Challenge

• Designer and producer of accredited online degree programs for leading universities needed a system to help it manage all aspects of its business, including admissions, program administration, and faculty interactions
• As a new company, 2tor, Inc. wanted a cost-effective solution that could be quickly rolled out and easily expanded
• Needed to manage information on more than 1,300 students in USC’s Master of Arts in Teaching program and easily scale for additional universities

• Chose salesforce.com for the Force.com cloud platform’s rapid development and deployment plus its SAS 70 Type II compliance
• Tapped salesforce.com partner Bluewolf for administrator training
• Deployed to 100 users, including admissions counselors, help desk, and operations
• Configured the salesforce.com user interface to map to education and used Force.com code to configure workflows to send applicant information to the appropriate admissions counselor
• Built a custom admissions application in just 6 weeks to manage faculty approvals; after online applications are accepted, personalized admissions documents are automatically emailed to prospective students through Drawloop’s API integration with DocuSign for electronic signatures
• Developed another application in just 2 weeks to manage scholarship applications; a points system helps administrators award scholarships and manage the financial aid budget
• Configured the customer portal interface to let university administrators easily access data via the iPhone browser
• Integrated with Google Earth so up-to-date maps of enrolled applicant locations can be displayed at all 2tor offices
• Integrated with Kampyle to conduct surveys measuring student satisfaction and to create cases via web-to-case to allow tracking and intervention by the help desk
• Adding a custom tool—built with Force.com and Arrowpointe Maps from the AppExchange—to match student teachers with local schools

• Cloud computing business platform saves over $500,000 annually that would have been spent to purchase and develop tools to support the business; new tools and applications can be quickly deployed and new universities can be easily brought online
• Reduced admissions turnaround time (from application to enrollment) from 9 weeks to just days
• Improved forecasting—via easy access to data—helps USC better anticipate staffing needs for upcoming semesters
• Integrated student feedback improves retention, which is critical for maintaining revenues
• Mobile access helps university administrators be more efficient—applications can be viewed and approved from almost anywhere