Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking

SYST 490 Final Report Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking Final Report Mary Barthelson Issam Boumlic Souheil El-Hage Hammoud Ummer Shamma Department of Systems Engineering and Operations Research George Mason University Fairfax, VA 22030-4444 October 16, 2013 November 30, 2013 Final Report Table of Contents 1.0 Context Analysis 1.1 Private vs Public Universities .4 1.1.1 Private Universities .4 1.1.2 Public Universities 1.1.3 Private vs Public Universities: Cost 1.1.4 Private vs Public Universities: Academic Quality 1.2 Recruitment Process 1.2.1 High School Recruitment Process 1.2.2 Undergraduate Recruitment Process .6 1.3 Social Networking .7 1.3.1 Social Networking and Universities Interaction 1.3.2 Social Networking Websites .8 1.3.3 Universities Recruiting Tools .8 1.3.4 Social Network tools currently used .9 2.0 Stakeholder Analysis 11 2.1 Primary Stakeholders/Goals: .11 2.2 Secondary Stakeholders/Goals 12 2.3 Stakeholder Tension Analysis 12 3.0 Scope 14 4.0 Gap Analysis 15 Figure 4.1 Gap Diagrams 15 5.0 Problem Statement 16 6.0 Win-Win 17 7.0 Need Statement 18 8.0 System Requirements 19 9.0 Proposed Solutions 20 10.0 Methodology of Analysis .21 11.0 Design of Experiment 22 11.1 Student Surveys .22 11.2 Interview/Survey of Admissions Employees 22 11.3 Queuing model in Arena 22 12.0 Simulation Design .23 12.1 Preliminary Simulation Overview (Current System) 23 12.2 Input Data 25 12.2.1 Entities 25 12.2.2 Attributes .25 12.2.3 Processes .29 12.2.4 Decision Blocks 29 12.2.5 Resources 30 12.3 Output Data 31 12.4 Assumptions .31 13.0 Value Hierarchy 32 14.0 Project Management 33 14.1 Work Breakdown Structure 33 14.2 Budget 34 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 14.3 Project Schedule 35 14.4 Milestones 39 14.6 Risk/Mitigation 40 References 41 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 1.0 Context Analysis 1.1 Private vs Public Universities 1.1.1 Private Universities Many universities and colleges are private, operated as educational and research nonprofit organizations The term "university" is primarily used to designate graduate education and research institutions 1.1.2 Public Universities In the US, most public institutions are state universities founded and operated by state governments Every state has at least one public university This is partially due to the 1862 Morrill Land-Grant Acts, which gave each eligible state 30,000 acres of federal land to sell to finance public institutions offering study for practical fields in addition to the liberal arts Many public universities began as teacher training schools and eventually were expanded into comprehensive universities A public university has a few features that distinguish it from private universities:  Size - The size of public universities varies widely The largest universities in the country are all public (for example, UT Austin and OSU)  Division I Athletics - The great majority of Division I athletic teams are fielded by public universities  Low Cost - Public universities typically have tuition that is considerably lower than private universities, especially for in-state students  Commuter and Part-time Students - Public universities tend to have more commuter and part-time students than private colleges and universities  The Downside - Read the profiles of universities carefully In many cases, public universities have lower graduation rates, higher student / faculty ratios and more loan aid (thus, more student debt) than private universities Public universities share many features with private universities:  Undergraduate and graduate student focus - large public universities have significant masters and doctoral programs Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013  Final Report Graduate degrees - at large public universities, advanced degree offerings such as an M.A., M.F.A., M.B.A., J.D., Ph.D., and M.D are common  Broad academic offerings - students can often choose courses in the liberal arts, sciences, engineering, business, health and fine arts  Faculty focus on research - At big-name public universities, professors is often evaluated for their research and publishing first, and teaching second Teaching may take priority at branch campuses and regional public universities 1.1.3 Private vs Public Universities: Cost It is general knowledge that public university tuition is less expensive for in-state students than out-of-state students Public tuition, even for out-of-state students, is far less expensive than tuition for students at private institutions For example, the 2010-11 tuition & fees for an in-state student at State University of New York Binghamton is $4,970 per year and for an out-of-state student $13,380 (Kiplinger’s ranks Binghamton as the top US out-of-state public school value) With room & board of $11,886, the annual attendance cost for an in-state student is $18,825 SUNY's smart marketers compare these costs to a private university, with tuition & fees at $39,150, room & board $12,000 and an annual cost of attendance $51,150 1.1.4 Private vs Public Universities: Academic Quality Public universities figure prominently in US News & World Report’s 2011 rankings of the top 50 national universities The public universities in the top 50 national universities include: UC Berkeley, UCLA, U Virginia, U Michigan, UNC Chapel Hill, William & Mary, Georgia Tech, UC San Diego, UC Davis, UC Santa Barbara, UC Irvine, U Washington, U Texas Austin, U Wisconsin Madison, Penn State, and U Illinois Urbana-Champaign However, attending a public university may require trade-offs in the quality of the undergraduate experience, such as larger class sizes Public institutions in the top 50 have a percentage of classes with fewer than 20 students ranging from 30% to 60% Whereas private institutions in the top 50 have a percentage of classes with under 20 students ranging from 47% to 80% Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 1.2 Recruitment Process 1.2.1 High School Recruitment Process This diagram shows High School student recruitment process The student is either approched or not When students are approched they are either interested or not If they are interested they become inquiries and they apply or they loose interest If they apply they either get accepted or rejected If they get accepted, they either enroll or refuse to enroll due to other reasons 1.2.2 Undergraduate Recruitment Process The current undergraduate recruitment system is a “Drag-net” approach to recruiting, which universities attempt to mass-recruit by contacting as many students as possible, in hopes that most of the students will apply to the university With this approach, universities neglect to search for quality students; instead focusing on quantity In order to fill their enrollment targets, universities typically market toward under-filled programs This means that if a certain program at a university has a low amount of students, they will work on encouraging prospective students to enroll in that program at their school Universities will also market towards sources of applicants in the past In order to stay under budget, universities will focus of recruiting systems that produce a large number of results at the lowest cost A good example of this is sending emails to students, as it does not cost universities anything to send someone an email They will also recruit out-ofstate students, as costs for these students tend to be much higher as opposed to in-state students Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report To improve the quality of enrolled students, universities will increase the size of their applicant pool in hopes of recruiting as many high quality students as possible This approach helps to beat other universities who are also looking for the best students 1.3 Social Networking 1.3.1 Social Networking and Universities Interaction This figure shows how users create profiles through social network websites The process begins with a student creating a profile At this point, the student is now a user of the website, which enables them to be noticed by universities Once the user is accepted into the university, Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report they enroll in the university After the student studies at the university, they exit the process as a skilled laborer who can contribute to the economy 1.3.2 Social Networking Websites Social networking websites are platforms that build social relations among people who share interests, activities, backgrounds, etc It consists of users, their social links, and other services Most are web-based and provide means for users to interact with each other, such as messaging, public chats, etc They enable individuals to self-organize into communities, which allow for swift communication They also break geographical and social barriers, which allow connections to be identified at the global level Some examples of social networking websites in the U.S include Facebook, Twitter, and Google Plus 1.3.3 Universities Recruiting Tools Universities use various tools in order to recruit prospective students to their schools Of these tools, 94% of universities use traditional college fairs, where colleges visit high schools and meet prospective students in person 82% of schools contact students by phone call 79% of schools will send students either letters in the mail or emails that provide information about the school, including various majors offered, recreational activities, university achievements, etc 70% of universities will reach out to students via Facebook or various college search websites They use these two tools to connect students to online information about the university Some colleges, 25%, will reach out to students via Twitter, and send “tweets” encouraging students to look into and consider their university Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 1.3.4 Social Network tools currently used CRM Tool: CRM (customer relationship management) is an information industry term for methodologies, software, and usually Internet capabilities that help an enterprise manage customer relationships in an organized way For example, an enterprise might build a database about its customers that described relationships in sufficient detail so that management, salespeople, people providing service, and perhaps the customer directly could access information, match customer needs with product plans and offerings, remind customers of service requirements, know what other products a customer had purchased, and so forth According to one industry view, CRM consists of:  Helping an enterprise to enable its marketing departments to identify and target their best customers, manage marketing campaigns and generate quality leads for the sales team  Assisting the organization to improve telesales, account, and sales management by optimizing information shared by multiple employees, and streamlining existing processes (for example, taking orders using mobile devices)  Allowing the formation of individualized relationships with customers, with the aim of improving customer satisfaction and maximizing profits; identifying the most profitable customers and providing them the highest level of service  Providing employees with the information and processes necessary to know their customers understand and identify customer needs and effectively build relationships between the company, its customer base, and distribution partners College Board: an organization that prepares and administers standardized tests that are used in college admission and placement In addition to managing tests for which it charges fees, the College Board works with programs that claim to increase achievement by poor and minority middle and high school students Funded by grants from various foundations, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the College Board Schools operate autonomously within New York City public school buildings Cappex: aims to try give students some relief by helping students connect with colleges and universities that are interested in recruiting them The site aims to help students, guidance counselors and school administrators by connecting them all via the web Students simply fill out a profile and schools can look for students through Cappex based on profile criteria Similar to LinkedIn, Cappex enables schools to attempt to connect with students but students can choose Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report which schools they are interested in connecting with School administrators can leverage Cappex as a recruiting tool to search for prospective students Guidance counselors can also get involved with Cappex by registering to assist student throughout the school selection process According to Cappex.com:  47 percent of schools said college social media sites are important or critically important  Nearly one third of colleges receive as many as to 20 percent of their enrollments via college search social media sites  39% of schools cited an increase in enrollments resulting from college search social media sites  Nearly 50 percent of colleges said they will dedicate more resources to college search social media in 2011-2012 10 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report Statistical Analysis Freshman Admissions Budget Executive Summaries 2001-2012 Distribution: Expression: Square Error: Test Statistic Corresponding pvalue Number Uniform UNIF(5.52e+003, GPA Beta 3.23 + 0.53 * 9.67e+003) BETA(1.38, 1.27) 0.036111 0.007278 Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test 0.121 0.0998 > 0.15 SAT Beta 1.1e+003 + 80 * BETA(0.744, 0.564) 0.018859 0.156 > 0.15 > 0.15 12 12 Data Summary Number of Data Points Min Data Value Max Data Value Sample Mean Sample Std Dev Histogram Range Number of Intervals 12 5520 3.28 9670 3.71 7550 3.51 1360 0.139 Histogram Summary = 5.52e+003 to = 3.23 to 3.76 9.67e+003 5 1100 1180 1150 26.1 = 1.1e+003 to 1.18e+003 27 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report Statistical Analysis Freshman Enrollments Budget Executive Summaries 2001-2012 Distribution: Expression: Square Error: Test Statistic Corresponding p-value Number of Data Points Min Data Value Max Data Value Sample Mean Sample Std Dev Number Beta 2.15e+003 + 547 * GPA Uniform UNIF(3.15, BETA(0.439, 0.379) 3.7) 0.039663 0.008333 Kolmogorov-Smirnov Test 0.296 0.117 > 0.15 > 0.15 Data Summary 12 12 2150 3.2 2690 3.65 2440 3.43 202 0.15 Histogram Summary Histogram Range = 2.15e+003 to 2.69e+003 = 3.15 to 3.7 Number of Intervals 5 SAT Beta 1.08e+003 + 79 * BETA(0.92, 0.695) 0.105844 0.187 > 0.15 12 1080 1160 1120 24.2 = 1.08e+003 to 1.16e+003 28 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 12.2.3 Processes The current processes depicted are top-level: university processing prospects, university profiling student, and university analyzing applications The employee interviews and surveys will be used to separate these processes into their subcomponents A cost will be added to students at each step in the process, which will add up to be the total cost of recruiting or attempting to recruit that student 12.2.4 Decision Blocks The current decision blocks depicted correspond to the top-level processes: prospect decision to contact inquiry, inquiry decision to apply, university admission decision, and applicant decision to enroll The employee interviews and surveys will be used to determine what additional decision blocks need to be added and what criteria will be used to determine entity path 29 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 12.2.5 Resources Below is a current list of all employees Employee surveys and interviews will narrow down the list of which employees will be included in the model, as well as what processes they are assigned to and their associated costs and schedules The employees listed below are full-time, but there are seasonal employees that need to be identified along with their salaries Department/Employee Composition Obj/Tasks Salary Admissions Information Systems and Technology * Director * $78,557 Associate Director * $68,135 Communication and Data Management Analyst * * Database Developer and Report Designer * * Information Technology Specialist * $48,000 System Support Analyst * $43,740 Sr Web Developer & Webmaster * $56,587 Admissions Operations * Associate Dean * 112,875 Associate Director * $84,242 Document Center Manager * * Document Center Specialists (2) * $31,500 K-12 Partnership * K-12 Partnerships Director * $82,775 K-12 Partnerships Associate Directors (2) * * Admissions for Special Programs * * Events Manager * * Events Coordinator * * Undergraduate Admissions * * Director of Undergraduate Admissions * $80,340 Senior Associate Director * $42,000 Associate Director * $42,025 Assistant Director * $36,300 Administrative Counselors (5) * $37,413 Administrative Fellows (4) * $32,240** Marketing * Director * * Assistant Directors (2) * * Senior Admissions Counselors (3) * $33,000 Admissions Counselors (2) * $32,000*** Customer Operations Manager * * *Still being determined, ** Salary for Administrative Assistant, *** Salary for Admissions Coordinators 30 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 12.3 Output Data The model will record the following data as the entities leave the system: number of uninterested prospects, the number of uninterested inquiries, the number of enrolled students, the number of uninterested applicants, and the number of rejected applicants GPAs and SAT scores will be recorded for each of these categories in addition to total cost to process each student Subprocess information will also be output in the report which will help identify bottlenecks in the system and the effectiveness of different social networking options Analysis of this information from the model of the current system will lead to a better understanding of the recruitment process, which will lead to a more comprehensive list of requirements, and the development of a more complete list of alternatives 12.4 Assumptions The scope will be finalized after a full data analysis of the survey and interview results Assumptions will be developed to supplement information deemed essential that is unobtainable Most assumptions will either involve simplification of processes or estimation of cost 31 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 13.0 Value Hierarchy 0.5 0.3 0.2 Three factors will be used to determine the best recruitment process alternative: enrollment yield, cost, and the quality of the students recruited Enrollment yield was given the highest weight, as enrollment targets must be met in order for the university to make revenue for operation The cost of the process was given the next highest weight The admissions department has a set budget that they must not go over The quality of student recruits was weighted slightly less than the cost Quality students are essential to ensure improved university standing in the long run 32 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 14.0 Project Management 14.1 Work Breakdown Structure 33 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 14.2 Budget The budget was estimated by organizing project tasks into Microsoft Project and assigning approximate time frames for their completion The estimated total budget is $289,885.07 This includes $136,096.28 from direct labor costs and $153,788.79 from overhead and charges for research by George Mason University Researchers earn 47% of total labor charges, according to their standard rate Each team member has a pay rate of $45/hour, in accordance with average rates of junior systems engineers Research and management account for the highest costs, as they continue from the commencement of the project until its completion Simulation design, build, and analysis are the next most labor intensive tasks 34 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 14.3 Project Schedule Figure 14.3.1 Projected Budget 35 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report Figure 14.3.2 PV/AC/EV 36 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report Figure 14.3.4 CPI/SPI Figure 14.3.5 Project Schedule 37 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 38 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 14.4 Milestones 39 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report 14.5 Critical Path Analysis Tasks falling along the critical path are highlighted in red on the schedule These tasks fall along the path of the simulation, and a delay in any of these tasks could lead to a delay in the project 14.6 Risk/Mitigation Access to data from all sources was either incomplete or delayed As a result of this, many project components are not finalized To mitigate the data constraints, surveys are being developed The surveys will help requirements be developed From the requirements, a more comprehensive list of alternatives can be developed and simulated 40 Design of a Recruiter-Student Connection System Using Social Networking November 30, 2013 Final Report References Angelescu, Laura, Easterlin, R (n.d.) Retrieved from http://ftp.iza.org/dp2755.pdf April 2013 World Economic Outlook (WEO) Agapitova, Natalia [2003]: “The Impact of Social Networks on Innovation and Industrial Development,” DRUID Summer Conference, Copenhagen/Ellsinore http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2013/update/02/ Enriquez, Leon A [2002] Editorial Thoughtscapes [Online]