Effat domain scores on Majestics (trust follow / citation follow)

KPI-I-15 Average of beneficiaries’ satisfaction rate with technical services...) on a five-point scale in an annual survey in terms of:

a. Date Security and confidentiality.

b. Ease of access to IT resources.

c. Maintenance and technical support services.

d. Classroom and computer lab equipment are of good quality.

e. Application Performance

% of fulfillment of facilities and equipment of the needs for the university

% of saving in the annual budget against the actual after the implementation of smart campus initiatives

% of afforestation of campus

Degree of compliance to healthiness, cleanliness and environmental requirements

Average of beneficiaries’ satisfaction rate with facilities and equipment services on a five-point scale in an annual survey in terms of:

a. Clean Campus

b. Access for disabled

c. Maintenance and support services

d. Safety and Security

e. Restaurant, CDC, residence

f. Transportation Services

g. Central Communication Services

Lead: VPPD

Others: MIETS

Lead: VPPD

Others: F&E

Actions by Initiatives

• Enhance/Upgrade the Technological Solutions to Support Academic and Administrative Operations

» Develop and implement digital transformation to accelerate administrative operations performance.

» Maintain data and system security to ensure high performance

» Improve the website presence by implementing search engine optimization best practices.

» Improve the quality and equipment of the lecture rooms and computer labs to ensure high quality of teaching and facilitate the interaction with students.

• Optimize the Use of Facilities and Equipment to Achieve Safe, Healthy, and Sustainable Campus

» Revise and update Master Campus Plan to ensure its alliance with university needs (including vacant land parcels and to maintain compliance with Ministry of Education Bylaw.

» Annually review campus building and facilities to meet the emerging needs of academic and administrative units.

» Establish a smart campus deployment plan to maintain best practices in a sustainable and healthy campus infrastructure.

» Upgrade current campus facilities with the emerging needs of students.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic Risk Mitigation Plan

Untenable financial demands for new technology commitments

Improve Institutional Infrastructure

Strong faculty and staff resistance to new solutions related to buildings and grounds on philosophical or other grounds

Prioritization and smart allocation of funds based on more lucrative opportunities

Long-term benefits to the university should be clearly communicated before taking capital decisions

STRATEGIC AREA 7: RESEARCH & INNOVATION

Objective 1: Develop Diversified Research Impact in Areas of National and International Priority

2022-2027

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

Identify and establish focused research relationships with national and international partners

Monitor and respond to national policy on international HE regarding research

Actions by Initiatives

KPIs

Number of national, and international research partners per year

Percentage of national and international partnered research/total research output

KPI-I-21 Proportion of external funding for research

The degree of international diversity in terms of partnered international research network is as: Formula = (Number of partners -1)/ln (number of collaborated research output)

Percentage of collaborative research to the total research output

Percentage of operational steps completed

Lead: DGSR

Others: Deans/ HoD

Lead: DGSR

Others: MF

• Identify and Establish Focused Research Relationships with National and International Partners

» Review policies and procedures related to research for faculty participation in national and international seminars and workshops

» Promote research collaboration by enhancing EU visibility through national media communication.

» Scan, identify and collaborate with possible opportunities for national, regional and international research partners.

» Evaluate the effectiveness of the research partnership and set the new goals for next cycle.

» Prioritize fund-raising efforts through collaborative research proposals targeting national and international funding organizations and businesses.

» Develop capabilities to raise funds (5% from the total research budget not less than 500 K SAR) through external sources by targeting national and international funding organizations.

» Support Faculty in identifying external sources of funding to supplement funding from the University, thus ensuring their financial autonomy.

» Assisting faculty with the process of writing proposals for funding by, among other things, organizing proposal writing workshops, marketing the capabilities of EU Researchers among the funding agencies, and incentivize EU Researchers for networking.

» Delegate responsibilities to the most credible names within the research faculty to write proposals for funding.

» Identify EU research clusters and link them to the activated research partnerships nationally, and internationally.

• Monitor and Respond to National Policy on International HE Regarding Research

» Scan on a yearly basis, the possible updates of research by checking the governmental research related institutions (i.e., KACST, RDO, SAIP)

» Design a timeline to review research related policies, and update if needed.

Objective 2: Consolidate Research Achievements

2022-2027

Initiative

Increase proportion of active researchers

Extend integration of graduate students and programs in published research

Increase researcher productivity

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

Lead: DGSR

KPI-I-16 Percentage of publications of faculty members

Proportion of graduate students with a) at least one refereed publication during their study) presented paper in a conference to the total number of students in the PG program during the year. (KPI-PG-18)

KPI-I-17 Rate of published research per faculty member

KPI-I-18 Citation’s rate in referred journals per faculty member

Number of Scopus/ISI publications over the 5 years.

Others: Dean

QA/Deans/HoD

Lead: DGSR

Others: Dean QA/Deans/HoD

Lead: DGSR

Others: Dean

QA/Deans/HoD

Improve research impact

Actions by Initiatives

• Increase Proportion of Active Researchers

Number of Scopus publications per year

KPI-I-19 Number of patents, innovations, and awards of excellence per year

Lead: DGSR

Others: Dean

QA/Deans/HoD

» Foster the recruitment of leading national and international scholars, leading in their respective fields of research (post doctorates, scholars on sabbatical, retired scholars as they can contribute through their experience)

» Offer adequate compensation or incentives for the active researcher, based on the research projection.

» Conduct regular workshops and meetings to promote collaborations between EU faculty with active researchers.

• Extend Integration of Graduate Students and Programs in Published Research

» Promote the process of involving PG students in research publication by co-authoring with their faculty.

• Increase Researcher Productivity

» Focus further in the faculty recruitment on candidates with a proven track record in research.

» Aid new researchers and early careers in the process of publications and grant proposal writing.

» Provide adequate internal seed funding (Internal Financial Support) to increase the research productivity of active scholars.

» Allow teaching release time for very active researcher whenever possible to spend the needed time on research production.

• Improve Research Impact

» Raise awareness for internal cross citations

» Facilitate the university support for open access publications to increase the opportunity of citations.

» Indexing Effat Journals to help in increasing the number of indexing citations.

» Empower faculty to publish with top 2% (highly cited) scholars.

» Spread the research advancements made by EU researchers through effective PR communication, both internally and externally.

» Establish a regular newsletter to highlight and celebrate the achievements of EU researchers.

» Create awareness of research activities on EU website and blogs as a gesture of promoting research - culture both within and outside the university.

» Instill and grow a strong research culture amongst all departments to bolster research output through - support and motivation to the researchers.

» Encourage Effat University Faculty & Students to produce quality research by providing variety of venues (Indexing Effat Journals/Proceedings, incentive systems, Editing Office Services).

» Maximize the opportunities for faculty to collaborate with highly cited researchers.

» Develop capabilities to increase the production of IPs, patents, and innovations through the establishment of an intellectual property office in the university.

» Support EU faculty, students & researchers to obtain external research awards across various fields and categories.

Review and revise institutional research funding support

Establish endowed/ named research chairs

Utilize existing research labs/units / centers

Actions by Initiatives

KPI-I-20 Proportion of the budget dedicated to research from the university budget

Number of chairs established

Degree of utilization of existing facilities & resources

Satisfaction of beneficiaries with research facilities, and equipment (KPI-PG-14)

• Review and Revise Institutional Research Funding Support

» Prioritize research needs and investment areas yearly.

» Develop researchers’ capabilities for raising and managing research funds.

Lead: President

Others: DGSR

Lead: DGSR

Others: Deans

Lead: DGSR

Others: Deans

» Support faculty and students’ research activities through different tools including indexing Effat Journals/Proceedings, incentive systems, editing office services, conference participation grants, research events, and seminars.

• Establish Endowed/Named Research Chairs

» Identify research strengths and opportunities of the university and develop plans for scientific chairs

» Scan, identify and collaborate with governmental and/or institutional bodies for the selected research areas.

» Address potential donors/ sponsors for research chairs.

» Manage the chairs and evaluate their effectiveness.

• Utilize Existing Research Labs /Units /Centers

» Enhance the research environment and infrstructure to increase the research productivity through effective use of state-of-the-art research laboratories, research centers, online databases and resources such as Scopus, Thompson Reuters Web of Science, and software for both qualitative and quantitative research.

» Evaluate the satisfaction of the users of research facilities and equipment.

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic

Research collaborations

Research Output & Alignment to National Objectives

Competitive space to get grants and funding from external sources

Financial constraint, lack of resource and skill

Increase credibility of EU research

Enhanced communication and marketing to get EU out there in the public space thereby enhancing visibility

Focus on high ROI through spends to hire more resource

Conduct training workshops to develop skill

Focus on winning grants and getting funded

STRATEGIC AREA 8: COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT

Objective 1: Institutionalize Community Engagement Governance

Initiative

Establish coordinated approach to community engagement (Partnership and Agreement)

Increase memberships with well-known organizations

Promote consultancy services

Actions by Initiatives

2022-2027

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

Number of partnerships and agreements per year

Number of memberships per year

Number of consultancy opportunities offered per year

Lead: DGSR

Lead: DGSR

Others: Deans

Lead: DGSR

Others: RCI/ MCPR/DGSR/ HoDs

• Identify and Establish Focused Research Relationships with National and International Partners

» Develop, review and implement policies for community engagement relations.

» Nurture and continue community engagement activities both locally and internationally through constant communication with organizations in the community, showcasing the mutual benefits that can be achieved by partnering.

» Develop relationships with the community leaders by inviting them to the university for their expertise and problem-solving abilities.

» Focus on developing agreements and partnerships with key government, economic and service sectors, to support the sustainability of environmental resources.

» Increasing the awareness hereabout the important of community engagement.

• Increase Memberships with Well-known Organizations

» Evaluate the current university memberships and recommend the renewal of efficient ones

» Scan, identify and activate new membership opportunities with prestigious national/international organizations.

• Promote Consultancy Services

» Assess consultancy needs of the market, develop the marketing plan to promote consultancies, and implement & analyze the effectiveness based on the market study.

Objective 2: Engage with the Community (Activities, Events, and Exhibitions)

2022-2027

Initiative

Improve quality of community engagement activities

Improve quantity of community engagement activities: volunteering activities, Conferences, events, workshops, sports, webinars industropedia, etc

Actions by Initiatives

2023

KPIs Responsibility

KPI-I-23 Rate of community programs, projects and initiatives

KPI-I-22 Satisfaction of beneficiaries with the community services

Number of volunteering hours/Effat employees and students per year

Number of Conferences, events, workshops, and webinars per year

Lead: DGSR

Others: Dean QA/ Deans/HoD

Lead: DGSR

Others: Dean QA/ Deans/HoD

• Improve Quality of Community Engagement Activities

» Review, update and enhance the quality of the community engagement activities

» Increase the engagement level of students, faculty, staff and alumni in quality community engagement activities to nurture the culture within the university.

• Improve Quantity of Community Engagement Activities: Volunteering Activities, Conferences, Events, Workshops, Sports, Webinars Industropedia, etc.

» Review the needs of the community to offer community engagement activities

» Plan, and implement the annual community engagement activities (volunteering activities,

» Conferences, events, workshops, sports, and webinars).

» Evaluate the impact of the offered community engagement activities and plan for future improvement.

Objective 3: Provide Training with Community Partners

2022-2027

Initiative

Establish a PACE-HIT training center and programs

Offered professional and certified training

Percentage of executed program s over the planned ones

Percentage of registered students from the projections

Lead: DGSR

Others: Head PR/ Deans/HoD

Lead: DGSR

Others: Head PR/ Deans/HoD

Actions by Initiatives

• Establish a PACE-HIT Training Center and Programs

» Finalizing all the required process to authorize PACE-HIT.

» Align the university’s training programs to the economic development, job creation to support Saudi Vision 2030.

» Develop, and license the identified training programs by the TVTC.

• Offered Professional and Certified Training

» Design, and approve an offering plan for the training programs, implement a recruitment plan for the training programs to achieve the projected number of trainees, and evaluate the results of the plan to modify and enhance the offering plan.

Objective 4: Enhance Institutional Visibility

Initiative

Restructure MCPR (Establish media Center)

Market EU with all key external stakeholders (Webometrics, Exhibition, Database, Solicitation and sponsorship plan)

Develop revised social media presence

Promote the participation in external Awards opportunities for Effat University Faculty and Students

Actions by Initiatives

2022-2027

2023 2024 2025 2026 2027

KPIs Responsibility

Number of press releases per year

Number of journalists

Number of new external stakeholders per year

Number of participations in Exhibitions per year

Number of solicitations per year

Number of new followers for each platform (LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) per year

Number of reaches per post

Number of marketing campaigns per year

Number of external awards obtained

Lead: MCPR

Others: Dept PR

Lead: MCPR

Others: Dean/ Depts

Lead: MCPR

Lead: Provost

Others: Deans/Depts

• Restructure MCPR (Establish Media Center):

» Revise the MCPR structure and establish the media center.

» Specify the function, tasks and responsibilities of the media center.

» Build a strong network with journalists.

» Develop and implement the annual plan of the media center.

» Assess the impact of the implementation of the plan on the institution visibility.

• Market EU with all Key External Stakeholders (Webometrics, Exhibition, Database, Solicitation and sponsorship plan)

» Maintain and update university website as per international standards to attract the best talent and connect with

all external stakeholders.

» Expand EU stakeholder network, categorize them and tailor-made communication strategy plan.

» Interact with the prospect students or their families through the chatbot to help resolving any query.

» Participate in major exhibitions to promote EU.

» Scan, and identify, the solicitation opportunities in the market.

» Design a marketing plan to attract the attention of potential companies and evaluate its success.

• Develop Revised Social Media Presence

» Intensify the presence of social media platforms such as Instagram, twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

» Enhance targeted ad-strategy to market the content on these social media platforms to increase the number of followers (Audience Growth) and post reach (impressions).

• Promote the Participation in External Awards Opportunities for Effat University Faculty and Students

» Encourage the internal participation with awards and certificates to foster more participation.

MarCom (Marketing & Communication) Planning Framework

According to the research conducted by IPSOS, digital marketing is the most accessed channel by both the UG and PG potential students, with Instagram and Twitter being the most popular social media venues explored by the potential students. The visual representation of the same is depicted below:

Risk Management

The following table indicates the key risks associated with each strategic recommended area and a corresponding mitigation plan for every risk:

Topic Risk Mitigation Plan

Assistance needed by the students engaging in community services

Institutionalize and Enhance Community Governance and Engagement

Lack of motivation for students and alumni to continue with community engagements

Financial constraints

Enhance Institutional Visibility

Marketing team hiring constraints

Provide support to the students in the form of transportation, food, and guidance

Reward the service providers in the form of awards and certificates

Events can be done in collaboration with the local community bodies to reduce the financial burden on the university

Avail the services of an external marketing agency while slowing ramping up internal marketing capabilities

IMPLEMENTATION PLAN

A strategic plan is of no use unless it is backed by a robust implementation plan. Below are the implementation plans by each strategic area, implementation guide and a navigation assistance module on how to read the implementation plan.

Implementation Plan 2022 – 2027 Guide Introduction

The Implementation Plan comprises eight documents, each comprising fifteen spreadsheets. That is a total of 120 spreadsheets. The eight documents correspond to the eight Strategic Areas of the Strategic Plan that cover Goals 1 to 8, which map against the NCAAA Institutional Standards 1 to 8 as well. Within each document, the fifteen spreadsheets correspond to the fifteen semesters which comprises the entire planning period of the Strategic Plan, from Fall 2022 until Spring 2027.

The purpose of the Implementation Plan is to provide step-by-step guidance regarding the activities and monitoring that is necessary to ensure that the Strategic Plan is activated in a timely manner. Specifically, the Implementation Plan is structured around the timelines included in the Strategic Plan: for each initiative in each semester of the planning period the Strategic Plan indicates whether it is (a) inactive, (b) active, or (c) under review/monitoring (with the possibility of additional action).

In addition to the Strategic Plan at the level of the University, there are Strategic Plans for the Colleges and the Departments. These are all very tightly aligned with the top-level Strategic Plan at the institutional level. Consequently, there is no need for separate implementation plans at the College or Department levels. With appropriate membership of the task-and-finish groups that are discussed below, all levels can proceed together. The objective is to keep work on implementation (and then operationalization) to a minimum. By following the Implementation Plan, alongside the annual operational plans that Effat will develop prior to each year of the planning period, the internal governance arrangements of the institution (senior roles, standing committees, established reporting lines, and decision-making authorities) will be activated appropriately to ensure the success of the Strategic Plan. Thus, the Implementation Plan links the Strategic Goals and Initiatives of the Strategic Plan directly to these governance arrangements and provides a clear indication regarding the actions that need to be taken on an initiative-by-initiative and a semester-by-semester basis to progress the plan’s objectives.

The Strategic Plan 2022-2027 that has been developed comprises two distinct thematic components. First, there are Strategic Goals and initiatives that aim to address Effat’s perceived challenges over the next five years. Second, there are goals and initiatives that focus on measuring and monitoring progress in key areas (a quality assurance focus on performance indicators). The Implementation Plan recognizes these themes in the nature of the activities it includes.

In the former case, the initiatives are open-ended and require systematic work over one or more time during the overall planning period. These may be bright, blurry, or blind. These distinctions play out in both the Strategic Plan and the Implementation Plan in two ways: the brighter the initiative, the more likely it is to appear towards the beginning of the planning period, and the more likely it is to be completed in a single (and relatively short) working period; the more blurry the initiative, the more likely it is to appear later in the planning period, and/or to appear in multiple (and relatively longer) working periods. In either case, these initiatives require project planning and execution. This is covered in the sections below. In the latter case, the initiatives are closed and require data collection, data analysis, and expert review and decision making. The purpose of these initiatives is to monitor institutional progress through performance indicators and to make real-time adjustments to operational planning. This is covered in more detail in the sections below.

Relevant Governing Bodies and Standing Committees (Assumptions)

The Implementation Plan assumes several Effat University Governing Bodies and Standing Committees at the institution level that will help implement and monitor the achievement of the strategic plan for its different strategic areas. The list of these governing bodies and standing committees follows:

1. University Council (All strategic areas)

2. Scientific Council (Strategic areas related to Program Review and Development, Research, Graduate Studies, Faculty Appointment)

3. Administrative Assembly (All strategic areas)

4. Human Resources Planning Committee (Strategic areas related to Faculty and Staff)

5. Disciplinary Committee (Strategic Areas related to Ethics and Integrity)

6. Academic and Admission Standing Committee (Strategic areas related to Teaching and Learning, Research and Community Activities)

At the College and Department levels, College and Departmental Councils with the support of their Quality Assurance Committees are responsible for the implementation of their specific strategic plans and monitoring their achievement for setting and conducting improvement plans.

Relevant Governing Bodies and Standing Committees Functions

To implement the Strategic Plan 2022-2027 appropriately, it is vital that EU’s relevant Governing Bodies and Standing Committees operate efficiently and effectively. The functions of these relevant Governing Bodies and standing committees predominantly focus on steering, decision-making, and monitoring. These are not appropriate forums for operational and developmental activities.

The steering function involves the management and review of process and giving strategic directions.

In the context of the implementation of the Strategic Plan 2022-2027 the relevant governing bodies and standing committees listed above in Section 2 play a critical role.

In those areas of the Strategic Plan that focus mostly on monitoring progress (through KPIs), the relevant governing body and standing committee’s function is to determine what future operational steps are required to meet or improve upon performance.

Thus, the concerned governing body and/or standing committee’s function goes beyond the quality assurance function of KPI monitoring and reporting – it has the responsibility for appropriate decision-making and strategic re-direction based on the quality assurance measurements.

In those areas of the Strategic Plan 2022-2027 that focus on addressing institutional challenges, a relevant governing body or standing committee acts as the steering committee for non-standing ad hoc committees that are sometimes called working parties but are better termed task-and-finish groups.

These are described in Section 4 below.

Standing committees take responsibility for steering the work of such task-and-finish groups. This involves:

1. Setting and revising as necessary their terms of reference

2. Regularly monitoring their progress

3. Receiving regular progress reports

4. Receiving proposals and other deliverables by specific deadlines for approval and implementation.

The Implementation Plan 2022-2027 sets out in complete detail the activities that standing committees need to undertake on a semester-by-semester basis to progress and address the challenge-based initiatives of the Strategic Plan 20222027.

Task-and-Finish Groups Functions

A robust approach to implementation is vital to the successful implementation of the Strategic Plan 2022-2027. This depends on effective management by institutional leaders through the relevant governing bodies and standing committees, as is discussed above in Section 3.

It also depends on effective project planning for those parts of the Strategic Plan 2022-2027 that are challenge based. This, in turn, depends on a set of non-standing project-based committees. As mentioned above, these are often called working parties; however, a more up-to-date terminology that better reflects their function is task-and-finish group.

A Task-and-Finish Group is established as an ad hoc working party by a governing body or standing committee. They are time-limited entities with a specific remit to address an initiative or initiatives.

1. The membership, task, and timeframe, of each task-and-finish group is established by the governing body or standing committee to which, it reports.

2. The governing body or standing committee acts as a steering entity, overseeing the progress of the task-and-finish group, setting intermediate deliverables, or reporting deadlines as deemed appropriate. In the context of the Strategic Plan 2022-2027, this is set out in detail in advance through the Implementation Plan 2022-2027.

3. The task-and-finish group is responsible, within specified timeframes, to investigate the task (through further data gathering and analysis), and to plan actions or make proposals to address the matter and report to its steering entity as set out in the Implementation Plan 2022-2027. The task-and-finish group may be asked by its steering entity to implement plans and proposals, following approval.

The membership (and chairing) of a task-and-finish group is the responsibility of the appropriate governing body or standing committee. In many cases there will be common membership between the standing committee and its taskand-finish groups. It is unusual for the chair of the standing committee to lead its task-and-finish groups (as this leads to work overload) but it is usual for the chair to be a member of the task-and-finish groups ex officio. This permits the chair to attend task-and-finish group meetings when this is warranted. It is quite normal for the chair of a task-and-finish group to be a member of the standing committee to which it reports. This is an efficient approach in the context of progress reporting; it is effective because the chair should be an individual with appropriate knowledge and skills that are relevant to the task under examination.

Task-and-finish groups are only required at the level of the University Strategic Plan. When these groups are constituted, representation from across Colleges and Departments will ensure that progress is relevant for meeting the strategic goals at all levels: University, Colleges, and Departments. Again, the objective here is to minimize the work involved in implementing (and then operationalizing) the strategic plans at all levels.

The membership (and chairing) of a task-and-finish group is the responsibility of the appropriate governing body or standing committee. In many cases there will be common membership between the standing committee and its taskand-finish groups. It is unusual for the chair of the standing committee to lead its task-and-finish groups (as this leads to work overload) but it is usual for the chair to be a member of the task-and-finish groups ex officio. This permits the chair to attend task-and-finish group meetings when this is warranted. It is quite normal for the chair of a task-and-finish group to be a member of the standing committee to which it reports. This is an efficient approach in the context of progress reporting; it is effective because the chair should be an individual with appropriate knowledge and skills that are relevant to the task under examination.

Task-and-finish groups are only required at the level of the University Strategic Plan. When these groups are constituted, representation from across Colleges and Departments will ensure that progress is relevant for meeting the strategic goals at all levels: University, Colleges, and Departments. Again, the objective here is to minimize the work involved in implementing (and then operationalizing) the strategic plans at all levels.

Task-and-Finish Groups (Assumptions)

The Implementation Plan 2022-2027 provides a systematic and complete specification of the steps that are needed to execute the Strategic Plan 2022-2027 across all strategic areas, strategic goals, and initiatives on a semester-by-semester basis.

As the implementation proceeds, the interim results are then used to inform operational planning on an annual basis, which – in turn – feeds into the implementation for subsequent years.

As a comprehensive guide to implementation, the Implementation Plan 2022-2027 includes reference to all necessary taskand-finish groups required, and the standing committee to which they are responsible.

Oversight of the Implementation Plan

The Administrative Assembly which comprises of the 8 Standard Owners of the University reports to the University Council has been delegated responsibility for the Strategic Plan 2022-2027. This, in turn, implies that it has overall responsibility for its implementation, and thus for ensuring that the detailed execution steps contained in the Implementation Plan 2022-2027 are followed. It also, of course, has responsibility for annual operational planning, based on interim results and assessment arising from ongoing and successful implementation of the Strategic Plan 2022-2027 each year.

At the College and Department levels, coordination over implementation with the Administrative Assembly should be the responsibility of the College Council and Departmental Councils, respectively.

The College and Department Councils should also be responsible for steering operational planning at their levels in coordination with the relevant Task-and-Finish groups.

Overall, the major focus of operationalization rests on the task-and-finish groups at the institutional level, thus reducing the workload throughout the University – especially at the College and Department levels.

Navigating the Implementation Plan

Below are the pictures that will help navigating and understanding the structure of the implementation plan:

Effat University

PO Box 34689

Jeddah 21478

Saudi Arabia

Telephone: +966 92 000 3331

Fax: +966 12 637 7447

Email: effatuniversity@effatuniversity.edu.sa

www.effatuniversity.edu.sa