The Full Story
Northumbria University is an award-winning institution, named Times Higher Education University of the Year 2022 and ranked among the UK’s top research universities. Like much of the sector, however, it faces ongoing funding pressures that place increased demands on teams managing student communications.
To understand how Northumbria has responded, the CRM team shared how they’ve reshaped their approach in a resource-constrained environment. Phil Smith, CRM Manager, and Michael Towsey, CRM Systems Specialist, oversee a wide range of responsibilities, from system training to bespoke configuration and collaboration with marketing and recruitment teams.
Training users and supporting custom developments are essential to effective CRM use, but they are also time consuming. “We don’t want to have to train people again and again,” says Smith. “That’s why Gecko has always been so useful – because it’s so easy to use.”
To manage time pressures, the team adopted a self-service model. Most users now receive a short introductory session, after which they are able to manage their own activity independently. Gecko’s intuitive interface made this shift possible, allowing colleagues across the university, from admissions to the careers service, to quickly get up and running, even where requirements differ.
By moving to a self-service approach, the CRM team has been able to focus its time where it has the greatest impact. Rather than repeating training or providing constant support, they concentrate on consolidating forms, refining workflows, managing user groups and supplying templates that promote best practice.
This model gives departments the tools they need to run effective engagement activity, while ensuring consistency and quality across communications. For Northumbria’s CRM team, it means doing more with less, maintaining strong student communications while protecting limited time and resources.