Printed book | Softcover | 420 pages | Publication date: 2009
Author Mike Townsley examines the financial and strategic resources that private colleges and universities must have in place to withstand the storm. Small college presidents, CFOs, planners, chief academic officers, and board members all have a hand on the tiller and will find substantive guidance here on analyzing financial conditions, reshaping strategy, implementing best practices, weathering rocky periods, and designing turnarounds. Readers will learn:
1. Current financial conditions and statistics for private colleges and universities
2. Economics of markets, prices, and constraints that drive private institutions
3. Common financial structures Model practices employed in a well-run business office
4. Typical business models that are the framework for strategy, operations, and finance
6. Recommended policies and procedures to safeguard against disaster Strategic planning for optimum performance
7. Leadership qualities and characteristics
8. Warning signs of financial distress
9. Comparative case histories of private colleges that have succeeded and failed Lessons learned from college closures and steps for dramatic turnarounds
10. A set of principles for building and sustaining strategic momentum
Looking ahead to looming financial pressures, Townsley offers advice on maintaining a forward momentum detailing specific measures for monitoring performance and posing top-of-mind questions that will help financial officers maintain the vigilance required to turn a problem into an opportunity. Well illustrated and documented with the latest statistics, Small College Guide to Financial Health: Weathering Turbulent Times includes a CD with several tools and templates for analyzing and designing a winning financial strategy.