Marketing and Communication

Scope

All university units.

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Policy Statement

The following provisions apply to marketing and communication (M&C) activities at Indiana University:

1. University-Level
   
   • University-level M&C activities are solely the responsibility of IU Communications and its staff. Such activities include the broad marketing of the university and university communications.
   • These activities should take place in the context of the university M&C strategy, the development of which is also a responsibility of IU Communications in conjunction with relevant stakeholders.
   • IU Communications is also responsible for providing chargeable M&C services throughout the university. It is preferred that units should utilize these services.
2. Campus-Level
   • Campus-level M&C activities and strategy must take place in the context of the overall university M&C strategy and adhere to the themes and principles of this strategy.
   • M&C strategies for individual campuses should be developed but they must be seen as supplements to the main university M&C strategy.
   • IU Communications and its staff are solely responsible for M&C activities and strategy development at IUB and IUPUI, in consultation with the Provost or Chancellor.
   • Regional campuses may need their own staff for M&C activities and strategy development to achieve their campus goals, but must consult with IU Communications before recruiting and hiring such staff. They should also utilize IU Communications services wherever possible and rigorously avoid the duplication of these services. Regional campus chancellors are responsible for ensuring this happens.
3. School-Level
   • School-level M&C activities must take place in the context of the overall university M&C strategy, and where relevant campus M&C strategies, and adhere to their themes and principles.
   • Individual schools should have M&C strategies but these must be seen as supplements to the main university M&C strategy and where relevant, the campus M&C strategy (or “strategies” for core schools).
   • IU Communications is solely responsible for M&C activities in the IU School of Medicine.
   • Under RCM, schools may have their own staff for M&C activities and strategy development, but must consult with IU Communications before recruiting and hiring such staff. They should utilize IU Communications services wherever possible and rigorously avoid the duplication of these services. Deans are responsible for ensuring this happens.
4. Other Academic Units
   • M&C activities at the level of academic units must take place in the context of the overall university, and where relevant, campus or school M&C strategies, and adhere to their themes and principles.
   • M&C strategies for individual units may be developed but they must be seen as supplements to the main university M&C strategy and where relevant, the campus or school M&C strategies.
   • Academic units may have their own staff for M&C activities and strategy development (for example where this is funded through an external grant), but they should utilize IU Communications services wherever possible and rigorously avoid the duplication of these services. Deans and units heads are responsible for ensuring this happens and for strictly limiting the growth of such staff.
5. Non-Academic Units
   • M&C activities at the level of non-academic non-revenue generating units that report to the provost or a vice president should take place only where there is a clear need for these activities. They must also take place in the context of the overall university, and where relevant, campus, school or academic unit M&C strategies, and adhere to their themes and principles.
   • M&C strategies for non-academic units may be developed but they must be seen as supplements to the main university M&C strategy, and where relevant, campus, school or academic strategies.
   • Non-academic units must evaluate the option of “contracting” with IU Communications for all their M&C needs. Where they have justifiable needs for their own staff for M&C activities and strategy development, they must consult with IU Communications before recruiting and hiring such staff. They should nevertheless still utilize IU Communications services wherever possible and rigorously avoid the duplication of these services. The provost and vice presidents are responsible for ensuring this happens.
6. Budget Conferences
   • Starting in 2012, all units will be required at their budget conference to report separately on their M&C activities if they have any. Specifically they should:
     • Summarize their M&C strategy
     • Identify all expenditures on M&C in three categories:
       • Expenditures directly linked to revenue generation (e.g. student recruitment)
       • Expenditures indirectly linked to revenue generation (e.g. promoting the quality of a program or unit externally)
       • Other expenditures not directly linked to revenue generation
     • Identify all staff at 75% or more engaged in M&C
     • Summarize the reasons the unit needs its own M&C staff and cannot rely solely on IU Communications.
     • Summarize what is being done to reduce M&C costs, for example through utilizing electronic media and minimizing printed material.
   • All data on M&C expenditures and staff will then be compiled and aggregated and compiled by the CFO’s office in conjunction with IU Communications for further review in the context of final budget construction and approval.
7. Consultants
   • All proposals by units to engage M&C consultants must be approved by the Vice President for IU Communications.
   • Where there is a clear need for a unit to engage an M&C consultant, where possible a consultant already engaged in university or campus level M&C activity should be engaged.

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Reason for Policy

IU’s marketing and communications (M&C) activities are essential for the recruitment of excellent and qualified students as well as superb faculty and staff, attracting external funding, informing alumni of the university’s successes and achievements to help build and expand philanthropic support, and to inform the citizens and legislators of the state of the outstanding progress IU continues to make as the State’s flagship public university serving Indiana. These activities should be derived from a robust and dynamic university M&C strategy.

Indiana University is one of the State’s largest enterprises with enormous diversity in the units that comprise it and the heterogeneous nature of the various missions it pursues. This necessitates a hybrid structure for M&C activities at IU. These comprise a centralized core and closely coordinated activities that are associated with units at the different administrative levels of the university. However there is always the risk in a hybrid structure of conflicting or inappropriate messages, wasteful duplication and unnecessary expenditures. This policy will govern this structure and provide mechanisms for carefully controlling and monitoring costs.

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History

This policy was established in 2012 and updated in November 2013 to reflect the shift of responsibility from the Office of Public Affairs and Government Relations to IU Communications.

Policy number updated June 2014 from PAGR to COMM.

Policy number updated March 2015 to reflect responsibility of the Office of the Vice President for Engagement

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