Start here —
ACTION: List every function, role, and task your team currently owns. Identify where your team is stretched thin, where capacity is lost to low-value work, and where a new hire would create the greatest return.
A. Protect This Role
"If this position disappears, so does this service."
SIGNALS
- One person owns a critical function with no backup : Caseloads are above sustainable ratios — quality slipping
- Staff absorbing multiple roles not in their job description : A gap here creates immediate compliance or student harm risk
EXAMPLES — ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT
- 1 financial aid counselor managing 600+ students solo : Single transfer evaluator — no backup coverage
- Admissions staff doubling as CRM administrators: No yield counselor — admitted students go uncontacted for weeks
- One person owns all SUNY application data — single failure point
SUSTAIN — Backfill or Protect This Position
Justify alignment to strategic goal in P-1 comments. Name the specific student or campus impact if this role goes unfilled.
B. Free Up Capacity
"This task is consuming time it shouldn't."
SIGNALS
- Staff manually doing what Banner or Slate already automates : Two offices sending duplicate communications to the same student
- Professional staff fielding FAQs a portal page could answer : Redesigning this would create bandwidth without a new hire
EXAMPLES — ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT
- Counselor building enrollment reports Banner auto-generates : Staff re-entering paper form data already in Slate
- Advisor fielding repeat FAQs a chatbot could resolve : Two offices sending separate welcome emails to the same admit
- Staff printing & mailing award letters available in the portal
SUNSET / COMBINE / REDESIGN — Reclaim Staff Time
Document the chosen path and rationale before P-1 submission. Fix B before requesting a new C hire.
C. Build New Capacity
"This is the work we can't do without a new position."
SIGNALS
- A strategic priority exists but no one owns it — it sits idle : Current staff absorb this on top of full caseloads
- A pilot is producing results but needs dedicated capacity to scale : This gap costs enrollment, revenue, or student outcomes
EXAMPLES — ENROLLMENT MANAGEMENT
- No transfer recruiter — despite transfer being a 2031 priority : Adult learner outreach owned by no one — opportunity lost
- CRM data quality deteriorating — no dedicated administrator : Dual enrollment pipeline needs a coordinator to build school ties
- Yield strategy absorbed by admissions at the cost of recruitment
DEVELOP — Invest & Make the New Hire Case
Name the priority, the gap, and the return. Connect to a named Strategic Plan goal. Be specific about what is at stake.
The staffing bottom line:
Not every gap needs a new hire. But some gaps cost more than a salary. Be specific about what is at stake.