CASE STUDY: THE PELICAN COLLEGE" Introduction You have been appointed to a position as a trainee consultant for Ace Strategies (Manchester). You receive a contract with your base salary and benefits, and an expense account. Arriving at 8.30am on your second day at Ace Strategies, you Jearn that your first job is to develop an initial speculative proposal for the "The Pelican:College" that will be used as the basis for future discussions when you meet them at the end of the week. The value of the account has yet to be decided, Market Overview The Pelican College’.is: a private institution founded in 1954 which see themselves as one of the few in the market that offers quality training with a strong benefit to industry (but note that the overall private business training sector has a poor image). The price of tuition is £2,300 to £7,100 with the avetage being around, £5,000). Such private colleges generally appeal to studénts requiring quick results and/or speciality training. The Pelican College ernploys about 120 people and enrols approximately 4,000 students annually int Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester and Oxford. ‘They staff four full time placement people delivering an average placement of graduates of 87%.’ The Pelican College offers a solid service in that, once you have graduated from the College, their placement officers continue to assist graduates in finding suitable-upgrade positions as the students feel they have outgrown their positions... They also employ career counsellors who assist students in deciding which course would be most beneficial. The Pelican College takes pride in not placing a student into a course which they are not likely to succeed or find work. Market Currently female students represent roughly 80% of current Pelican College students, There are three primary groups of targets: *, Graduates with no or minimal work experience. + People who have completed or have not completed GCSE or A level exams, but have a number of years of work experience and are seeking to upgrade their skills, + Individuals who have been away from the work force and are seeking a means of getting re-employed. People’s Requirements No or Minimal Work Experience: "This c fictitious; any resemblance to personal or bi OXFORD J, and Essam Ibrahim, 2015, All rights rest ® Douglas West, JohMany students graduate or leave school without much work experience and have little idea of what they are going to do for a living. Those interested in College or University often find that they do not have the appropriate prerequisites for the course that interest them. Individuals Requiring Upgrading: Lots of people find they are stagnating in their current position and it may be that they seeking more fulfilment, greater career opportunities and/or more money. Also, upgrading may be required to prosper within their existing employ, whether it is to keep up with technology or their peers. Re-entering the Work Force: This category consists’ mainly women who have been away from work for some time due to family considerations. As a result of the family growing up, boredom, divorce, or néed for income and/or self-improvement, they will often look for a refresher, upgrade, or basic skill course as a tool to enter/re-enter the work force. For someone who: has been away for some time and lacks self- confidence, this can-be’a difficult first step. The entire process of seeking a school and/or work, can.-be very intimidating, especially after several rejections. Regulations on most courses stipulate that Individuals must have certain prerequisites or theyimust take entry exams. Applicants have been known to break down and cty or excuse themselves during such tests to go to the lavatory and never return. Strategic Direction of Pelican Graduate Market: * Capitalize on the Pelican College course benefits, which include shorter courses that provide: students with the essential skills to obtain immediate employment in their area of interest. Emphasize that the Pelican College offers counselling on courses best suited to the applicant.and that the course components resemble what the student is likely to encounter within the new work environment. * Communicate that ‘classes are small allowing for personal attention when necessary and that each class is designed to be self-paced. In addition, it should be very clear to prospective students that the Pelican College has a placement service with a very good record of performance. Concentrate on courses (see Table) which are likely to appeal to young graduates with no or minimal experience. Upgrade Market: ‘© Once again, capitalise on the immediacy of Pelican College course benefits. With this category, day and night course flexibility should be communicated. « Address the ‘Achilles heel’ of people who are frustrated with their current situation and who want to make a change but belleve that they would have to invest several years in extended education to obtain the necessary tools to do so. = OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS © Douglas West, John Ford, and Essam Ibrahim, 2018. All rights r+ Perhaps appeal to individuals wanting to grow within their current field ie. the secretary wanting greater income could look at the Legal Secretary or Medical Secretarial course). A Legal Secretary could look at a Professional Legal Assistant. A business-person may want to take ai TT skills course to keep up with their peers and/or technology. An Accounting Clerk may want to take Advanced Accounting and so forth, The placement service/record and individual counselling should not be ignored with this group. Re-entry Market: The strategy for this group should be designed to appeal to individuals who are lacking self-confidence and are not likely to respond to strategies appropriate for the upgrade market. These individuals likely don't know where to start despite a gnawing need’ to.;do something. The positioning should combine Pelican College's image and performance benefits, providing the prospect with @ sense of hope and confidence. This group might be viewed as a new product introduction. : OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS © Douglas West, John Ford, and Essam Ibrahim, 2015, All rights reserved.COURSES, wae] Fenale | tackWork pede | Reenter upetance | (Workers) | Work ore Travel &Toutsrn teweets | am | om 20% 0% 20% ‘Admin. Secretary 18 Weeks x || 95% - 60% 40% (egal Sertary nowees | 10% || 50% a z soe eical Secretary nowe’s | % | 35% zi 100% : H Prof. Legal Asst, 44 Weeks asx i 13% - 100% - i aude swe | a] 3H 70% : iraacatlag Taweeks | 35% [| 65% Be i r ew coukses pene constoenen: , Personal Assistant | 100% 2% ms Ee i (aw ofce Management som || 50% 0% 7 som havanced Acountng wees | 3% |] ox 70% 20% : QUESTIONS Despite its continued success, the Pelican College has appreciated for some years that while it has formulated a good overall value proposition to its market, it is unsure about how to formulate its future marketing strategy: 4. Discuss the nature of the education market and the long-term nature of planning and allocation of resources. 2. Identify the requirements of the graduate, upgrade and re-entry markets based upon discussion and develop a successful strategy. Source: This case was prepared by Douglas West of King’s College London as the basis for analysis and class discussion and not to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of an administrative situation. OXFORD . UNIVERSITY PRESS © Douglas West, John Ford, and Essam Ibrahim, 2016, All rights reserved